Wichita’s Jim Ryun inducted in inaugural collegiate track Hall of Fame for KU career
Wichita native Jim Ryun, the first high school runner to break four minutes in the mile in 1964, was inducted into the inaugural United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Collegiate Athlete Hall of Fame on Monday.
Ryun was one of 30 athletes in the prestigious class presented with a Hall of Fame medal at the ceremony held in Eugene, Oregon.
“It’s very special, especially when you’re a part of the inaugural class,” Ryun said. “I look back on my career as basically a dream… It’s a great honor to be here with all of these wonderful athletes.”
In 1964, at the age of 17, Ryun became the first high school runner to break the four-minute barrier in the mile at the Compton Relays in California. It was a national record that lasted for nearly 36 years.
As a senior at Wichita East High School, Ryun was voted the fourth-best miler in the world and the High School Athlete of the Year by Track & Field News. He was also one of 30 athletes in the inaugural class inducted into the National High School Track & Field Hall of Fame in 2018.
Ryun went on to become one of the most prolific runners in American history, bolstered by his career at the University of Kansas from 1965-69 where he was a six-time world record holder with the top times in the 880-yard, 1,500-meter, mile and two-mile runs. He ended his career as a five-time NCAA champion and is the last American to hold the world record in the mile.
Ryun was named Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the Year in 1966, the same year he was also the winner of the AAU Sullivan Award for the top amateur athlete in America. He was a three-time Olympian, competing in 1964, 1968 and 1972 and he earned the silver medal at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City in the 1,500 meters and was a winner of three national titles in the mile.
Ryun was also inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame in 1977 and the National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1980. In 2003, ESPN.com picked Ryun over LeBron James and Tiger Woods as the best high school athlete of the century.
Ryun last made national headlines in July 2020 when he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. After his memorable running career, Ryun served 10 years as a member of Congress from 1996-06, representing the 2nd District in Kansas for the Republican Party.
This story was originally published June 8, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
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