Ivan William Fuqua (August 9, 1909 – January 14, 1994) was an American

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-dev ...

, a gold medal winner in the 4 × 400 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 swit ...

at the

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held dur ...

in Los Angeles. Fuqua was born in

Decatur, Illinois Decatur ( ) is the largest city and the county seat of Macon County in the U.S. state of Illinois, with a population of 70,522 as of the 2020 Census. The city was founded in 1829 and is situated along the Sangamon River and Lake Decatur in ...

, and graduated from Brazil High School in

Brazil, Indiana Brazil is a city in Clay County, Indiana, United States. The population was 7,912 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Clay County. It is part of the Terre Haute Metropolitan Statistical Area. The current chief executive of Brazil ...

, where he set multiple track and field school records. He then went on to play football and excel in track and field at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. * Indiana Univers ...

, Bloomington, Indiana.

Biography

Fuqua was an AAU champion in 400 m in 1933 and 1934. At the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

Olympics 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 var ...

, or Games of the X Olympiad, Fuqua ran the opening leg in the American 4 × 400 m relay team, winning the gold medal - Indiana University's first - with a new

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 organizati ...

of 3:08.2. After graduation, Ivan Fuqua was appointed track coach at Connecticut State (now the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from H ...

). He entered the Navy during World War II, and was discharged in 1946 with the rank of lieutenant commander. He joined Brown University as a coach. He stayed there as head coach from 1947 until 1973, when he retired. He later became a manager and co-owner of Galilee Beach Club in

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area and the seventh-least populous, with slightly fewer than 1.1 million residents as of 2020, but i ...

. In 1968, he was inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame. In 1981, Fuqua was inducted into the Brown University Hall of Fame. Ivan Fuqua died in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...

at the age of 84.

Notes and references

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fuqua, Ivan 1909 births 1994 deaths American male sprinters Athletes (track and field) at the 1932 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Sportspeople from Decatur, Illinois People from Brazil, Indiana Sportspeople from Providence, Rhode Island Medalists at the 1932 Summer Olympics United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy officers Military personnel from Illinois