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Lois Testa

Lois Ann Testa Lynch (born December 16, 1935^[1][2]) is an American former athlete and teacher. She represented the United States in the shot put at the 1956 Summer Olympics.

Biography[edit]

Lois Ann Testa was born in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. She attended Pawtucket East High School, where she competed in swimming, basketball, and badminton.^[2][3][4] She attended Rhode Island College.

At the suggestion of Olympian Janet Moreau, Testa began training in track and fieldatProvidence College,^[4] and joined the Red Diamond Athletic Club. She won an Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) title in the 1954 outdoor shot put, where she set an AAU record of 42 feet 7 inches.^[5] She also won the 1955–1956 AAU title for indoor shot put.^[2]

In the 1956 United States Olympic Trials, Testa finished second in the shot put, achieving her personal best distance of 45 feet 6 3/4 inches.^[2] She also finished fourth in the discus throw, with a distance of 129 feet 3 inches.^[6]

Competing in the shot put at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Testa qualified for the finals and finished 14th.^[2][6]

Lois Testa graduated from Rhode Island College in 1957 with a bachelor's degree in elementary education. She worked as a teacher in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Florida.^[4]

She was inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame in 1968.^[3] In 2000, she was inducted into the Rhode Island College Athletic Hall of Fame.^[4]

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