Ramón Barquín

Ramón M. Barquín (12 May 1914 – 3 March 2008) was a Cuban military colonel and opponent of former President Fulgencio Batista. Barquín was jailed by the Batista government for leading a failed coup attempt in 1956.

Early life

Ramón M. Barquín was born in the city of Cienfuegos, Cuba, on 12 May 1914. The recruits included a number of supporters and former staff members of Rebel Major Huber Matos Benitez, including Jose Dionisio Suarez Esquivel, who escaped from El Morro prison on October 8, 1960, after being convicted of treason against the Cuban Revolution. He also became a marathon runner at the age of 60. He competed in the New York Marathon eleven different times and came in second for his age group in his first race. He won the 80-year-plus age group in the 1994 New York Marathon. Altogether, Barquín ran in almost 20 marathons in total.

Death

Ramón Barquín died of complications from leukemia at his home in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, on 3 March 2008, at the age of 93. His funeral was held in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

He was survived by his daughter, Lilliam Consuegra of San Juan; his son, Ramón C. Barquín of Bethesda, Maryland; six grandchildren, among them another Ramon C. Barquin; and nine great-grandchildren. His wife, Hilda Barquín, to whom he had been married for 63 years, died in 2004.