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Revision as of 10:09, 3 May 2023 editRobby.is.on (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Rollbackers204,216 edits Changing short description from "American athlete" to "American athlete (1939–2023)"Tag: Shortdesc helper← Previous edit Revision as of 10:10, 3 May 2023 edit undoRobby.is.on (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Rollbackers204,216 editsm Shorten caption per MOS:CAPLENGTH.Next edit →
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| name = Ralph Boston | name = Ralph Boston
| image = Ralph Boston 1960.jpg | image = Ralph Boston 1960.jpg
| caption = Ralph Boston at the 1960 Olympics | caption = Boston at the 1960 Olympics
| full_name = Ralph Harold Boston<ref name="sports-reference.com" /> | full_name = Ralph Harold Boston<ref name="sports-reference.com" />
| birth_date = {{birth date|1939|5|9}}<ref name="sports-reference.com" /> | birth_date = {{birth date|1939|5|9}}<ref name="sports-reference.com" />

Revision as of 10:10, 3 May 2023

American athlete (1939–2023)

Ralph Boston
Boston at the 1960 Olympics
Personal information
Full nameRalph Harold Boston
Born(1939-05-09)May 9, 1939
Laurel, Mississippi, U.S.
DiedApril 30, 2023(2023-04-30) (aged 83)
Peachtree City, Georgia, U.S.
Height6 ft 1+1⁄2 in (187 cm)
Weight163 lb (74 kg)
Sport
SportTrack and field
Event(s)Sprint, hurdles, long jump, high jump, triple jump, pole vault,
ClubSouthern California Striders, Anaheim
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)100 yd – 9.6 (1964)
220 yd – 22.0 (1964)
120 ydH – 13.7 (1961)
HJ – 2.04 m (1962)
PV – 4.16 m (1960)
LJ – 8.35 m (1965)
TJ – 15.89 m (1964)
Medal record
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 1960 Rome Long jump
Silver medal – second place 1964 Tokyo Long jump
Bronze medal – third place 1968 Mexico City Long jump
Pan American Games
Gold medal – first place 1963 Sao Paulo Long jump
Gold medal – first place 1967 Winnipeg Long jump

Ralph Harold Boston (May 9, 1939 – April 30, 2023) was an American track athlete who received three Olympic medals and became the first person to break the 27 feet (8.2 m) barrier in the long jump.

Early years and education

Boston was born in Laurel, Mississippi. As a student at Tennessee State University, he won the 1960 National Collegiate Athletic Association title in the long jump. In August of the same year, he broke the world record in the event, held by Jesse Owens for 25 years, at the Mt. SAC Relays. Already the world record holder, he improved the mark past 27 feet (8.2 m), jumping 27 feet 0.5 inches (8.242 m) at the Modesto Relays on May 27, 1961.

Athletic career

Boston qualified for the Summer Olympics in Rome, where he took the gold medal in the long jump, setting the Olympic record at 8.12 m (26 ft 7+1⁄2 in), while narrowly defeating American teammate Bo Roberson by a mere centimeter.

Boston won the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) national championship in the long jump six times in a row from 1961 to 1966. He also had the longest triple jump for an American in 1963. He returned to the Tokyo Olympics as the world record holder after losing the record to Igor Ter-Ovanesyan, then regaining the record a couple of months before the games, first in Kingston, Jamaica and improving it at the 1964 Olympic Trials. In the Olympic final, Boston exchanged the lead with Ter-Ovanesyan. Going into the fifth round, Boston was leading but fouled while both Lynn Davies and Ter-Ovanesyan jumped past him. On his final jump, he was able to jump past Ter-Ovanesyan, but could not catch Davies and ended winning the silver medal.

