First Ohioan elected to the Speed Skating Hall of Fame. Started competitive racing in 1906 at age 13. Set senior men’s indoor record in the half mile in 1916. Turned professional in 1920 and raced professionally until 1940s. Trained numerous young speed skaters after turning pro, best known of whom was Jack Shea, winner of two gold medals in the 1932 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid.
One of the best handball players of his era in the United States, he won the National AAU Junior Singles Championship in 1932, the National AAU Junior Doubles Championship in 1928 and the National AAU Senior Doubles Championship in 1933. In 1934 he added the National YMCA Double Championship to his collection. In the period between 1928 and 1944 he won six Ohio State AAU, four Northeastern Ohio AAU, and ten Ohio YMCA singles titles and shared five Ohio State AAU, four Northeastern Ohio AAU and seven Ohio YMCA doubles championships.
A two-time Olympic champion, he won his first gold medal for the United States in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. He repeated as the Olympic bantamweight champion in the 1960 Rome Olympics, lifting 760 pounds to give the U.S. its only weightlifting medal in that competition. His 237-pound snatch at Rome equaled the word record. Although training only briefly between Olympics, he finished second in the 1958 world championships and was the Pan-American Games champion in 1959.
Native of Cleveland who migrated to Israel in 1970, and in September 1972, while representing his new country in the Munich Olympics, lost his life to terrorists along with ten other members of the Israeli delegation. U.S. national Intercollegiate Champion at Tulane University in 1965 and a member of the United States weightlifting team in 1966 when he won a gold medal in competition with Mexico. Represented the U.S. in the Maccabiah Games twice, winning a bronze medal in 1965 and a gold in 1968. Represented Israel in the Pan-Asian Games in 1971, winning a gold medal, and was elected to the national AAU Weightlifting Hall of Fame in 1974.
First ever to win national Highlander Class championship fives times, capturing the title in 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975 and 1977. Was national runnerup in 1976, 1978 and 1979. Also won the Great Lakes Highlander Class championship in 1977. He was the Edgewater Yacht Club’s Highlander Class champion for 11 consecutive years and was acclaimed EYC’s “Skipper of the Year” for outstanding work in behalf of sailing in 1972, 1973 and 1975.
In 1966 he capped a great racing career by winning the Transatlantic race to Travemunde, Germany, sailing his 47-foot, custom built yawl, Indigo IV. He celebrated his 77th birthday in mid-ocean in that race. The owner of a series of fine cruising sail yachts, all named Indigo, he was a perennial winner in area races, sailing from the Mentor Harbor Yachting Club.
In his first year of driving offshore power boats (1975) he scored enough points in the first ten races of a scheduled 11-race series to win the National Offshore Power Boat Racing Championships of the American Power Boat Association without running the final race. Later became the APBA vice president for offshore racing.
After leading the Dandee Patches and Blepp-Coobs Sporting Goods teams to seven titles in the Lakewood Recreation League, he was appointed to select and coach an AAU team representing Cleveland in the 1939 national hockey tournament. Playing under the banner of The American Legion, the underdog Clevelanders won their first game in overtime and their next in double overtime to move into the championship game against the heavily favored University of Minnesota. The Kern-coached Cleveland club responded with a stunning 4-3 victory to annex the National AAU title.
Joined the Cleveland Barons on Christmas night, 1948, and remained with the team for 7-1/2 seasons during which time the Barons won the American Hockey League’s Calder Cup three times. Traded to Rochester for the 1956-57 season, played with the club for two full seasons and part of a third. Returned to the Barons in 1961-62 after sitting out most of the previous two campaigns and played three more years, playing on another Calder Cup championship squad in 1963-64, his final season.
Brought up to the Cleveland Barons to bolster the defense for the 1957 playoffs, he remained for 16 seasons. Set an American Hockey League record by playing in 526 consecutive games and captained the Barons for eight years. Was voted the team’s Most Valuable Player four times by his teammates and three times by the fans. In all he played over 1,000 regular season games in a Barons uniform and helped the team to the playoffs 15 times in 16 seasons. In 1966-67 he was picked as the Most Valuable Defenseman in the AHL and was named to the league All-Star first team.