Earl Johnson (athlete)
Richard Earle "Earl" Johnson was an American athlete who competed mainly in the cross country team. He was the 1921 National Champion. He effectively defended his championship in 1922 as he was beaten by Ville Ritola's Van Cortlandt Park course record, but since Ritola was Finnish, Johnson was the first American finisher in the National Championships. A rare black athlete of his day, he worked for the Edgar Thomson Steel Works in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
He competed for the United States in the 1924 Summer Olympics held in Paris, France in the cross country team where he won the silver medal with his teammates Arthur Studenroth and August Fager.
