Alfred Proksch
Encyclopedia
Alfred Proksch (December 11, 1908 – January 3, 2011) was an Austria
n Olympic athlete and graphic designer
. The son of one of the co-founders of the Wiener Sport-Club, Proksch took an active interest in both athletics and graphic design from an early age. By the age of 19 he had started his own design company and would later become a founder, then president, of the Confederation of Austrian Graphic Designers. He was also a key figure in the founding of Icograda
.
By the age of 17, Proksch was a champion pole vault
er and competed internationally, most notably placing 6th in the event at the 1936 Summer Olympics
. He broke the Austrian record for the event on eight separate occasions. Even after turning 100, he continued to compete at the World's Masters Championships, often unopposed in his age bracket. Having won 14 gold medals at the games after 1994, he was considered the world's oldest active athlete. He was one of the last two known surviving track and field competitors from the 1936 Olympic Games to still be competing (the other being Ljubica Gabric-Calvesi
).
to Ignaz Proksch and Henriette Gaugusch. His father was a secretary to the House of Schwarzenberg
and, although his family was initially poor, they became better off financially after World War I. He attended boarding school with his four brothers and, by the age of 15, was already earning money as an illustrator under the pseudonym Fedor Broskow. He worked at various jobs designing posters until 1926, when he entered the University of Applied Arts Vienna
. He later took courses at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna
.
and experienced difficulties in finding work. In 1933 he married Ida Moser, a fashion designer and model, and had four children with her.
Proksch's father was one of the co-founders of the Wiener Sport-Club and encouraged his son to participate in athletic activities. At the age of 17 he was the Vienna Youth Champion and over the course of his career he set the Austrian record in the pole vault
eight times. At the 1936 Summer Olympics
in Berlin he placed 6th in the Men's Pole Vault
competition with a height of 4.00m. He set his personal best at this event on August 2, 1937, in London with a height of 4.115.
. At the end of the war he hid in Waldviertel
and Spitz
, working low-key jobs as a graphic designer, before settling in Eichgraben
in 1947. In 1963 he was present at the meeting that helped found what has become the world body for professional communication design and visual communication, Icograda
. Awarded the title of "Professor" in 1967, he retired from graphic design at the age of 70. His son Peter Proksch is also a painter and graphic designer.
From 1955 to 2005 he was President of the Vienna Cricket and Football-Club. Through 2009, Proksch continued to compete in athletics tournaments and lived on his own, his wife having died in the 1980s. Between 1994 and 2009 he won 14 gold medals, as well as one silver, in the World's Masters Championships, in the discus
, shot put
and javelin throw
events. In 2009 he had cardiac surgery
after a heart attack, as well as knee surgery, but nevertheless continued to participate in shot put events, winning gold medals in discus and shot put (with a distance of 2.8m) at the 2009 World's Masters Championships in Lahti
as the only competitor in the 100+ age bracket. He was the Austrian Athletics Association's oldest athlete and was considered the world's oldest active athlete.
Proksch was also a painter, and his works were displayed from December 9 to 23, 2008, and from January 13 to 31, 2009, in a gallery in Vienna
in honour of his 100th birthday
. He was made honorary president for life of Design Austria. He died on January 3, 2011 at the age of 102.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n Olympic athlete and graphic designer
Graphic designer
A graphic designer is a professional within the graphic design and graphic arts industry who assembles together images, typography or motion graphics to create a piece of design. A graphic designer creates the graphics primarily for published, printed or electronic media, such as brochures and...
. The son of one of the co-founders of the Wiener Sport-Club, Proksch took an active interest in both athletics and graphic design from an early age. By the age of 19 he had started his own design company and would later become a founder, then president, of the Confederation of Austrian Graphic Designers. He was also a key figure in the founding of Icograda
Icograda
International Council of Graphic Design Associations was founded in London in 1963. Icograda is the world body for professional communication design and visual communication. Icograda network members include professional organisations, design promotion bodies, design media and design education...
.
By the age of 17, Proksch was a champion pole vault
Pole vault
Pole vaulting is a track and field event in which a person uses a long, flexible pole as an aid to leap over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the ancient Greeks, as well as the Cretans and Celts...
er and competed internationally, most notably placing 6th in the event at the 1936 Summer Olympics
1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was held in 1936 in Berlin, Germany. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over Barcelona, Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th IOC Session in Barcelona...
. He broke the Austrian record for the event on eight separate occasions. Even after turning 100, he continued to compete at the World's Masters Championships, often unopposed in his age bracket. Having won 14 gold medals at the games after 1994, he was considered the world's oldest active athlete. He was one of the last two known surviving track and field competitors from the 1936 Olympic Games to still be competing (the other being Ljubica Gabric-Calvesi
Gabre Gabric-Calvesi
Ljubica "Gabre" Gabric-Calvesi is an Italian track and field athlete who competed in the 1936 Summer Olympics and in the 1948 Summer Olympics. Her best discus throw is 43.35m .-Biography:...
).
Early life
Proksch was born on December 11, 1908, in ViennaVienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
to Ignaz Proksch and Henriette Gaugusch. His father was a secretary to the House of Schwarzenberg
House of Schwarzenberg
-History:The family was first mentioned in 1172. A branch of the Seinsheim family was created when Erkinger I of Seinsheim acquired the Franconian barony of Schwarzenberg, the castle Schwarzenberg and the title Baron of Schwarzenberg, in 1405–21. At this time, they also possessed some fiefdoms in...
and, although his family was initially poor, they became better off financially after World War I. He attended boarding school with his four brothers and, by the age of 15, was already earning money as an illustrator under the pseudonym Fedor Broskow. He worked at various jobs designing posters until 1926, when he entered the University of Applied Arts Vienna
University of Applied Arts Vienna
The University of Applied Arts Vienna is an institution of higher education in Vienna, the capital of Austria. It has had university status since 1970.-History:...
