Hawaii National Guard Members Who Were Olympians

John Beaumont 

MSgt Beaumont (third from left), part of a F-86 ground crew
Captains Beaumont (L) and Harold Mattos at a Guard function. Mattos later became the Commander of the 154th Consolidated Maintenance Squadron
MSgt Beaumont at the range

John Herbert Beaumont (January 7, 1924 – September 19, 2000) was an American sports shooter. He competed in the 25 metre pistol event at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. He took seventh place against the best pistol shooters in the world.

John was the oldest Hawaiian Olympian at age 31 years. He joined the Hawaii Air National Guard in early 1956 before being selected for the Olympic team. The 1956 Summer Olympics ran from November 22 through December 8.

John graduated from the Merchant Marine Academy and served during World War II. He enlisted in the Hawaii Air National Guard and rose to the rank of master sergeant. John later received a direct commission. He served for 30 years and retired in 1986 as a major.

Thomas Haine

Thomas Allen “Tom” Haine (January 6, 1933 – September 10, 1994) was the captain of the 1968 Olympic volleyball team.

Tom Haine was born January 6, 1933 in Minot North Dakota. His family moved to Hawaii as a youth and graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1950. Tom didn’t go out for sports during his high school years. After graduating from San Jose State University where he twice named an All American in swimming and joined the Air Force.

Tom served as a fighter pilot in the Air Force and later joined the Hawaii Air National Guard. He flew F-102A Delta Daggers with the 199th Fighter Squadron. Tom served as a Traditional Guardsmember and was a banker in civilian life. He retired as a major.

Tom was a member of the All-America Volleyball team 18 times and won a silver medal at the Pan American Games in 1963 and a gold medal in 1968. He was elected captain of the 1968 Olympic Team. The team placed sixth, but had the distinction of being the only American squad to beat a Russian team in Olympic competition.

Tom was named Gold Masters Player of the Year in 1982 and received the United States Volleyball Association’s “All-Time Great Player Award” in 1990. He was inducted into the Volleyball Hall of Fame in 1991.