Olympian’s life in photos snapped away by thieves
What took all of Adam Trupish’s life to collect what was lost in a matter of seconds when a pair of thieves broke into the two-time Olympian’s car this week and stole a collection of over 2,000 photos.
Trupish and his wife Autum were in the process of transferring the collection from one storage locker to another in their Windsor Avenue apartment building when the theft occurred Monday.
“There’s no monetary value,” said Trupish, who now coaches boxing at the Windsor Amateur Boxing Club.
“It’s your life … they took a guy’s life. It’s lost.”
Trupish, who has been working midnights at Lakeshore’s Integram (Windsor) Seating plant, searched the downtown core Tuesday morning in hopes of finding the bag discarded.
“I went looking in garbage Dumpsters to see if they just tossed the bag away,” Trupish said.
“They’re not worth anything to anyone else, but they’re our life’s memories.”
The couple is offering a $100 reward for the return of the photos, no questions asked.
“My wife just wanted to offer some kind of incentive for them to return the stuff,” said the 38-year-old Trupish.
Trupish said there were photos of the pair going back to the black-and-white snapshots taken by parents when they were both just babies.
“We’ve lost baby pictures, our wedding, when we were kids and I had a lot of stuff from the Olympics,” Trupish said.
“My wife has taken it really hard. There’s no way to get copies of the photos.
“A lot of them were taken before the digital camera era. There are no memories cards to go back to.”
Trupish said he took disposable cameras with him to the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens and the Beijing Games in 2008. He also competed at the World Championships and Commonwealth Games during a stellar career that lasted more than two decades.
“I’ve just been sitting here the last couple days going through the memories in my mind,” Trupish said. “That’s all that’s left now from those years of trips.
“I had some great pictures I cherished, especially of famous boxing people. I had one with the great Cuban boxer Teofilo Stevenson.”
Stevenson is one of only three boxers to win three Olympic gold medals. He won his three consecutive gold medals beginning in Munich in 1972.
Trupish said security camera footage shows two men in their 30s, one arriving on bicycle, using a screw driver to jimmy the door.
“Talk about having balls, it was noon and there were people around,” Trupish said.
“They knew where they were going. They went straight down to the basement to the garage.
“They made a beeline for my car. They must have done a few other cars because they were seen (on camera) leaving with several knapsacks.”
Trupish said the thieves even took his athletic bag containing his old boxing gear.
“Who wants my stinky equipment and an old sweaty jock?” Trupish said.
Trupish said his wife contacted police as soon as the theft was discovered. Autum Trupish also went around the building checking to see if any other residents had seen the men lurking about the building.
“People just don’t have any respect anymore,” Trupish said.
“Now we’re sitting here blaming each other for leaving it in the car when it’s somebody else that deserves the blame. It’s just so disheartening.”
The theft has also had an effect on the couple that goes beyond the loss of priceless photos.
“You feel violated,” Trupish said. “My wife is scared.
“We may have to look for a new place to live. It’s strange having so many guys hanging around.”
We’ve lost baby pictures, our wedding, when we were kids and I had a lot of stuff from the Olympics