National Scholastic Athletics Foundation

PRESS RELEASE

• The track & field community, media and general public may submit nominations for the National High School Track & Field Hall of Fame Class of 2021 through Nov. 10, 2020.
• The Hall of Fame will induct its fourth class of athletes, coaches, and contributors in March 2021 in New York City.

NEW YORK – October 27, 2020 – Nominations are open to the public for the National High School Track and Field Hall of Fame’s Class of 2021. Athletes, coaches, families, media, fans and anyone else with an interest in the sport is invited to participate in the nomination process. You can visit the Hall of Fame website at nationalhighschooltrackandfieldhof.org by the November 10, 2020 deadline to nominate your favorite prep track and field athletes of all time for the new class which is expected to be inducted in March, 2021, during the NSAF’s Indoor Nationals weekend in New York.

The first class of 30 legendary athletes, coaches and contributors was inducted during a memorable ceremony at the New York Athletic Club in March of 2018. Subsequent classes in 2019 and 2020 have admitted a total of 27 more legends of track & field, bringing the total membership in the Hall to 57.

These inductees have included greats of HS track and field dating from the early 1900s through those graduating in 2005. Among those inducted were current and recent superstars Allyson Felix and Alan Webb, baby-boomer era barrier breakers Jim Ryun, Steve Prefontaine, Michael Carter, Mary Decker, Renaldo Nehemiah, Kim Gallagher, Houston McTear, Roy Martin, Craig Virgin and Gerry Lindgren, and legends of the past Jesse Owens, Betty Robinson, Bob Mathias and Bud Houser. Coaches and contributors include Joe Newton, Don Norford, Fred Thompson, Dr. Norbert Sander, Jr. and John Dye (See full list of inductees below).

Meanwhile, some of the top vote-getters and other legendary performers who have scored well but just missed induction are Lee Talbot (Throws, 1907), Barbara Jones (Sprints, 1955), Marty Liquori (Distances, 1967), Kathy Hammond (Sprints, 1969), Debbie Heald (Distances, 1973), Joni Huntley (Jumps, 1974), Robin Campbell (Distances, 1977), Carl Lewis (Sprints & Jumps, 1979), Dothel Edwards (Jumps, 1984), George Kersh (Distances & Sprints, 1987), Amy Acuff (Jumps, 1993) and Sanya Richards (Sprints, 2002).

Among those athletes who have become newly eligible during the past few years (high school classes of 2004-05, and now 2006) are record-setters like distance runner Galen Rupp, horizontal jumper Brittany Daniels, high jumper Scott Sellers, distance runner Sarah Bowman, vaulter Mary Saxer, sprinter Francena McCorory and multi-eventer Shana Woods.

The classes have been selected by a committee of noted track and field historians and statisticians, which currently includes Jeff Benjamin, Mark Bloom, Andy Ferarra, Rich Gonzalez, Bob Jarvis, Dave Johnson, Joe Lanzalotto, Walt Murphy, Jack Pfeifer, Pam Reynolds, Josh Rowe, Jack Shepard, Jim Spier and Tracy Sundlun. The committee will make its own nominations and plans to select a class of 10 athletes, coaches and contributors, to be announced in December. The March 2021 ceremony will be held within the scope of any local, state and national COVID-19 guidelines that may still be in place by that date.

The full list of the Classes of 2018-20 inductees is as follows, with name and year of induction, followed by school, hometown and graduating year:

