Otis Ray Norton (born September 22, 1937 in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

) is a former

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

sprinter who competed in the 1960 Olympics in Rome.

Track career

After graduating high school in 1955, Norton initially went to Oakland City College staying for just one year. He left in 1956 for

San Jose State College San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...

, where he was coached by

Lloyd (Bud) Winter Lloyd C. Winter, better known as Bud (June 8, 1909 – December 6, 1985) was an American track and field coach who is regarded as one of the greatest sprint coaches in the world. Over a 29-year coaching career (1941–1970) at the then San Jose St ...

. He first achieved national fame by equalling the world record of 9.3 for 100 y as a college junior, in San Jose on April 12, 1958.Progression of IAAF World Records 2011 Edition, Editor Imre Matrahazi, IAAF Athletics, p 506. The next year, 1959, was an outstanding one. He won three gold medals 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 ...

and he tied Leamon King's record at the

100 m 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

at 10.1 s in San Jose on April 18. His achievements in 1959 were recognised by being voted Track and Field News's United States Men's Athlete of the Year – the inaugural award of this honour. In 1960, Norton carried on his impressive form of the previous year by tying four world records: he equalled the 220 y record of 20.6 s in Berkeley on March 19; equalled again the 100 y record of 9.3 s in San Jose on April 2; equalled the 200 m record of 20.6 s in Philadelphia on April 30; and equalled the newly set record for the 200 m of 20.5 s in Stanford on July 2. He qualified for the 100 and 200 at the 1960 Olympics by coming first in both events at the United States Olympic Trials, equalling the world record in the process in the 200 m. However, his form at the Olympics itself deserted him, most probably because of nerves, and he finished a disappointing last in both the 100 and 200 m finals. Norton's failure on Thursday September 1 in the 100 m was one of such disasters that befell American favorites that day and the day was to become known as 'Black Thursday'. He tried to make amends for his failures in the individual events in the 4 × 100 m relay. The team of

Frank Budd Francis Joseph "Frank" Budd (July 20, 1939 – April 29, 2014) was an American football wide receiver in the National Football League for the Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Redskins. Budd was an Olympic athlete who competed in the 1960 ...

, Norton,

Stone Johnson Stone Edward Johnson (April 26, 1940 — September 8, 1963) was an American sprinter and professional football player. He played as a kick returner and running back for the Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League (AFL). On August 3 ...

and

Dave Sime David William Sime (; July 25, 1936 – January 12, 2016) was an American sprinter, multi-sport athlete at Duke University, and a pioneering ophthalmologist. He won a silver medal in the 100-meter dash at the 1960 Olympic Games. He held sever ...

finished first in a world record time of 39.4 s but were disqualified because at the first exchange from Budd to Norton, Norton started too early and the exchange happened outside the changeover box. The West German team who finished second in 39.5 s received the gold medals and became the new world record holders. Norton came to the attention of the world's press at the Olympics for more than his athletic tribulations when he was seen courting his fellow American sprint star and public favorite

Wilma Rudolph Wilma Glodean Rudolph (June 23, 1940 – November 12, 1994) was an American sprinter, who became a world-record-holding Olympic champion and international sports icon in track and field following her successes in the 1956 and 1960 Olympic Games. ...

Early in 1960, College and the social work degree he was working on. Norton continued to train at the San Clara Valley Youth Village. Norton retired from athletics that season and was drafted as an American football player at the end of that year.

NFL career

Norton played halfback for the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

during the

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...

and 1961 seasons.

Later life

In 1966, Norton sought the nomination to sit as a Republican for the California Assembly 17th District (Oakland and Berkeley). At the time he was working as a partner in a service agency for attorneys. Ray currently resides in Napa, California.

Rankings

Norton was ranked among the best in the US and the world in both the 100 and 200 m sprint events between 1958 and 1960, according to the votes of the experts 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 is a sport that includes athletic contests based on runni ...

''.

USA Championships

Norton was a formidable performer at the USA national championships.A History Of The Results Of The National Track & Field Championships Of The USA From 1876 Through 2003
, Track and Field News.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Norton, Ray 1937 births Living people Sportspeople from Tulsa, Oklahoma Track and field athletes from San Jose, California American male sprinters San Jose State Spartans men's track and field athletes World record setters in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 1959 Pan American Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1960 Summer Olympics Olympic track and field athletes of the United States Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Players of American football from Oklahoma American football halfbacks San Francisco 49ers players Track and field athletes from Oklahoma Track and field athletes in the National Football League USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners Medalists at the 1959 Pan American Games