Ovidio de Jesús Vargas (6 February 1933 – 3 October 2011) was a Puerto Rican sprinter.

Career

His international career began it in the

1954 Central American and Caribbean Games The 7th Central American and Caribbean Games were held in Mexico City, the capital city of Mexico. The games were held from the 5 March to the 20 March 1954, and included 1,356 athletes from twelve nations. Sports * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ...

Mexico City, Mexico Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley of Mex ...

conquering their first medals, silver in the 4 x 400 meters, relay bronze in the 400 meters and fourth in the 400 m safety fences. His consecration in the CAC games, became in the

1959 Central American and Caribbean Games The 8th Central American and Caribbean Games were held in Caracas, Venezuela, and it was the first time this nation had held the Games. The Games were held from 6 January to 15 January 1959 and included 1,150 athletes from twelve nations, competin ...

in Caracas, Venezuela, winning three gold medals and be with his partner, Manuel Rivera, the top figures of the delegation. Their gold medals came in the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 53.42, beating out the favorite, the Venezuelan

Víctor Maldonado Víctor Maldonado Flores (born August 3, 1939 in Lagunillas, Zulia) is a retired track and field athlete from Venezuela. He competed in the hurdling events. Maldonado represented his native country at three consecutive Summer Olympics, starting i ...

. His second gold was dramatic, overcome in the goal to its arch-rival, Iván Rodríguez in the 400 meters. Ovidio De Jesus was one of 23 members of the first delegation of Puerto Rico in the

1955 Pan American Games The 1955 Pan American Games opened on March 12, 1955, in the University Stadium (now Olympic Stadium) in Mexico City, Mexico, in front of a capacity crowd of 100,000 spectators. A total number of 2,583 athletes from 22 nations marched in review ...

held in

by participating in the 400 meters and the relay of 4 x 400 meters that arrived in fourth place, losing the bronze medal at the finish line with Venezuela. Four years later, at the

1959 Pan American Games The 1959 Pan American Games were held in Chicago, Illinois, United States between August 28 and September 7, 1959. Host city selection One city initially submitted a bid to host the 1959 Pan American Games that was recognized by the Pan Ame ...

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

competing in the 400 and 400 m hurdles. He competed at the

1956 Summer Olympics The 1956 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVI Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 22 November to 8 December 1956, with the exception of the equestrian events, whi ...

Melbourne, Australia Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metropol ...

and in the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( it, Giochi della XVII Olimpiade) and commonly known as Rome 1960 ( it, Roma 1960), were an international multi-sport event held ...

Rome, Italy , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (Romulus and Remus, legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jesus, Ovidio 1933 births 2011 deaths People from Río Grande, Puerto Rico Athletes (track and field) at the 1956 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1960 Summer Olympics Puerto Rican male sprinters Puerto Rican male hurdlers Olympic track and field athletes for Puerto Rico Athletes (track and field) at the 1955 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1959 Pan American Games Pan American Games competitors for Puerto Rico Central American and Caribbean Games gold medalists for Puerto Rico Competitors at the 1954 Central American and Caribbean Games Competitors at the 1959 Central American and Caribbean Games Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in athletics