George Lawrence "Larry" James (November 6, 1947 – November 6, 2008), also known as James Swift, was an American track athlete. At the 1968 Olympics he won a gold medal in the 4 × 400 m relay and a silver in the individual 400 m.

Biography

Early life

James was born on November 6, 1947, in

Mount Pleasant, New York Mount Pleasant is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the town population was 44,436. The hamlets of Valhalla, Hawthorne, Pocantico Hills, and Thornwood, and the v ...

, and took up track in seventh grade. He attended White Plains High School, where he competed in the intermediate hurdles and the triple jump, and was a member of relay teams that set national records.Litsky, Frank
"G. Larry James, Olympic Gold Medalist, Dies at 61"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', November 7, 2008. Accessed November 8, 2008.

Athlete

A double medalist at the

1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Mexico 1968 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 12 to 27 October 1968, in Mexico City, Mexico. These were the first Ol ...

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

, James also set world records and won

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

titles during his track career. James won the silver medal in the 400 m with his time of 43.97 seconds at the 1968 Summer Olympics, bettering the existing

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 organizatio ...

but placing him second behind teammate (and fellow Hall of Famer) Lee Evans (43.86). James added a gold medal at the Mexico City Games by running the third leg on the U.S. 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 switc ...

team, which set a

of 2:56.16 seconds, which was eventually tied in 1988 but was not beaten until 1992. James, at the age of 20 years and 10 months, set the 400 m world record of 44.1 seconds in placing second to Evans at the 1968 Olympic Trials at

Echo Summit Echo Summit is a mountain pass over the Sierra Nevada in the western United States, located in eastern El Dorado County, California. At above sea level, it is the highest point on U.S. Route 50 in California, which traverses it at postmile 6 ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, when Evans' winning time of 44.0 was disallowed by the

IAAF World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation and International Association of Athletics Federations and formerly abbreviated as the IAAF, is the international sports governing body, governing body for the sport ...

because he wore illegal brush spike shoes. James was a double gold medalist at the 1970 World University Games, winning the 400 m hurdles and running the anchor leg on Team USA's 4 × 400 m relay team (3:03.33). As a collegian at

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Saint Thom ...

under Hall of Fame coach Jumbo Elliott, James won the

NCAA Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship The NCAA Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship refers to one of three annual collegiate outdoor track and field competitions for men organised by the National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association ...

440 yd title in 1970 and NCAA Men's Indoor Track and Field Championship crowns at that distance in 1968, 1969 and 1970. At the 1968

Penn Relays The Penn Relays (officially The Penn Relay Carnival) is the oldest and largest track and field competition in the United States, hosted annually since April 21, 1895 by the University of Pennsylvania at Franklin Field in Philadelphia. In 2012 ...

, his anchor leg of 43.9 was the fastest ever run in the history of the relay carnival and sparked Villanova's scintillating comeback victory over

Rice University William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University, is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1912, the university spans 300 acres. Rice University comp ...

. His finish in this race is pictured on the cover of the May 1968 issue of ''

Track and Field News ''Track & Field News'' is an American monthly sports magazine founded in 1948 by brothers Bert Nelson and Cordner Nelson, focused on the world of track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includ ...

.''Past Covers 1968
. Trackandfieldnews.com. Retrieved on July 14, 2015.

Coaching

The head manager for Team USA at the 2003 World Outdoor Championships, James was chair of

USATF USA Track & Field (USATF) is a United States national governing body for the sports of track and field, cross country running, road running, and racewalking (known as the sport of athletics outside the US). The USATF was known between 1979 and 1 ...

's budget committee and had recently retired after 28 years as the Dean of Athletics and Recreational Programs and Services at the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey. The soccer and track-and-field stadium at the College is named for him, and features a large touchstone at its entrance. In addition to the bachelor's degree in business administration that he earned from Villanova, James received a

Master of Public Policy The Master of Public Policy (MPP) is a graduate-level professional degree. It provides training in policy analysis and program evaluation at public policy schools. The MPP program places a focus on the systematic analysis of issues related to pu ...

in 1987 from

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

. In 2003, James was inducted into the

National Track and Field Hall of Fame National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

. He died on his 61st birthday on November 6, 2008, at his home in

Galloway Township, New Jersey Galloway Township is a township in Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, and a growing edge city to neighboring Atlantic City. At of total area of land and water, Galloway Township is the largest municipality in the state.

colon cancer Colorectal cancer (CRC), also known as bowel cancer, colon cancer, or rectal cancer, is the development of cancer from the colon or rectum (parts of the large intestine). Signs and symptoms may include blood in the stool, a change in bowel ...

References

External links

* * * *
NYTimes obituary

{{DEFAULTSORT:James, Larry 1947 births 2008 deaths American male sprinters Athletes (track and field) at the 1968 Summer Olympics Deaths from colorectal cancer in New Jersey World record setters in athletics (track and field) Medalists at the 1968 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field People from Galloway Township, New Jersey Sportspeople from Mount Pleasant, New York Track and field athletes from Westchester County, New York Rutgers University alumni Stockton Ospreys athletic directors Stockton University faculty Villanova Wildcats men's track and field athletes Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field) White Plains High School alumni FISU World University Games gold medalists for the United States Medalists at the 1970 Summer Universiade NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships winners 20th-century American sportsmen