Bill Heusner

Early life Heusner was born June 28, 1927 In Chicago, Illinois, to father William Heusner Sr. and Gertrude Livermore Heusner. He graduated Evanston Township High School in 1944.

1948 London Olympics Heusner represented the United States at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, England under Hall of Fame Olympic Head Coach Robert J. H. Kiphuth. An exceptionally strong team that year, the U.S. won all the Olympic swimming and diving competitions. Heusner competed in the preliminary heats of the men's 400-meter freestyle making the semi-finals but just missing the finals with a time of 4:57.4. In one of his signature events, he finished eighth in the final of the men's 1,500-meter freestyle with a time of 20:45.4, placing him just over a minute out of contending for a medal.

Heusner demonstrated his strengths in distance and relay freestyle events at the 1951 Pan American Games. He won the silver medal in the men's 400-meter freestyle, and won a gold medal as a member of the winning U.S. team in the men's 4×200-meter freestyle relay event, alongside relay teammates Dick Cleveland, Burwell Jones, and Ronald Gora.

Coaching Heusner coached swimming first in short stints at his alma mater Northwestern, then at the University of Illinois as a student coach while obtaining his PHd., and from 1955-1957 as a Head Coach at Southern Illinois. Gaining recognition in one of his early Head Coaching positions, he coached at the University of Minnesota from 1957-1963, where he led the team from a last place to a third place finish at the NCAA's, mentoring five national champions and four 1962 Olympians.

Heusner died August 9, 2002 at the age of 75 in East Lansing, Michigan, where he had taught at Michigan State. He was survived by his wife Eleanor Fraser Heusner, and three daughters. Services were held on the morning of Wednesday, August 14, 2002 at the People's Church on West Grand River Ave. in East Lansing. He was interned at East Lawn Memory Gardens in Okemos, Michigan with military honors, having served as a WWII era veteran.