Henry Norwood "Barney" Ewell (February 25, 1918 – April 4, 1996) was an American athlete, winner of one gold and two silver medals at the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ca ...

. Born into poverty in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Ewell was one of the world's leading sprinters of the 1940s. Ewell attended John Piersol McCaskey High School in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. McCaskey High School honored Ewell by dedicating their stadium in his name. Ewell was also inducted into the J.P. McCaskey Athletic Hall of Fame during the school's 50th anniversary year in 1988. Earlier in 1986 he was inducted into the

National Track and Field Hall of Fame The National Track and Field Hall of Fame is a museum operated by The Armory Foundation in conjunction with USA Track & Field. It is located within the Armory Foundation (the former Fort Washington Avenue Armory) at 216 Fort Washington Avenue, ...

. Ewell was the state's greatest high school sprinter-jumper in the mid-1930s, but he first achieved renown while a student at Pennsylvania State University, running the 100 m and 200 m races and winning 12 gold medals and championships in collegiate meets between 1940 and 1942. He also won 11 gold medals in AAU national meets between 1939 and 1948. He was an outstanding

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a ...

er as well, leaping 25 feet 2 inches (7.68 m) in 1942. He served his country in 1941–1945, returned to the university, and received his B.S. degree in 1947. He surprised everyone by making the 1948 Olympic team, equaling the

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

of 10.2 in the 100 m dash at the 1948 AAU championship, which was also the Olympic trials. At the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a vari ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, he thought he had won the 100 m only to learn the victory was given to teammate

Harrison Dillard William Harrison "Bones" Dillard (July 8, 1923 – November 15, 2019) was an American track and field athlete, who is the only male in the history of the Olympic Games to win gold in both the 100 meter (sprints) and the 110 meter hurdles, maki ...

. In the 200 m, Ewell had another close finish and again finished second – this time to teammate Mel Patton. He was added to the 4 × 100 m

relay A relay Electromechanical relay schematic showing a control coil, four pairs of normally open and one pair of normally closed contacts An automotive-style miniature relay with the dust cover taken off A relay is an electrically operated switch ...

when Ed Conwell became sick and the American team rolled to an easy victory. However, the exchange between Ewell and

Lorenzo Wright Lorenzo Christopher Wright (December 9, 1926 – March 27, 1972) was an American athlete. A Detroit native, he started at Miller High School and Wayne State University; Wright is renowned for his noteworthy accomplishments in the spor ...

was ruled out of the zone and the American team was disqualified. After viewing a film of the race, however, officials reversed the ruling, and Ewell finally had his Olympic gold medal. After the Olympics Ewell lost his amateur status for accepting gifts from his fans, but he continued to compete in Australia and New Zealand as a professional. He also took part in the Scottish Border games circuit during the summer of 1950. He lived most of those weeks in the town of Bathgate. He won one of the most prestigious sprints on the Border Games circuit at Jedburgh. Running off scratch over 120 yards he ran a time of 11.37 secs. He also took part in a special invitation race in August that same year to mark his time in Scotland (run as a handicap race) over 120 yards at the famous Powderhall venue. Ewell from the scratch mark lost narrowly to Albert C Charles (off 12.5 yds). Ewell died in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He was a member of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity.

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External links

New York Times: Barney Ewell, 78, Top Sprinter; Won Gold in Postwar Olympics
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ewell, Barney 1918 births 1996 deaths American male sprinters Athletes (track and field) at the 1948 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field Sportspeople from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Track and field athletes from Pennsylvania Medalists at the 1948 Summer Olympics USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners American military personnel of World War II

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See also

References

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