| Ken Ruby | |
| Birth Name: | Kenneth Darrol James Ruby |
| Birth Date: | 14 August 1921 |
| Birth Place: | Wellington, New Zealand |
| Death Place: | Tauranga, New Zealand |
| Country: | New Zealand |
| Club: | Kilbirne Gym |
| Sport: | Wrestling |
| Nationals: | Featherweight champion (1948) |
Kenneth Darrol James Ruby (14 August 1921 – 10 September 2011) was a New Zealand wrestler who represented his country at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. He was later a wrestling referee and judge.
Ruby was born on 14 August 1921, and grew up in Wellington.[1] He was educated at Rongotai College, and went on to work at the Wellington Paper Company.[1] During World War II, Ruby served with the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force and saw active service in the Pacific.[1] [2]
A member of the Kilbirnie Gym, Ruby won the New Zealand national amateur wrestling championship in the featherweight division in 1948.[1] [3]
At the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Vancouver, Ruby competed in the bantamweight division.[4] He lost his opening two bouts, against Ian Epton representing Northern Rhodesia[5] and Muhammad Amin from Pakistan,[6] and was eliminated to place fifth overall.[7]
At the 1978 Commonwealth Games in Edmonton, Ruby was a referee and judge, and in 1980 he was awarded life membership of the New Zealand Olympic Wrestling Association.[1]
Ruby moved to Wanganui in 1954, and worked for Weeks Printing Company and then New Zealand Railways.[1] He established a wrestling gym in Wanganui, and worked with local police to set up a club to increase children's participation in sports.[1] He retired to Tauranga in 1983.[1] In the 1998 Queen's Birthday Honours, Ruby was awarded the Queen's Service Medal for community service.[8]
Ruby died in Tauranga on 10 September 2011.[1]