MEREDITH, TED

born Nov. 14, 1892, Chester Heights, Pa., U.S. died Nov. 2, 1957, Camden, N.J. byname of James E. Meredith American middle-distance runner, a world-record holder in the 800-metre (191226), 440-yard (191631), and 880-yard (191226) races and as a team member in the 4 400-metre relay race (191224) and the 4 440-yard relay race (191528). Meredith began his running career at Mercersburg (Pennsylvania) Academy and continued it at the University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia). At the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm, he won the gold medal in the 800-metre race, setting a world record of 1 min 51.9 sec, as well as a world record of 1 min 52.5 sec for the 880-yard race. He lowered the latter record to 1 min 52.2 sec in 1916. Meredith served in the Aviation Section of the U.S. Signal Corps in World War I, wrote Middle Distance and Relay Racing (1924), and worked for the Internal Revenue Service.