ATHLETES

Ted Meredith (2018)
Mercersburg Academy, Mercersburg, PA, 1912

Sol Butler (2018)
Rock Island HS, Rock Island, IL, 1915

Bud Houser (2019)
Oxnard HS, Oxnard, CA, 1922

Lee Barnes (2018)
Hollywood HS, Los Angeles, CA, 1924

Frank Hussey (2019)
Stuyvesant HS, New York, NY, 1924

Frank Wykoff (2018)
Glendale HS, Glendale, CA, 1928

Jean Shiley (2019)
Haverford HS, Havertown, PA, 1929

Betty Robinson (2018)
Thornton Township HS, Harvey, IL, 1929

Cornelius Johnson (2018)
Los Angeles HS, Los Angeles, CA, 1933

Jesse Owens (2018)
East Tech HS, Cleveland, OH, 1933

Helen Stephens (2018)
Fulton HS, Fulton, MO, 1935

Billy Brown (2019)
Baker HS, Baker, LA, 1937

Bob Peoples (2020)
Classen HS, Oklahoma City, OK, 1937

Joe Batiste (2019)
Tucson HS, Tuscon, AZ, 1939

Eddie Morris (2018)
Huntington Beach HS, CA, 1940

Alice Coachman (2018)
Tuskegee Prep School, Tuskegee, AL, 1942

Bob Mathias (2018)
Tulare HS, Tulare, CA, 1948

Milt Campbell (2018)
Plainfield HS, Plainfield, NJ, 1953

Willye White (2018)
Broad Street HS, Shelby, MS, 1957

Jim Brewer (2020)
North Phoenix HS, Phoenix, AZ, 1957

Dallas Long (2018)
North Phoenix HS, Phoenix, AZ, 1958

Rex Cawley (2019)
Farmington HS, Farmington, MI, 1959

Gerry Lindgren (2018)
Rogers HS, Spokane, WA, 1964

Jim Ryun (2018)
East HS, Wichita, KS, 1965

Charlotte Cook (2020)
St. Mary's HS, Inglewood, CA, 1966

Barbara Friedrich (2019)
Manasquan HS, Manasquan, NJ, 1967

Jerry Proctor (2020)
Muir HS, Pasadena, CA, 1967

Patty van Wolvelaere (2019)
Renton HS, Renton, WA, 1968

Reynaldo Brown (2019)
Compton HS, Compton, CA, 1969

Steve Prefontaine (2018)
Marshfeld HS, Coos Bay, OR, 1969

Casey Carrigan (2019)
Orting HS, Orting, WA, 1969

Margaret Johnson Bailes (2019)
Churchill HS, Eugene, OR, 1969

Francie Larrieu (2020)
Fremont HS, Sunnyvale, CA, 1970

Craig Virgin (2020)
Lebanon HS, Lebanon, IL, 1973

Lynn Bjorklund (2018)
Los Alamos HS, Los Alamos, NM, 1975

Mary Decker (2018)
Orange HS, Orange, CA, 1976

Kathy McMillan (2018)
Hoke County HS, Raeford, NC, 1976

Sheila Ingram (2019)
Coolidge HS, Washington, DC, 1976

Dwayne Evans (2019)
South Mountain HS, Phoenix, AZ, 1976

Houston McTear (2020)
Baker HS, Baker, FL, 1976

Chandra Cheeseborough (2018)
Ribault HS, Jacksonville, FL, 1977

Renaldo Nehemiah (2018)
Scotch Plains HS, Scotch Plains, NJ, 1977

Michael Carter (2018)
Jefferson HS, Dallas, TX, 1979

Candy Young (2020)
Beaver Falls HS, Beaver Falls, PA, 1980

Kim Gallagher (2018)
Upper Dublin HS, Fort Washington, PA, 1982

Roy Martin (2019)
Roosevelt HS, Dallas, TX, 1985

Alan Webb (2018)
South Lakes HS, Reston, VA, 2001

Allyson Felix (2018)
Los Angeles Baptist HS, North Hills, CA, 2003

COACHES

Joe Newton (2018)
York High School, Elmhurst, Il

Don Norford (2018)
Long Beach Poly, Long Beach, CA

Will Stephens (2019)
Will’s Spikettes, Sacramento, CA

Fred Thompson (2019)
Atoms Track Club, Brooklyn, NY

Barney Hyman (2020)
New Utrech HS, Brooklyn, NY

CONTRIBUTORS

John Dye (2018)
Henderson, NV
Founder, Dyestat.com

Ed Grant (2018)
Madison, NJ
T&F Journalist

Jack Shepard (2019)
Westminster, CA
Boys HS Editor, T&F News

Dr. Norb Sander, Jr. (2020)
New York, NY
The Armory Foundation

For more information on the High School Track and Field Hall of Fame, to make nominations or to view detailed biographies of the inductees, visit nationalhighschooltrackandfieldhof.org.

About the National Scholastic Athletics Foundation, Inc.
The National Scholastic Athletics Foundation, Inc. (NASF) was founded in 1990.  It is a non-profit, tax-exempt 501 c (3) organization with the mission of opening doors to the world for our youth, through athletics, and providing them opportunities to succeed. That includes supporting high school and junior-aged track and field athletes in the US through national high school competitions, including the NSAF Indoor and Outdoor Nationals; clinics and event-specific special projects; vigorous grant programs, which enable high school athletes to compete around the country, at USATF Junior Nationals, and internationally; and with program development grants, which are awarded in the winter and fall each year. The NSAF provides approximately $250,000 in grants annually. For information about how to get involved with NSAF, please visit nationalscholastic.org.