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| Personal information | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | Ronald Ray Smith (1949-03-28)March 28, 1949 Los Angeles, California, United States | |||||||||||
| Died | March 31, 2013(2013-03-31) (aged 64) Los Angeles, California, United States | |||||||||||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | |||||||||||
| Weight | 73 kg (161 lb) | |||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||
| Sport | Athletics | |||||||||||
Event(s) | 100 m, 200 m | |||||||||||
| Club | Southern California Striders, Anaheim | |||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||
| Personalbest(s) | 100 yd – 9.3 (1969) 100 m – 10.14 (9.9h) (1968) 200 m – 20.4 (1968) | |||||||||||
Medal record
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Ronald Ray Smith (March 28, 1949 – March 31, 2013) was an Americanathlete, winner of the gold medal in the 4 × 100 mrelay at the1968 Summer Olympics. He attendedSan Jose State College during the "Speed City" era, coached byLloyd (Bud) Winter and graduating in sociology.[1]
At the 1968AAU Championships, Ronnie Ray Smith equaled the 100 m world record in the semifinal, repeating the same time of 9.9 which was run byJim Hines in the same race andCharles Greene in the other semifinal of the same competition.[2] That evening of June 20, 1968, atHughes Stadium inSacramento, California has been dubbed by track and field historians as the "Night of Speed."[3][4] Since Smith was still 19 years old at the time, that mark also became theWorld Junior Record, which lasted for exactly 8 years.
At theMexicoOlympics, Smith ran the third leg in the American 4 × 100 m relay team that won the gold medal and set a new world record of 38.24 seconds.[1]
Before arriving at San Jose State, Smith ran atManual Arts High School inLos Angeles, finishing third in the 220 yard dash at theCIF California State Meet in 1966.[5]
After retiring from competitions Smith worked at the Los Angeles Parks and Recreation Department. He was inducted into the San Jose State Sports Hall of Fame.[1]
Smith died in a hospice facility in Los Angeles, California, on March 31, 2013. He was 64.[6] His funeral was featured on theTLC reality TV showBest Funeral Ever. In honor and memory of his 1968 gold medal performance, his casket "ran" a 100 yd race and received a gold medal in a mock Olympic-style funeral.[7]
| Records | ||
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 100 metres world junior record holder June 20, 1968 – June 20, 1976 | Succeeded by |
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