Lou Riecke

Lou Riecke attended Jesuit High School in New Orleans where he was a sprinter and long jumper on the track team. He wanted to play football so he started lifting weights at the New Orleans Athletic Club. Riecke went to LSU where he ran the 100 metres in track and continued to lift weights. After one year of college he joined the US Navy in World War II, serving in the medical corps from 1943-46. After returning to school he won three YMCA national titles in weightlifting. Riecke set a world record for the snatch as a light-heavyweight in 1964. He later worked at the New Orleans Athletic Club as a strength coach.

In 1970 the Pittsburgh Steelers hired Riecke as the second strength coach in the NFL. He worked for the Steelers from 1970-80, helping them win four Super Bowl titles, and then returned to New Orleans, where he was the strength coach for the New Orleans Saints for several years. He also owned his own lumber company, serving as President of Tulane Hardwood Lumber Company.

Riecke was inducted in the Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame in 1980, and in 2003 was an inaugural inductee of the USA Strength & Conditioning Coaches Hall of Fame. Riecke continued his athletic career into his 70s via the Senior Olympics, competing in the sprints.