Rich Szaro

Ryszard "Rich" Szaro (March 7, 1948 – April 7, 2015) was a Polish-born professional American football player who played placekicker for six seasons for the Philadelphia Bell[1] of the WFL, New Orleans Saints and New York Jets.[2]

Szaro moved with his family at age 14 to the United States in 1962 settling in New York City and studying at St. Francis Preparatory School in Brooklyn, NY. A natural athlete, he ran track and played football, tennis, soccer and volleyball. As a senior. the 5'11" 185lb. running back and kicker broke the New York City single season scoring record with 164 points. Szaro was named a Parade All-American, and later was inducted in the school’s Inaugural Ring of Honor.

After graduating from Harvard University in 1971 with a degree in economics Szaro participated in a track meet in Paris, and he decided to stay in Europe and work as an export manager for Colgate-Palmolive. However, he missed playing football and saw other foreign- born soccer-style kickers making NFL rosters including fellow Pole, Chester Marcol of the Green Bay Packers. He returned to the USA in 1974 to pursue a career in Professional Football.

After his playing career, Szaro returned to international trade with a clothing firm based in New York but traveling extensively throughout South America, Europe, and the Far East. He was very adept at fitting in with other cultures helped by the fact that he spoke six languages, and his English had barely a trace of an accent.[3] Szaro worked as liaison between skilled Jewish professionals emigrating from Russia and American businesses, many emigrants whom he place through Harvard connections.[4]

Szaro returned to Poland to live and work in the 1990s. He died in at his home in Warsaw at the age of 67.[5]