Frank Edward McKinney Jr. (November 3, 1938 – September 11, 1992) was an American competition swimmer, Olympic champion, and world record-holder. He later became a prominent executive in the American banking industry, but died in a mid-air collision of two aircraft.
He was the youngest member of a U.S. national swim team which set a world record in the 4×100-meter medley relay at the 1955 Pan American Games. At the Pan American Games, the 16-year-old high school student also won a gold medal in the 100-meter backstroke.
Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, he did the most to introduce modern backstroke techniques. Following Yoshi Oyakawa as the premier U.S. backstroker, McKinney was the pioneer of the modern bent-arm backstrokers, even as Oyakawa had been the last of the straight-arm school. McKinney was the leader of a remarkable group of teenagers who won the U.S. Nationals for the Indianapolis Athletic Club alongside Mike Troy, Bill Barton, Bill Cass and Alan Somers. Later, they would all swim for the Indiana Hoosiers swimming and diving team under coach Doc Counsilman at Indiana University.
McKinney retired from competition after graduating from Indiana University in 1961, and went into banking. He was the president of Bank One of Indiana (previously American Fletcher National Bank), headquartered in Indianapolis when he died, aged 53, in a mid-air collision between two aircraft in 1992. As part of the merger, he also became president of the Columbus, Ohio-based parent company, Banc One Corporation, while still the chief executive officer of the Indiana subsidiary.[2][3] McKinney was traveling to Columbus, Ohio, with three other civic leaders, who were also killed along with the pilots of both aircraft.[4][5] He is buried in Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis.
