Ron Freeman

{{short description|American athlete}}

{{Infobox sportsperson

| name = Ron Freeman

| image = Ron Freeman 1968.jpg

| caption =

| fullname = Ronald John Freeman III

| birth_date = {{birth-date and age|June 12, 1947}}

| birth_place = Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S.

| headercolor = lightsteelblue

| height = {{convert|1.83|m|ftin|abbr=on}}

| weight = {{convert|82|kg|lb|abbr=on}}

|sport=Athletics

|event=400 m

|club= Arizona State Sun Devils, Phoenix

|pb=220 yd – 21.2 (1963)
400 m – 44.41 (1968)
880 yd – 1:50.4 (1968)

|alma_mater=

| show-medals = yes

| medaltemplates =

{{MedalCountry | the {{USA}} }}

{{MedalOlympics}}

{{MedalGold|1968 Mexico City|4 × 400 m relay}}

{{MedalBronze | 1968 Mexico City | 400 metres}} {{efn|Freeman ran the fastest 400 meter relay leg in the history of the Olympic Games which stood for more than 25 years.}}

}}

Ronald John Freeman III (born June 12, 1947 in Elizabeth, New Jersey) is an American former athlete. At the 1968 Summer Olympics, Freeman won a gold medal in the 4 × 400 m relay and a bronze medal in the 400 meters.{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/fr/ron-freeman-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417171647/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/fr/ron-freeman-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2020-04-17 |title=Ron Freeman}} Freeman ran the second leg on the American 4 × 400 m relay team, which won the gold medal with a new world record of 2.56.16. His relay leg time (43.2s) was the fastest 4 × 400 meter relay leg ever run and his time stood for more than 25 years.

Raised in Elizabeth, Freeman attended Thomas Jefferson High School.Denman, Elliott. [https://www.runnerspace.com/gprofile.php?mgroup_id=45586&do=news&news_id=199330 "From Banishment to the Hall"], Armory Track, December 7, 2011. Accessed September 11, 2020. "the Hudson and down the ‘pike there was Ron Freeman at Thomas Jefferson High School n Elizabeth, N.J."

Freeman finished second behind Adrian Metcalfe in the 440 yards event at the British 1963 AAA Championships.{{cite web|url=https://www.nuts.org.uk/Champs/AAA/index.htm |title=AAA, WAAA and National Championships Medallists |website=National Union of Track Statisticians |access-date=5 May 2025}}{{cite web|url=http://www.gbrathletics.com/bc/aaa.htm |title=AAA Championships (men) |website=GBR Athletics |access-date=5 May 2025}}{{cite news |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0004162/19630713/214/0010 |title=Carroll sprints in |work=Ireland's Saturday Night |date=13 July 1963 |via=British Newspaper Archive|url-access=subscription |access-date=5 May 2025}}