Olympic Silver Medalist Abel Kiviat Way (Staten Island)
Present name:None
Location:At the northeast corner of Oxford Place and Forest Avenue
Honoree: Abel Kiviat (1892-1991) was a former world-record holder in the 1,500-meter run and a silver medalist in the 1912 Olympics. At his death, at 99, he was the oldest living American Olympian. Raised on Staten Island, he was citywide half-mile and mile champion in track while at Curtis High School. In the next few years, he set three world records outdoors and six indoors, and won nine United States titles. He entered the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm as the world-record holder and favorite in the 1,500 meters. During the race, he led until the last 8 meters, when Arnold Strode Jackson of Britain ran by and just beat him. After his running career, he worked as a deputy clerk for the U.S. District Court in Manhattan. In 1984, he participated in the Olympic torch relay from the United Nations Secretariat in Manhattan to Los Angeles. In 1985, Abel Kiviat was voted into the National Track and Field Hall of Fame. (Rose)
LL:2016/92