Some believe Tommy Kono became the United States' best lifter in the 1950s.
York Barbell weightlifter Tommy Kono won two Olympic golds and one silver.
Some experts believe he's the best American lifter ever.
Who was Tommy Kono?
See:York Town Square post - Tommy Kono: 'He's the greatest weightlifter -- and I'm talking worldwide'
Bob Hoffman, second from right in this photo from York Barbell, and his company spawned numerous Olympic wrestlers.
Bob Hoffman had died and York Barbell was no longer producing Olympic-caliber lifters.
But the company made a contribution to the international scene in the early 1990s. See 20 questions and answers to prove your York County smarts for the answer.
This panel, part of the Murals of York series, features two York-based Olympic weightlifters, Tommy Kono, center, and John Grimek, right. That's York Barbell's Bob Hoffman, four-time Olympic coach, at left.
York Barbell and Bob Hoffman turned out many Olympic weightlifters.
One of Hoffman's favorites was 1936 Olympian and two-time Mr. America John Grimek.
Read more about Grimek at John Grimek lifted up musclemen of York, Pa..
Look mom, only one hand. Legendary bodybuilder John Grimek lifts a York Barbell in this photo, courtesy York County Heritage Trust. Grimek finished ninth in the heavyweight division in the 1936 Olympics.
York's Bob Hoffman coached several Olympic weightlifting teams to medal level. He was assistant coach in 1948 and 1952 and head coach in 1956 and 1960.
In a book published a few years ago, John Fair provided an honest look Hoffman's story, as reviewed in the York Town Square blog post: Author muscles way into York's weightlifting, bodybuilding world .
York Barbell's Bob Hoffman was one of the Olympians to make York/Adams top top-athletes-of-the-century list.
Several years ago, the York Sunday News rated Bob Hoffman, founder of York Barbell, and Scott Strausbaugh, of canoe fame, among its top York and Adams counties sports figures in the 20th century. Special Olympian Loretta Claiborne was named to the list, too.
For details on their achievements, plus others on the list, see: Who were most prominent 20th-century sports heroes in York and Adams counties?
This Associated Press photograph shows Dover's Scott Strausbaugh, front, and Joe Jacobi of Bethesda, Md., in their successful quest for a gold medal in men's canoeing whitewater doubles in 1992 Olympic competition in Seu d'Urbell Spain.
Dover-area's Scott Strausbaugh was the last York countian to bring home a Olympic medal.
Those in his home area saw his athletic prowess from an early age. To revisit community reaction after he won his medal, see Olympic gold medalist Scott Strausbaugh another Dover product.
Olympian-turned-attorney Whitney Metzler in 2008.
Whitney Metzler is York County's most recent Olympian finishing eighth 400-meter IM in 1996.
Today, she has an entirely different career, as outlined in Olympic medalist/lawyer Whitney Metzler comes home to York County.
Becky Goodling, a West Manchester Township native and 2005 West York Area High School graduate, is in Beijing through Aug. 26 as an intern with NBC Sports during the Olympics. She is a student at Ithaca College in New York who expects to graduate in May 2009.
She answered questions via e-mail from York Daily Record/Sunday News correspondent Greg Gross.
Q: You've been in China a few days now. Was it a culture shock when you got there? If so, what surprised you most about the country and its people?
A: When we arrived at the airport in Beijing, they had the entire terminal shut down, and a welcome committee, complete with waving mascots, video cameras, and people snapping pictures waiting to greet us as we exited the tarmac.
The first thing I noticed was the overwhelming hospitality of the Chinese, almost excessive at times. They are incredibly polite, patient and always smiling, and ready to help you in any way they can.
At the hotels, there is a person whose job it is to wait outside the elevator, just to push the button for you as you climb in, and at the gym where I'm staying, it's someone's job just to open and close the door for me.
At the 24-hour Starbucks at the NBC commissary, someone will take the sugar container out of your hand and pour it for you.
The Chinese are also very proud of their country, and proud of the Olympics. Everyone is sporting Olympic T-shirts and excited to see our credentials and ask us if we're working for the Olympics -- much different from the U.S. where the residents of the host city are excited, but in a much more passive way.
