At the 1948 Olympics, 17-year old Beverly Hills California high school sprinter Wally Wolf swam the second leg of the USA's World record-setting gold medal 4x200m relay victory (8:46.0).

Wolf and the USA relay swim team repeated the gold medal achievement at the next Olympics (1952), with his second heat leg setting a new Olympic record of 2:11.4. In 1956 and 1960, Wolf was a member of the U.S. Olympic water polo team. The '56 team finished 5th, and the '60 team 7th.

Wolf was named to the 1964 U.S. Olympic water polo team–his fifth consecutive selection to a United States Olympics team–but did not accept the appointment.

Wally Wolf was a University of Southern California All-America in swimming and/or water polo 1949, 1950, 1951. He was one of the inaugural honorees elected to the Water Polo Hall of Fame in 1976.