Ted Kara

Inducted 
1977

Kara was a native of Cleveland, Ohio and was an outstanding athlete in Adams H.S. where he was an outstanding boxer. He was selected to the U.S. Olympic team in 1936.

While he was train­ing for this team, Louis August and Joey August were in Cleveland for the College National tourney and wanted someone to workout with Joey, and Kara was the man. Following Kara's fine performance in the Olympics he returned to Cleveland and with no job opportunities, he tele­grammed Louis August at Idaho and asked if he could come to college.

According to the Moscow Idahonian, Ted Kara was “the outstanding college fighter ever to toss leather on the West Coast.” Before coming to Idaho, Kara captained the 1936 U.S. Olympic boxing team.

At Idaho, Kara became the first athlete in NCAA history to win three national championships. He took the 1939 crown at 127 pounds then moved down to 120, allowing his brother, Frank, to compete at 127 pounds. In 1941, Ted and Frank became the first set of brothers to win NCAA titles at the same tournament. With Kara leading the way, the Idaho boxers won back-to-back NCAA team titles in 1940 and 1941, as well as a 1940 Pacific Coast Conference title. Kara also earned a letter playing one year of baseball for the Vandals in 1941.

He was welcomed with opened arms and as a bonus, brought along his famous brother, Frank. Kara was graduated from Idaho in 1942 and before he left the university he set a spectacular record in boxing. Kara won three national championships, as a soph at 127 pounds, and as a junior and lighter, he won at 120 pounds and then repeated again as a senior. He also had the PCC titles in 1939 and 1940, and added the Sugar Bowl title to his list of honors in 1941.

Kara was the first collegiate boxer in history to win three national titles. Following his graduation, Kara joined the U.S. Army Air Force and as a flyer in the Pacific Theater during World War II, he was killed in action serving his country. His brother Frank resides in Honolulu, Hawaii at this time.

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