Speed Skater Terry McDermott, "The Essexville Rocket," Passes Away at 82

FILE – Terry McDermott, 23, who won the first gold medal for the U.S. in the ninth Winter Olympic games, is hoisted to the shoulders of teammates after his triumph at Innsbruck, Feb. 4, 1964. McDermott, who won the only gold medal for the United States at the 1964 Winter Olympics, died on Saturday, May 20, 2023, U.S. Speedskating said. He was 82. (AP Photo/Hans Von Nolde, File)

FILE – Terry McDermott, 23, of Essexville, Mich., skates in the 500-meter speedskating event on his way to first place and the first U.S. Olympic gold medal at the ninth Winter Olympic games at Innsbruck, Austria, Feb. 4, 1964. McDermott, who won the only gold medal for the United States at the 1964 Winter Olympics, died on Saturday, May 20, 2023, U.S. Speedskating said. He was 82. (AP Photo/Rider-Rider, File)

(AP) Olympic gold medal speed skater Terry McDermott has died at the age of 82.

U.S. Speedskating made the announcement, saying McDermott died early Saturday surrounded by his family. The organization did not specify where he died or give a cause. Nicknamed “The Essexville Rocket” after his Michigan hometown, McDermott was an unheralded figure on the speedskating scene when he stunningly won the 500-meter event at the 1964 Innsbruck Games, upsetting Soviet great and reigning Olympic champion Yevgeny Grishin by a half-second. It was the only U.S. gold medal of those Winter Games.