|
Our friend Ron left us this year for more peaceful pastures. We will always remember the pride he gave us with his athletic talent and warm personality.
Steve Johnson brings us this message. Thank you, Steve:
Ron Larrieu passed away June 1, 2020 according to articles in running magazines and Wikipedia. On "I Play Track" website is the following:"Rest In Peace to Ron Larrieu, the first American under 28:00 for six miles. He was an Olympian at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games competing in the 10,000m placing 24th overall in a time of 30:42.6, and was a two time national champion in cross country for the years 1965 and 1966."
|
Susan Vaile
Ron was a great person--humble, dedicated, and an all-around nice guy. I still have the trophy we won at a reunion doubles tennis tournament--he didn't need a partner!!!
Peter Sanford
I have known Ron since Junior High and we were on the track team together all three years at Paly. Despite his small stature, he turned out to be one of the best long distance runners in Paly's history. He won the state mile in our senior year and went on to greater achievments as mentioned by Steve Johnson. Not only was he an endurance long distance runner, but he was also very fast at short sprints. He used to be one on our 4 runners on the 440 yard relay and could hang in there with the best sprinters.
Later in life, he wrote about some of his more exciting track meets and his writing was good and exciting to read.
His younger sister. Fancy Larrieu, turned out to be an even more spectacular long distance runner than Ron.
We kept in touch (Christmas cards) over the years and I feel lucky to have known him.
Steven Maxwell Johnson
Ron was always a gentleman. He was a year older than most of his classmates, seemed a little "different," had a wide and friendly grin, and in the world of track and cross country, inspired his teammates. He pushed himself to excel in running, and by his example, pushed all the other, slower runners. We were all extremely proud of him for his accomplishments, and for the fact that because of him primarily, our team won most of our events. With Ron in the lead, we would often "sweep" a track meet, meaning four or five of us would cross the finish line before the first runner on the opposing team crossed! I have fond memories of Ron.