fullname death_date club death_place birth_place birth_date article_title strokes name nicknames
susanne e. laird 7 november 1933 carnegie library athletic club pittsburgh , pennsylvania homestead , pennsylvania 18 july 1908 susan laird
 freestyle susan laird `` susan ''
susan laird

susanne e. laird -lrb- july 18 , 1908 -- november 7 , 1933 -rrb- , also known by her married name susan scavey , was an american competition swimmer who represented the united states at the 1928 summer olympics .
laird was born in homestead , pennsylvania , and was one of four girls , including josephine mckim and lenore kight , who trained at the carnegie library athletic club under coach jack scarry , her uncle , to represent the united states as members of the olympic swim team .
she began swimming at age 14 on the advice of a physician after developing st. vitus dance .
the doctor believed swimming as a daily exercise would help to cure her nervous condition .
laird won her first championship in 1924 at lake elizabeth in pittsburgh , completing the 50-yard freestyle in 32 seconds .
she placed second in the 100 meters and third in the 300-yard medley at the 1926 sesquicentennial in philadelphia .
that year , she went on to win the national 100-yard junior championship .
in 1928 she qualified for the american olympic team , and traveled aboard the s.s. `` president roosevelt '' to amsterdam , the netherlands , for the 1928 summer olympics .
laird finished fifth in the women 's 100-meter freestyle .
she also helped the american relay team to qualify for the final of the women 's 4 × 100-meter freestyle relay as they set a new world record in the semifinals .
laird did not receive a gold medal , even though the american team finished first in the event final , because she did not swim in the final .
after graduating from temple university in 1930 , laird was appointed girls ' coach and physical education instructor at homestead high school , a position she held until her death from a rare blood disorder and subsequent pneumonia at age 25 .
