USA Water Polo Mourns The Loss Of Hall Of Fame Inductee Andy Burke

Irvine, CA - August 21 - USA Water Polo mourns the loss of Hall of Famer Andy Burke. An inductee into the International Swimming Hall of Fame and recipient of The Olympic Club's Olympian Award, Burke was the team manager for the U.S. Olympic Men's Water Polo Team at the 1964 Olympic Games. In short, Burke lived a life dedicated to the sport of water polo. He will be sorely missed.

From his time as an AAU champion in the water in the late 1950s to a variety of commitments outside the pool, Burke took on an assortment of roles. From FINA committees to Olympic assignments, to coaching positions and sport expansion advocacy, he did it all.    

"Our water polo community has lost a warrior in Andy Burke, whose contributions were freely given and consistently shared for more than half a century. His fidelity informed our sport's rules, policies and procedures. He served in many roles in water polo, most connected in one way or another with his beloved Olympic Club. He understood that games are also fought at the scorer's table, and he threw himself into ensuring that America got our fair shot on pool decks all over the world," said Christopher Ramsey, USA Water Polo CEO.

He added, "Andy was water polo tough, and he would go toe-to-toe over anything he felt compromised the integrity of our game. He was an ambassador for our game, and no doubt many around the world share our loss today. Our sincerest condolences are with his family. Andy will be missed, and he will also be remembered with gratitude and affection by all of us who knew him." 

Peter Conte of The Olympic Club, shared his memory of why Burke was the most deserving recipient of the Olympian Award, The Olympic Club's highest honor:

"While I was chairing the athletic committee at the club a few years back in 2016, we had to nominate and vote on a recipient for the Olympian Award. Multiple different gold medal Olympians from the Rio games were in contention, but I was fairly insistent that Andy (the team's and my personal nomination) should win. It took about an hour of heated debate on a conference call line, and I sat in an airport parking lot nearly missing my flight, emphatically yelling at my phone that there was no way we could vote any other direction. Eventually, the other committee members understood and voted to award Andy their highest honor," said Conte. 

In an excerpt from the speech introducing Burke as the Olympian Award recipient, Conte added, "let me simplify it by saying: if it is involved in water polo, this man has had a hand in it, has probably been in charge of it, and pretty much made it a whole lot better for everyone involved. A man who I can only describe as 'the best,' he is a fantastic representation of what this (Olympic Club) truly means. If the purpose of this club is to promote and foster amateur athletics in a spirit of harmony among its membership, I can honestly think of no better example. He is a great athlete, a matchless philanthropist, volunteer and the rock of our water polo program."

Olympic silver medalist and fellow Olympic Club member Peter Varellas remembered Burke fondly. "I might sum up Andy's relationship to water polo in a singular phrase: honor the game. I think that meant several things among others to him: have the humility to prepare, don't settle for something less than your best, give back to the sport that has given you so much, and have a ton of fun along the way. We often hear about the importance of the journey, not just the destination or result. Andy was an amazing example of this, as I have no doubt that he would trade any of his competitive results for the people he met and the experiences he had along the way. Thank you for everything, Andy. I am so grateful for having had you in my life for such a long time."