View source for Ray Barbuti

{{Short description|American football player and sprint runner (1905–1988)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| name           = Ray Barbuti
| image          =Ray Barbuti 1928.jpg
| image_size     = 
| caption        =
| birth_name     = 
| fullname       = Raymond James Barbuti
| nationality    = 
| residence      = 
| birth_date     = {{birth date text|June 12, 1905}}
| birth_place    = [[Brooklyn, New York]], U.S.
| death_date     = {{death-date and age|July 8, 1988|June 12, 1905}}
| death_place    = [[Pittsfield, Massachusetts]], U.S.
| height         = 6 ft 0 in
| weight         = 181 lb
| country        = 
| sport          = Running
| club           = NYAC, New York
| retired        = 
| olympics       = 
| highestranking = 
| show-medals    = yes
| medaltemplates =
{{MedalSport | [[Athletics (sport)|Athletics]] }}
{{MedalCountry | the {{USA}} }}
{{MedalCompetition | [[Athletics at the Summer Olympics|Olympic Games]] }}
{{MedalGold | [[1928 Summer Olympics|1928 Amsterdam]] | [[Athletics at the 1928 Summer Olympics – Men's 400 metres|400 metres]]}}
{{MedalGold | [[1928 Summer Olympics|1928 Amsterdam]] | [[Athletics at the 1928 Summer Olympics – Men's 4 × 400 metres relay|4 × 400 m relay]]}}
}}

'''Raymond James Barbuti''' (June 12, 1905 &ndash; July 8, 1988) was an [[American football]] player and sprint runner who won two gold medals at the [[1928 Summer Olympics]] in Amsterdam, Netherlands.<ref>{{cite Sports-Reference |title=Ray Barbuti |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ba/ray-barbuti-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161202220206/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ba/ray-barbuti-1.html |archive-date=December 2, 2016}}</ref> Barbuti traveled to Amsterdam to initially only compete for the 400 meter sprint however the US medal position was meek and then US Olympic committee president, Major General Douglas MacArthur insisted after Barbuti won the 400 meter gold that he run in the 4 × 400 meter relay the next day. Barbuti was interrupted by MacArthur during his celebratory evening to start preparing to run the anchor for the event the next day. Barbuti initially, vehemently refused, claiming he would not displace a fellow US runner in search for further medals. However MacArthur was relentless and finally prevailed and history commenced with the team winning the gold.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Salvatore J. LaGumina|author2=Frank J. Cavaioli|author3=Salvatore Primeggia|author4=Joseph A. Varacalli|title=The Italian American Experience: An Encyclopedia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Tm-AAAAAQBAJ&pg=PT118|date=2 September 2003|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=978-1-135-58332-3|pages=118–}}</ref>

Raised in [[Inwood, New York]], Barbuti attended [[Lawrence High School (Cedarhurst, New York)|Lawrence High School]].<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1928/08/16/archives/inwood-makes-elaborate-plans-to-welcome-ray-barbuti-home.html "Inwood Makes Elaborate Plans To Welcome Ray Barbuti Home"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', August 16, 1928. Accessed September 8, 2025. "An elaborate celebration has been arranged at Inwood, L. I., for the homecoming of Ray Barbuti, winner of the 400-meter race at the Olympic games and a member of the team which won the 1,600-meter relay race.... The alumni of Lawrence High School, of which Barbuti is a member, will give another entertainment on Wednesday."</ref> In 1924, while playing fullback, Barbuti set a New York state high school record, which still stands (2013), scoring eight touchdowns in one game. He attended [[Syracuse University]], where he won the [[IC4A]] championship in the 400 m sprint in 1928 in a time of 48.8 seconds. The same year he won the [[Amateur Athletic Union|AAU]] Championship in the 400 m dash in a time of 51.4. He played fullback on the Syracuse football teams of 1926, 1927, and 1928 and was the captain of both the football and athletics teams.

His trainer, Peter Poole, very seldom let him run his two preferred distances, the 200 [[yard|yd]] and the 400 yd, in the same competition, so Barbuti chose the 400 m and 4 × 400 m at the 1928 Summer Olympics and won both, setting a world record in the relay at 3:14.2. Next week he set another world record, at 3:13.4 in the 4 × 440 yd relay in London in a match against Great Britain.

During World War II Barbuti served with the US Air Force in the 83rd Bombardment Squadron which was part of the 12th Bombardment Group also known as the Earthquakers. He was awarded the [[Air Medal]] and the [[Bronze Star]]. While stationed in Gambut, Libya, Barbuti helped to organize the Western Desert Track and Field Championships. The competition was between the 12th Bombardment's track men, members of the RAF, and Australian troops. With Barbuti's talent on the track as a runner and as a coach, the men of the 12th won 1st place in 8 out of 11 events. He retired in the rank of major and became deputy director of the Civil Defense Commission for New York State and director of the New York State Office of Disaster Preparedness. In his spare time he acted as a referee in more than 500 intercollegiate football games.

On December 24, 1957, Barbuti appeared as a "contestant imposter" on the game show ''[[To Tell the Truth]]''. This episode is still in existence and was most recently aired by [[Game Show Network|GSN]] on January 20, 2009. The host was [[Bud Collyer]] and the panel consisted of [[Betsy Palmer]], [[Don Ameche]], [[Kitty Carlisle]] and [[Hy Gardner]].

[[File:Ray Barbuti, Emerson Spencer, Fred Alderman, George Baird 1928.jpg|thumb|450px|Ray Barbuti, [[Emerson Spencer]], [[Fred Alderman]] and [[George Baird (athlete)|George Baird]] at the 1928 Olympics]]
[[File:James Ball, Joachim Büchner, Raymond Barbuti 1928.jpg|thumb|450px|Barbuti (right) winning the 400 m event at the 1928 Olympics]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Olympics.com profile}}
* {{Olympedia}}
* {{databaseOlympics|BARBURAY01|archive=20070929134512}}
* [http://www.sprintic.com/athletes/ray_barbuti/ Ray Barbuti profile] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924105037/http://www.sprintic.com/athletes/ray_barbuti/ |date=September 24, 2015 }} at Sprintic.com
* Black Angel History and Log Book of the Eighty-Third Bombardment Squadron - The Modern Printing Company

{{Footer Olympic Champions 400 m Men|1928}}
{{Footer Olympic Champions 4x400 m Men}}
{{Footer US NC 400m Men}}
{{Footer USA Track & Field 1928 Summer Olympics}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barbuti, Ray}}
[[Category:1905 births]]
[[Category:1988 deaths]]
[[Category:American football fullbacks]]
[[Category:American men sprinters]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1928 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Lawrence High School (Cedarhurst, New York) alumni]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 1928 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States in track and field]]
[[Category:Syracuse Orange football players]]
[[Category:Syracuse Orange men's track and field athletes]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Brooklyn]]
[[Category:People from The Five Towns, New York]]
<!--[[Category:People from Inwood, New York]]-->
[[Category:Sportspeople from Hempstead, New York]]
[[Category:Players of American football from Nassau County, New York]]
[[Category:Track and field athletes from New York City]]
[[Category:United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Air Medal]]
[[Category:20th-century American sportsmen]]