. He later took courses at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna
Academy of Fine Arts Vienna
The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna is an institution of higher education in Vienna, Austria.- History :The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna was founded in 1692 as a private academy by the court-painter Peter Strudl, who became the Praefectus Academiae Nostrae. In 1701 he was ennobled as Baron of the Empire...
.
Professional career and Olympics
In 1927, at the age of 19, Proksch started his own design company and was one of the original 10 founders of the Confederation of Austrian Graphic Designers (now Design Austria). He was for a time in the 1960s President of the Confederation of Austrian Graphic Designers. He encountered hardships, however, with the onset of the Great DepressionGreat Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
and experienced difficulties in finding work. In 1933 he married Ida Moser, a fashion designer and model, and had four children with her.
Proksch's father was one of the co-founders of the Wiener Sport-Club and encouraged his son to participate in athletic activities. At the age of 17 he was the Vienna Youth Champion and over the course of his career he set the Austrian record in the pole vault
Pole vault
Pole vaulting is a track and field event in which a person uses a long, flexible pole as an aid to leap over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the ancient Greeks, as well as the Cretans and Celts...
eight times. At the 1936 Summer Olympics
1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was held in 1936 in Berlin, Germany. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over Barcelona, Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th IOC Session in Barcelona...
in Berlin he placed 6th in the Men's Pole Vault
Athletics at the 1936 Summer Olympics
At the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, 29 athletics events were contested, 23 for men and 6 for women. The program of events was unchanged from the previous Games. There was a total of 776 participants from 43 countries competing.-Medal table:...
competition with a height of 4.00m. He set his personal best at this event on August 2, 1937, in London with a height of 4.115.
Later life and World's Masters Championships
Proksch served during World War II in Russia, France and AlbaniaAlbania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
. At the end of the war he hid in Waldviertel
Waldviertel
The Waldviertel is the northwestern region of the Austrian state Lower Austria. It is bounded to the south by the Danube, to the southwest by Upper Austria, to the northwest and the north by the Czech Republic and to the east by the Manhartsberg , which is the survey point dividing Waldviertel...
and Spitz
Spitz, Austria
Spitz an der Donau is a market town in the district of Krems-Land in the Austrian state of Lower Austria, further down from Willendorf on the left bank of the Danube. Occupied since Celtic times, it was first mentioned in 830...
, working low-key jobs as a graphic designer, before settling in Eichgraben
Eichgraben
Eichgraben is a town in the district of Sankt Pölten-Land in the Austrian state of Lower Austria....
in 1947. In 1963 he was present at the meeting that helped found what has become the world body for professional communication design and visual communication, Icograda
Icograda
International Council of Graphic Design Associations was founded in London in 1963. Icograda is the world body for professional communication design and visual communication. Icograda network members include professional organisations, design promotion bodies, design media and design education...
. Awarded the title of "Professor" in 1967, he retired from graphic design at the age of 70. His son Peter Proksch is also a painter and graphic designer.
From 1955 to 2005 he was President of the Vienna Cricket and Football-Club. Through 2009, Proksch continued to compete in athletics tournaments and lived on his own, his wife having died in the 1980s. Between 1994 and 2009 he won 14 gold medals, as well as one silver, in the World's Masters Championships, in the discus
Discus
Discus, "disk" in Latin, may refer to:* Discus , a progressive rock band from Indonesia* Discus , a fictional character from the Marvel Comics Universe and enemy of Luke Cage* Discus , a freshwater fish popular with aquarium keepers...
, shot put
Shot put
The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" a heavy metal ball—the shot—as far as possible. It is common to use the term "shot put" to refer to both the shot itself and to the putting action....
and javelin throw
Javelin throw
The javelin throw is a track and field athletics throwing event where the object to be thrown is the javelin, a spear approximately 2.5 metres in length. Javelin is an event of both the men's decathlon and the women's heptathlon...
events. In 2009 he had cardiac surgery
Cardiac surgery
Cardiovascular surgery is surgery on the heart or great vessels performed by cardiac surgeons. Frequently, it is done to treat complications of ischemic heart disease , correct congenital heart disease, or treat valvular heart disease from various causes including endocarditis, rheumatic heart...
after a heart attack, as well as knee surgery, but nevertheless continued to participate in shot put events, winning gold medals in discus and shot put (with a distance of 2.8m) at the 2009 World's Masters Championships in Lahti
Lahti
Lahti is a city and municipality in Finland.Lahti is the capital of the Päijänne Tavastia region. It is situated on a bay at the southern end of lake Vesijärvi about north-east of the capital Helsinki...
as the only competitor in the 100+ age bracket. He was the Austrian Athletics Association's oldest athlete and was considered the world's oldest active athlete.
Proksch was also a painter, and his works were displayed from December 9 to 23, 2008, and from January 13 to 31, 2009, in a gallery in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
in honour of his 100th birthday
Centenarian
A centenarian is a person who is or lives beyond the age of 100 years. Because current average life expectancies across the world are less than 100, the term is invariably associated with longevity. Much rarer, a supercentenarian is a person who has lived to the age of 110 or more, something only...
. He was made honorary president for life of Design Austria. He died on January 3, 2011 at the age of 102.