Foy Draper

Foy Draper (November 26, 1911 – February 1, 1943) was an American track and field athlete who won a gold medal in 4 × 100 m relay at the 1936 Summer Olympics. As a University of Southern California student, Draper won the IC4A championships in 200 m in 1935.

Foy Draper
U.S. relay team at the 1936 Olympics: Jesse Owens, Ralph Metcalfe, Foy Draper and Frank Wykoff
Personal information
BornNovember 26, 1911
Georgetown, Texas, United States
DiedFebruary 1, 1943 (aged 31)
Kasserine Pass, Kasserine, Tunisia
Alma materUniversity of Southern California
Height1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)
Weight54 kg (119 lb)
Sport
SportTrack and field
Event(s)100 m
ClubUSC Trojans, Los Angeles
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)100 m – 10.3 (1936)[1]

He reportedly held the world record for the 100-yard dash, at the time that would have been a hand timed 9.4, made all that more remarkable with Draper standing only 5'5".[2]

At the Berlin Olympics, Draper ran the third leg in the American 4 × 100 m relay team, which won the gold medal in a world record time of 39.8.[1]

During World War II, Draper served as a pilot on a twin-engine attack bomber A-20B 'Havoc' in Thelepte, Tunisia. On January 4, 1943,[3] Draper took off to fly to Fonduck, Tunisia to take part of the battle of Kassarine Pass. Draper and his two crewmen never returned and his death date is usually given as February 1, 1943. He is buried in the North Africa American Cemetery and Memorial administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission in Carthage, Tunisia. His gravestone shows January 4, 1943 as his date of death.[1]

References

  1. Foy Draper Archived October 25, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. Sports Reference. Retrieved on August 20, 2015.
  2. Faster than the Fastest | Longform. SI.com. Retrieved on August 20, 2015.
  3. "Olympians Who Were Killed or Missing in Action or Died as a Result of War". Sports Reference. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020. Retrieved July 24, 2018.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.