Since the early days of the school, amazing runners have worn the crimson and gray for Washington State.
Distance runners, sprinters, and other extremely fast athletes broke records and thrilled track fans. In February this year, two more WSU runners broke school records: Zenah Cheptoo in the 5,000-meter race and Rosemary Longisa in the 800-meter race.
Here are some of the many Washington State speedsters from over the decades.
John Divine (’27 Ag.) was Washington State College’s first collegiate distance champion, winning the NCAA title in the two-mile run as a sophomore in 1925. That same year, he won all four dual meets he entered and placed fourth in the Pacific Coast Conference.
Wesley L. Foster (’31 Econ.) won six Pacific Coast Conference sprinting titles at Washington State. In 1928, he set a world record for 175 yards during a meet with the University of Oregon; Foster’s record was set during the 220-yard dash when four timers—all stationed at the 175-yard mark—clocked him at 16.6 seconds. Foster also set four state marks and set or equaled two national records in 1925 as a Wenatchee high school student.
Paul Swift (’33 Busi.) came to WSC as a state-record holder and left a world-record setter. As a freshman in 1931, the Spokane native equaled a world record in the 100-yard dash at 9.5 seconds. The aptly named Swift later matched the world record twice in one day during his sophomore season, becoming the first sprinter with that distinction.
The WSC relay team of 1937 set mile relay collegiate, national, and world records of 3 minutes, 12.3 seconds, which lasted as a school record for 31 years. The team, composed of brothers Jack and Lee Orr, Harry Nettleton, and Loren “Bill” Benke, was coached by Karl Schlademan. A year earlier, Lee Orr had competed in the 1936 Olympics for Canada, where he raced against US champion Jesse Owens.
Robert R. “Bob” Gary (’56 Phys. Ed.), one of the top sprinters in the world for several years, dominated against Northwest opponents. Gary never lost a sprint race to Oregon, Washington, Oregon State, or Idaho, while claiming four Pacific Coast Conference championships as a junior and senior.
Gerry Lindgren (’68 Poli. Sci.), one of the greatest distance runners in American collegiate history, won 11 straight NCAA titles while at WSU. He set 57 American records and shared a world record for the six-mile, along with numerous high school world records. Lindgren competed on the 1964 US Olympic team, and he was the first American to beat the Russians in a distance race, in the 10,000-meters at a dual meet in 1964.
John Ngeno (’76 Gen. Stu.) held WSU, conference, and collegiate records for races covering 5,000 meters, six miles, 10,000 meters, and 21 kilometers. In 1975, he was NCAA champion in three- and six-mile races. Only two other collegians had won more titles than Ngeno.
Samson Kimobwa (’80 Ag.), one of many outstanding Kenyan runners at WSU, set a 10,000-meter world record in 1977. Kimobwa was a three-time Pac-10 champion and NCAA title holder.
Henry Rono (’81 Gen. Stu., ’83 Psych.) shocked the running world in 1978 when he broke four world records in just 81 days as a WSU student. Kenyan runner Rono dominated college distance running, winning six NCAA titles and setting six collegiate outdoor records and four indoor marks. Rono’s 10,000-meter cross-country time in 1976 stills stand as an NCAA record. WSU’s lone track national championship came from Rono’s two-mile run in 1977. Rono was Pac-12 Track and Field Athlete of the Century and a six-time All-American, with seven collegiate records and seven WSU records.
Peter Koech (’86 Soc. Sci.) earned 11 All-American certificates, captured five Pac-10 Conference crowns and two NCAA Championships. He later grabbed the world record in steeplechase.
Celestine N’Drin (’91 Hotel & Rest. Admin.) broke two school records in 400-meter and 500-yard races as a freshman in 1986. N’Drin competed as a member of the Ivory Coast 1984 Olympic team, held WSU’s record in the women’s 800-meter, and was the first three-time conference champion in women’s program history.
Jennifer (Robertson) Bravard (’93 Human Dev.) brought home multiple Pac-10 titles and NCAA honors in cross country. Robertson held school records in the 1,500-meter, mile, 3,000-meter, and 5,000-meter.
Bernard Lagat (’00 Mgmt. Info. Sys.) was a dominant Pac-10 Conference distance runner who won 11 conference championship races, multiple NCAA honors including four titles, and a world record as part of a relay team at WSU. Lagat has silver and bronze Olympic Games medals, six world titles, and many American records.
Ellannee Richardson (’02 Socio., ’07 MA Crim. Just.) was a five-time All-American heptathlete and sprinter at WSU with a slew of honors. Richardson later joined the WSU coaching staff, leading the next generation of sprinters for a decade, where her relay teams consistently ran WSU top ten times every season.
Jeshua Anderson (x’11) dominated hurdles as a four-time NCAA champion and a 2015 Pan-American Games representative. He also leveraged his speed as a receiver for the WSU football team.
Photos above from WSU Chinook yearbook or WSU Athletics