Lou Jones, 74; Won a Gold Medal in Relay at 1956 Summer Games

Lou Jones, 74, a gold medalist in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics as a member of the U.S. 1,600-meter relay team, died Feb. 3 at a hospital in New York City.

Jones set a record in the 400 meter run in the 1955 Pan American Games in Mexico City. His winning time of 45.4 seconds clipped four-tenths of a second off the previous world mark.

He eclipsed his own mark in the 400 meters in the Olympic trials at the Los Angeles Coliseum in June 1956 with a time of 45.2 seconds. But he fared poorly in the 400 meters in Melbourne, finishing fifth in the race, won by Charlie Jenkins, an American, from Villanova.

Born in New Rochelle, N.Y., Jones graduated from Manhattan College with a degree in business administration. He earned his master’s degree at Columbia.