Gregory Ruth (August 9, 1939 – June 30, 1974) was an American wrestler. He competed in the men's freestyle lightweight at the

1964 Summer Olympics The , officially the and commonly known as Tokyo 1964 ( ja, 東京1964), were an international multi-sport event held from 10 to 24 October 1964 in Tokyo, Japan. Tokyo had been awarded the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this ho ...

. He wrestled collegiately at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

, where he was a two-time

NCAA champion The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

. Ruth was killed in a powerboat racing accident on June 30, 1974, in

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the ...

. He was buried at Sunset Memorial Park in

Norman, Oklahoma Norman () is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, with a population of 128,097 as of 2021. It is the largest city and the county seat of Cleveland County, Oklahoma, Cleveland County, and the second-largest city in the Oklahoma C ...

References

1939 births 1974 deaths American male sport wrestlers Motorboat racers who died while racing Oklahoma Sooners wrestlers Olympic wrestlers for the United States Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in wrestling Sports deaths in Texas Sportspeople from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 20th-century American people 21st-century American people Wrestlers at the 1963 Pan American Games Wrestlers at the 1964 Summer Olympics {{US-wrestling-bio-stub