Boston's final record improvement to 8.35m was again at the 1965 Modesto Relays. It was tied at altitude by Ter-Ovanesyan in 1967. In 1967, he lost the national title to Jerry Proctor. When rival Bob Beamon was suspended from the University of Texas at El Paso, for refusing to compete against Brigham Young University, alleging it had racist policies, Boston began to coach him unofficially. Beamon took the 1968 National Championships. At the 1968 Olympics, Boston watched his pupil destroy the tied world record by jumping 8.90 m (29 ft 2+1⁄4 in). Boston was then 29 years old. He won a bronze medal behind Beamon and Klaus Beer and retired from competitions shortly thereafter. He moved to Knoxville, Tennessee, and worked for the University of Tennessee as Coordinator of Minority Affairs and Assistant Dean of Students from 1968 to 1975. He was the field event reporter for the CBS Sports Spectacular coverage of domestic track and field events. He was inducted into the USA Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1974 and into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 1985.

Later years

A Los Angeles Times article on Boston from August 2, 2010, coinciding roughly with the 50th anniversary of his initial world record, described him as a divorced great-grandfather who was writing an autobiography. He split his time between Atlanta, Georgia and Knoxville.

Boston died of complications from a stroke at his home in Peachtree City, Georgia, on April 30, 2023, at the age of 83.

References

  1. ^ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Ralph Boston". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  2. "Powell Leaps Past Beamon – Long Jumper Tops 23-Year-Old Mark". Seattle Times. August 30, 1991. Retrieved June 17, 2015.
  3. Bob Beamon Biography at thehistorymakers.com
  4. Betty Bean, "The Jackie Walker Story," Metro Pulse, November 22, 2007. Accessed at the Internet Archive, 2 October 2015.
  5. Carroll Van West, "Ralph Boston," Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture. Retrieved: June 20, 2014.
  6. Crowe, Jerry (August 2, 2010). "Fifty years ago, Ralph Boston leaped his way into history". Los Angeles Times.
  7. Rifkin, Glenn. "Ralph Boston, Olympian Who Soared Into the Record Books, Dies at 83". The New York Times. Retrieved May 1, 2023.
  8. Organ, Mike. "Tennessee State and Olympic track great Ralph Boston, who set world long jump record, dies at 83". The Tennessean. Retrieved April 30, 2023.

External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded byUnited States Jesse Owens Men's Long Jump World Record Holder
August 12, 1960 – June 10, 1962 		Succeeded bySoviet Union Igor Ter-Ovanesyan
Preceded bySoviet Union Igor Ter-Ovanesyan Men's Long Jump World Record Holder
August 15, 1964 – October 19, 1967 		Succeeded bySoviet Union Igor Ter-Ovanesyan
Awards
Preceded byUnited States Rafer Johnson Track & Field Athlete of the Year
1961 		Succeeded byNew Zealand Peter Snell
Sporting positions
Preceded byUnknown Men's Long Jump Best Year Performance
1960, 1961 		Succeeded bySoviet Union Igor Ter-Ovanesyan
Preceded byUnited States Phil Shinnick Men's Long Jump Best Year Performance
1964, 1965 		Succeeded bySoviet Union Igor Ter-Ovanesyan
Olympic champions in men's long jump
Pan American Champions in men's long jump
US National Championship winners in men's long jump
1876–1878
New York Athletic Club
1879–1888
NAAAA
1888–1979
Amateur Athletic Union
1980–1992
The Athletics Congress
1993–onwards
USA Track & Field
Notes
  • Note 1: In 1888 both the NAAAA and the AAU held championships
  • OT: The 1920, 1928, 1932, and since 1992, championships incorporated the Olympic Trials, otherwise held as a discrete event.
  • 2020 OT: The 2020 Olympic Trials were delayed and held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
1960 USA Olympic track and field team
Men's track
and road athletes
Men's field athletes
Women's track athletes
Women's field athletes
Coaches
1964 USA Olympic track and field team
Men's track
and road athletes
Men's field athletes
Women's track athletes
Women's field athletes
Coaches
1968 USA Olympic track and field team
Qualification1968 United States Olympic trials (track and field)
Men's
track and road
athletes
Men's
field athletes
Women's track and
road athletes
Women's
field athletes
Coaches
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