Kotys fought in World War II as a gunner on a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and completed twenty-two missions.

He also won three Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) titles, in the vault in 1948 and on parallel bars in 1948 and 1951.

While competing on rings at the 1956 U.S. Olympic Trials he crashed to the floor due to a failed support mount.

Kotys retired shortly after his injury in the U.S. Olympic Trials and became a gymnastics coach in Ohio.

[1] Ailing with pancreatic cancer, Kotys died from cancer-related complications in Florida on August 21, 2012.