William Roy KERSLAKE

Bill Kerslake competed at the 1952, 1956, and 1960 Olympics, always in freestyle. He was AAU heavyweight champion in freestyle from 1953-60 and in Greco-Roman from 1953-59. He was gold medalist in heavyweight freestyle at the 1955 Pan American Games. Kerslake attended Case Institute of Technology (later Case Western Reserve University), where he wrestled, played football, and put the shot on the track team. He earned a degree in industrial chemistry in 1951 and a masters’ in chemical engineering in 1955. Kerslake then had a long career with NASA, working with chemical rockets, intercontinental missile combustion, ion propulsion and rail accelerators. He was co-inventor of the first ion thruster for space propulsion and served as chairman of the technical committee of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Kerslake retired from NASA after a 35-year career. He is a member of the Case Reserve Athletic Club Hall of Fame, the Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame and the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.