Mickey Riley and Georgia Coleman
Toronto Daily Star, June 27 1932
Both divers shown in this photo had earned one silver and one bronze medal at the 1928 Olympic Games, and their accomplishments were identical in the upcoming 1932 Games: each won gold in the three-meter springboard event and silver in the 10-meter platform. But, after the Games, they called off their wedding, and both their lives ended too early.
Georgia Coleman (1912-1940) won a total of 11 collegiate diving titles in addition to her Olympic medals. In 1937, she was stricken with polio; though she recovered and even learned to swim again, she developed pneumonia, which eventually killed her.
Michael Riley Galitzen (1909-1959) started using the stage name of Mickey Riley in 1931. After his diving career, he worked as a film editor. He was found dead in his apartment in Hollywood in 1959, apparently of natural causes.
Both competitors were eventually inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame: Coleman was honoured in 1966 and Riley in 1977.
Created September 24, 2025.