John Youie "Long John" Woodruff (July 5, 1915 – October 30, 2007) was an American middle-distance runner, winner of the 800 meter event at the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics ( German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad ( German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi- ...

Early life

Woodruff was only a freshman at the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the univers ...

in 1936 when he placed second at the National

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It has ...

meet and first at the Olympic Trials (in the heat 1:49.9; WR 1:49.8), earning a spot on the U.S. Olympic team. Woodruff was a member of

Alpha Phi Alpha Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. () is the oldest intercollegiate historically African American fraternity. It was initially a literary and social studies club organized in the 1905–1906 school year at Cornell University but later evolved in ...

fraternity. Despite his inexperience, he was the favorite in the Olympic 800 meter run, and he did not disappoint. In one of the most exciting races in Olympic history, Woodruff became boxed in by other runners and was forced to stop running. He then came from behind to win in 1:52.9. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' described the race: During a career that was curtailed by

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Woodruff won one

title in 800 meter in 1937 and won both and

IC4A IC4A Championships (Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America) is an annual men's competition held at different colleges every year. Association was established in 1875, the competition (started in 1876) served as the top level co ...

titles from 1937 to 1939. Woodruff also held a share of the world 4×880 yard

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 ...

record while competing with the national team. Woodruff graduated from the

in 1939, with a major in

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation and ...

. While at the University of Pittsburgh, Woodruff became a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity. and then earned a master's degree in the same field from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, ...

in 1941. He entered military service in 1941 as a second lieutenant and was discharged as a captain in 1945. He re-entered military service during the

Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top: ...

era, and left in 1957 as a lieutenant colonel. He was a battalion commander in the 369th Coastal Artillery Regiment, later the

569th Transportation Battalion The 369th Sustainment Brigade is a United States Army sustainment brigade of the 53rd Troop Command of the New York Army National Guard headquartered out of the 369th Regiment Armory in Harlem, New York. This unit is descended from the 369th Infa ...

of the

New York Army National Guard The New York Army National Guard is a component of the New York National Guard and the Army National Guard. Nationwide, the Army National Guard comprises approximately one half of the United States Army's available combat forces and approximat ...

Later years

In later years Woodruff lived in

New Rochelle New Rochelle (; older french: La Nouvelle-Rochelle) is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the southeastern portion of the state. In 2020, the city had a population of 79,726, making it the seventh-largest in the state of ...

Westchester County, New York Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population ...

and in

Hightstown, New Jersey Hightstown is a borough in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 5,494,New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

, a special investigator for the New York Department of Welfare, a recreation center director for the New York City Police Athletic League, a parole officer for the

state of New York New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...

, a salesperson for Schieffelin and Co. and an assistant to the Center Director for Edison

Job Corps Job Corps is a program administered by the United States Department of Labor that offers free education and vocational training to young men and women ages 16 to 24. Mission and purpose Job Corps' mission is to help young people ages 16 throug ...

Center in New Jersey. In the late 1990s John, with his wife Rose, retired to Fountain Hills, Arizona residing at Fountain View Village retirement community. Woodruff's last public appearance was on April 15, 2007 when he, along with the members of the Tuskegee Airmen, was honored by the Arizona Diamondbacks by throwing out the first pitch. John Woodruff is buried at

Crown Hill Cemetery Crown Hill Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery located at 700 West 38th Street in Indianapolis, Marion County, Indiana. The privately owned cemetery was established in 1863 at Strawberry Hill, whose summit was renamed "The Crown", a high poi ...

, Indianapolis (section 46, lot 86).

Legacy

Each year, a 5-kilometer road race is held in Connellsville to honor Woodruff. In 2016, the 1936 Olympic journey of the eighteen Black American athletes, including Woodruff, was documented in the film ''

Olympic Pride, American Prejudice ''Olympic Pride, American Prejudice'' is a 2016 American documentary film written and directed by Deborah Riley Draper. Dr. Amy Tiemann, Michael A. Draper, and Blair Underwood (who also narrated the film) were executive producers. The film premier ...

''.

References

External links

John Woodruff, Connellsville's Olympic Champion by Jim KriekPittsburgh Post-Gazette article on Woodruff's 70th anniversary of race
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John Woodruff's oral history video excerpts
at The National Visionary Leadership Project {{DEFAULTSORT:Woodruff, John 1915 births 2007 deaths American male middle-distance runners African-American male track and field athletes Athletes (track and field) at the 1936 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from the Pittsburgh metropolitan area Track and field athletes from Pennsylvania New York University alumni People from Hightstown, New Jersey Sportspeople from New Rochelle, New York People from Connellsville, Pennsylvania University of Pittsburgh alumni Pittsburgh Panthers men's track and field athletes Burials at Crown Hill Cemetery Medalists at the 1936 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field United States Army personnel of World War II National Guard (United States) officers New York National Guard personnel 20th-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American people African-American history of Westchester County, New York Military personnel from Pennsylvania Military personnel from New Jersey