John Woodruff (athlete)

John Woodruff

John Youie Woodruff (born July 5, 1915 in Connellsville , Fayette County , Pennsylvania , † October 30, 2007 in Fountain Hills , Arizona ) was an American middle-distance runner and Olympic champion .

Woodruff, as a student at the University of Pittsburgh , won the silver medal over 880 yards at the national AAU championships in 1936 and thus qualified for the US Olympic team. At the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin, he lived up to his role as a favorite and won the gold medal in the 800 meter run , ahead of the Italian Mario Lanzi (silver) and the Canadian Phil Edwards (bronze). In 1937 he again won the national AAU championships over 800 meters and the 440 yards and 880 yards of the IC4A championships, also in 1938 and 1939.

In 1941 he went to the military with the rank of second lieutenant and was dismissed as captain in 1945 . During the Korean War he served again in the military before leaving in 1957 with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel . He then worked in the Children's Aid Society of New York City , was a special investigator for the New York Dept. of Welfare , was director of the Recreation Center for the New York City Police Athletic League and worked as a probation officer for New York State .

The John Woodruff 5000-meter run and 5000-meter walk is held every summer in Connelsville in his honor . John Woodruff died on October 30, 2007, at the age of 92, of heart problems and chronic kidney failure. At the time of his death, he was the last surviving 1936 Olympic gold medalist from the United States.

Web links

• John Woodruff in the database of Find a Grave (English)
• John Woodruff in the Sports-Reference database (English; archived from the original )

swell

1. ↑ ORF article - November 1, 2007  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.