Lloyd Keaser | |
Birth Place: | Pumphrey, Maryland, U.S. |
Headercolor: | lightsteelblue |
Country: | United States |
Team: | USA |
Collegeteam: | Navy |
Sport: | Wrestling |
Event: | Freestyle and Folkstyle |
Show-Medals: | yes |
Lloyd Weldon "Butch" Keaser (born February 9, 1950) is an American former wrestler who competed in the 1976 Summer Olympics for the United States in freestyle wrestling. In 1973, he won a gold medal at the World Championships and became the first African American to achieve this honor.
Keaser was born in Pumphrey, Maryland. He wrestled for the United States Naval Academy and was a two-time NCAA All American, placing fourth as junior and third as a senior. He was an alternate on the 1972 USA Olympic team to Dan Gable. In 1973, he won a gold medal at the World Championships and became the first African American to achieve this honor. In 1976, he won the silver medal at the Montreal Olympics in freestyle wrestling. Keaser is now the wrestling coach at Wilde Lake High School in Columbia, Maryland.
In 1996, Keaser was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member.[1]