Elbert Jay Lambert (November 21, 1925 – February 6, 2012) was an American amateur and professional boxer, medical doctor and general surgeon in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was the 1948 U.S. Olympic Trials Champion and represented the United States as a heavy weight in the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, England. He fought professionally from 1948 to 1950 before leaving the sport to pursue a career in medicine.
 Lambert, circa 1949 | |||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birth name | Elbert Jay Lambert | ||||||||
| Born | November 21, 1925 Helper, Utah, U.S.A. | ||||||||
| Died | February 6, 2012 (aged 86) Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S.A.[1] | ||||||||
| Alma mater | Lehi High School | ||||||||
| Height | 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in) | ||||||||
| Weight | 84 kg (185 lb) | ||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||
| Sport | Boxing | ||||||||
| Weight class | Heavyweight | ||||||||
| University team | University of Utah Utes | ||||||||
| Club | West Jordan Boxing Club | ||||||||
| Coached by | Marv Jenson[2] | ||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||
Jay Lambert | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Weight class | Heavyweight |
| Boxing record[3] | |
| Total fights | 12 |
| Wins | 8 |
| Wins by KO | 4 |
| Losses | 3 |
| Draws | 1 |
Jay Lambert | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Resting place | Wasatch Memorial Lawn |
| Spouse |
Ila Lamoreaux
(m. 1950; died 1994) |
| Children | 4 (3 daughters, 1 son) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Branch/service |  United States Army Air Forces |
| Years of service | 1943–1945 |
| Rank | Aviation Cadet |
Early life
editLambert was born on November 21, 1925, to Aleta Elvera (Vera) Rasmussen and Joseph Hovey Lambert in the small town of Helper, Utah. He had five siblings: brothers Joseph (1919), Tony (1921), and Clyde (1924), and sisters Marian (1917) and Martha (1931).[4] In 1932 the family moved from Helper to the Point of the Mountain near Lehi, Utah where they opened and operated a filling station/diner and pig farm.[5] His older brothers were involved in boxing at a local boxing club and Jay and his oldest brother Joe became part of a boxing training camp operated by Marv Jensen, legendary trainer of Utah boxing legend Gene Fullmer, in West Jordan, Utah.[4] He graduated from Lehi High school in the spring of 1944.[6][7]
Amateur Boxing career
editPrior to joining Marv Jensen's camp, Lambert won the Intermountain Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) tournament middle weight division in 1941 and heavy weight division in 1942. He went on to win the Intermountain AAU Championship in 1943; and he was a two time Intermountain Intercollegiate champ and Intermountain AAU title holder.[8] In 1947, he won the Intermountain Golden Glove Heavy Weight championship and the Intermountain Intercollegiate Heavy Weight championship and was given the Outstanding Boxer award. In 1948, he won the Intermountain AAU title.[8]
Olympics
editIn 1948, at the age of 22, Lambert won the U.S. Boxing Olympic Trials in the Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts securing a spot on the 1948 U.S. Olympic Team. Through three Olympic Trial tournaments, he notched notable victories over Rex Layne, who would later go on to fight Rocky Marciano, Ezzard Charles, and Jersey Joe Walcott,[9] as a top professional heavyweight contender in the 1950s, and Norvel Lee in the tournament's final; Lee would go on to win a gold medal as a light heavyweight in the 1952 Helsinki Olympics.[5] In London, he fought his way to the quarterfinals before losing a split decision to Johnny Arthur of South Africa.
Professional Boxing career
editLambert turned professional in the wake of the Olympics and compiled an 8-3-1 professional record[10] as well as an exhibition match with Joe Louis in 1949. Still considered a contender in the spring of 1950, he left the sport to attend medical school, using his professional boxing earnings to support his medical education.[11]
Military service
editLambert served in the United States Army Air Forces as an aviation cadet during World War II and was stationed in the United States.[12][13][14]
Medical career after boxing
editLambert graduated from the University of Utah Medical School in 1954, beginning his general surgery residency at Sloan-Kettering Memorial Center in New York and finishing at LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City. He joined the staff of LDS Hospital in 1959 as a general surgeon. He continued to practice medicine in Salt Lake City until retiring in 1997.[8]
Dr. Lambert remained active in the local boxing community throughout his life donating his services for over 40 years as the ringside physician for the Golden Gloves Amateur Boxing in Utah and as the team physician for Granite High School football in the 70's and 80's.[8][15]
Later years
editDr. Lambert was inducted into the Utah Sport Hall of Fame in 1977.[16]
He passed away on February 6, 2012.
Personal life
editLambert was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.[17]
References
edit- ^ "Olympedia - Jay Lambert". www.olympedia.org. Retrieved 3 Oct 2023.
- ^ Benson, Lee (12 Feb 2012). "About Utah: Modest M.D. had his day in Olympics". www.deseret.com. Retrieved 3 Oct 2023.
- ^ "Boxing record for". BoxRec.
- ^ a b "Jay Lambert--A Lehi Olympian". Lehi Free Press. July 27, 2016. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ^ a b Benson, Lee (1992). Trials & Triumphs Mormons in the Olympic Games. Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company. pp. 41–59. ISBN 0-87579-628-1.
- ^ "Jay Lambert Biography and Olympic Results | Olympics at Sports-Reference.com". www.sports-reference.com. Archived from the original on 16 Oct 2012. Retrieved 3 Oct 2023.
- ^ "High School Commencement May 18, The Lehi Free Press, Lehi, Utah, volume XI, number 37, May 11, 1944, page 1. (subscription required)
- ^ a b c d "E. Jay Lambert's Obituary (2012) Deseret News". Legacy.com. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ^ "BoxRec: Rex Layne". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ^ "BoxRec: Jay Lambert". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ^ "Elbert Jay LAMBERT Biography, Olympic Medals, Records and Age". olympics.com. Retrieved 3 Oct 2023.
- ^ Deseret News (7 Feb 2012). "Obituary: Lambert, E Jay". www.deseret.com. Retrieved 3 Oct 2023.
- ^ "Utah Service Men Win Promotions in Rank at Various Bases in U. S., Overseas", The Salt Lake Tribune, Salt Lake City, Utah, volume 150, number 136, February 27, 1945, page 10. (subscription required)
- ^ "Our Men and Women in Uniform", The Helper Journal, Helper, Utah, volume 39, number 10, page 6. (subscription required)
- ^ Benson, Lee; Robinson, Doug (1 Jan 1992). Trials & Triumphs/Mormons in the Olympic Games. Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company. p. Foreward. Retrieved 13 Oct 2023.
- ^ "Hall of Fame 1970s - Utah Sports Hall of Fame Foundation". www.utahsportshalloffame.org. Retrieved 3 Oct 2023.
- ^ Deseret News 1999-2000 Church Almanac. Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret News. 1998. p. 555. ISBN 1573454915.
Sources
edit- Bio on Lambert's boxing
- "Utah boxing community mourns death of boxer, physician Jay Lambert". The Salt Lake Tribune
- 2009 Deseret Morning News Church Almanac (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Morning News, 2008), p. 326.
- South Valley School article on Jenson