Otis Paul Drayton (May 8, 1939 – March 2, 2010) was an American sprint runner. He was an AAU champion in the sprint from 1961 to 1963. In 1961, he was a member of the

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 organization ...

of 39.1 seconds setting American 4 × 100 m relay team, and equaled the

200 m The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightl ...

world record of 20.5 s in 1962. At the 1964 Olympics, Drayton won a silver medal in the 200 m and ran the opening leg for the gold medal winning American 4 × 100 m relay team, which set a world record at 39.06 seconds.Paul Drayton
Sports Reference.com In retirement Drayton lived with his wife near

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, where he worked as deputy project director for the city's Division of Recreation and then at the sheriff's department. He died on March 2, 2010, of a

pulmonary embolism Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a blockage of an pulmonary artery, artery in the lungs by a substance that has moved from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream (embolism). Symptoms of a PE may include dyspnea, shortness of breath, chest pain p ...

following

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

surgery.

References

1939 births 2010 deaths American male sprinters World record setters in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics Deaths from cancer in Ohio Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field Sportspeople from Glen Cove, New York Track and field athletes from New York (state) Deaths from pulmonary embolism Medalists at the 1964 Summer Olympics Military personnel from New York (state) {{US-athletics-Olympic-medalist-stub