Roy Charles Wagelein (October 19, 1943 – June 24, 2008) was an American

pair skater Pair skating is a figure skating discipline defined by the International Skating Union (ISU) as "the skating of two persons in unison who perform their movements in such harmony with each other as to give the impression of genuine Pair Skating a ...

. He was the 1967

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silver medalist with Susan Behrens and competed with Sandi Sweitzer at the

1968 Winter Olympics The 1968 Winter Olympics, officially known as the X Olympic Winter Games (), were a winter multi-sport event held from 6 to 18 February 1968 in Grenoble, France. Thirty-seven countries participated. The 1968 Winter Games marked the first time ...

, finishing 7th.

Personal life

Wagelein was born on October 19, 1943, in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. In 1961, he graduated from the

Hollywood Professional School Hollywood Professional School was a private school in Hollywood, California. Initially established as a music conservatory by pianist Gladys T. Littell in 1921 under the name Hollywood Conservatory of Music and Arts, the school quickly expanded it ...

in Hollywood, California. He married Sandi Sweitzer following the 1968 Olympics and the two had a daughter, Kristia, before divorcing. Wagelein died on June 24, 2008, in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...

Career

Wagelein started skating as a 22-month-old at the Hollywood Polar Palace and became a member of the Los Angeles Figure Skating Club. He also trained at the Pasadena Winter Garden and Pickwick Ice. Wagelein originally competed in partnership with Susan Behrens. After becoming the 1965 national junior silver medalists, the pair moved up to the senior level and took silver behind Cynthia Kauffman / Ronald Kauffman at the 1966 U.S. Championships in

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Anglo-Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland, Cali ...

. They were then sent to their first major international, the 1966 World Championships in

Davos Davos (, ; or ; ; Old ) is an Alpine resort town and municipality in the Prättigau/Davos Region in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It has a permanent population of (). Davos is located on the river Landwasser, in the Rhaetian ...

, Switzerland, where they ranked 11th. The following year, Behrens/Wagelein won silver behind the Kauffmans at the U.S. Championships in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

and at the North American Championships in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Canada. They finished 7th at the 1967 World Championships in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, Austria. In the 1967–68 season, Wagelein competed with Sandi Sweitzer. The two were awarded the silver medal behind the Kauffman siblings at the 1968 U.S. Championships and were included in the U.S. team to the

Grenoble Grenoble ( ; ; or ; or ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of the Isère Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region ...

, France. They placed 8th in the short program, 6th in the free skate, and 7th overall at the Olympics. Making their final competitive appearance, they placed 8th at the 1968 World Championships in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

, Switzerland. After retiring from competition, Sweitzer/Wagelein performed with the West Company of the

Ice Capades The Ice Capades were traveling entertainment shows featuring theatrical ice skating performances. Shows often featured former Winter Olympic Games, Olympic and United States Figure Skating Championships, US National Champion figure skating, figur ...

for seven years.

Results

With Sweitzer

With Behrens

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wagelein, Roy 1943 births 2008 deaths American male pair skaters Olympic figure skaters for the United States Figure skaters at the 1968 Winter Olympics 20th-century American sportsmen