Archie Strimel

A lifelong resident of Cecil, Pennsylvania, Archie Strimel played soccer, baseball, and basketball at his local high school and was a state champion in the latter sport in 1935. It was as a soccer goal keeper, however, that he would leave his mark on the athletic world and, by 1939, he was well-known locally as a member of the Morgan Strasser Football Club. His reputation grew through the mid-1940s, but his career was interrupted by World War II in which he served with the United States Army. Upon returning he resumed his previous affiliation but, by the end of 1947, he was playing for the Pittsburgh Curry Vets, where he was noticed by the United States Olympic Committee and chosen to represent his country at the 1948 Summer Games. At the tournament the United States was shut out 9-0 by Italy and eliminated from further competition.

Shortly after the conclusion of the event, Strimel appeared in two more friendly international games, losing 11-0 to Norway and 5-0 to Northern Ireland. He was capped twice more, winning matches against Israel 3-1 and 4-1 in September and October of 1948, and then retired from international play, turning down an opportunity to play professionally in Belgium. At the end of the year he also left the Curry Vets for the Pittsburgh Beadling, but retired soon after. He also tried out for baseball’s Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1940s. Outside of sports he worked as a brick contractor until his 1969 retirement. He was made a member of the Western Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in 1978.