Attended Canterbury High School in Fort Wayne, Ind. for one year before transferring to Northrop High School for his sophomore, junior and senior years.

Attended Kansas University. Son of Bob and Amy Shank...Father, Bob, was two-time All-American pole-vaulter for the University of Illinois, where he also won a Big 10 championship

Ron Raver’s life was typical of a youngster growing up in the 1940s and early 1950s. He lived on a farm in Oldenburg, Indiana. He attended eighth grade in Oldenburg and then went to Batesville High School just a few miles away.

In high school Ron ran track, played baseball and basketball, all at the varsity level. Cross country was not offered. His main events in track were the 440-yard dash, high jump and the mile relay.

arry Williams graduated from Bloomington High School North (BHSN) in 1980. He was a member of the track program the last two years under the guidance of Coach John McNichols. While Williams was a student at Indiana University, Coach McNichols invited him to assist with the track program at BHSN as a volunteer.

In the spring of 1983, Williams left the BHSN program to go to Bloomington High School South as a paid assistant coach to Tom Alwine. After assisting Alwine for two track seasons and being the volunteer girls cross country coach, Williams became the head coach of boys cross country and track and field starting in the fall of 1984.

Born in Russiaville, Indiana, Waverly grew up with a love for running. Her first memories of competition were against herself, running a one-mile distance measured from her childhood home and back hoping to best her previous effort.

It was in high school, competing for Culver Academies where Waverly excelled and learned the rewards of challenging work and perseverance. Under the guidance of her coach, Mike Chastain, Waverly was the 2010 Indiana state cross country champion and the 2011 Indiana 1,600 meters and 3,200 meters champion, plus setting a state finals record. In addition to her state finals wins, Waverly was the 2011 3,000 National Junior Outdoor Champion and national prep record holder in the indoor 5,000 meters.

Otha Ray Thomas was one of eight brothers and a sister of Rev. Richard and Gwendolyn Thomas of Evansville, Indiana.

While a student at Evansville Central High School, Thomas played football and became an All-State performer, excelling in track and field. Standing 5-9 and weighing 128 pounds as a senior, Thomas advanced to the 1961 IHSAA State Track and Field State Finals. Accompanying the talented long jumper was Central track coach Charlie Ogg. Coach Ogg had previously guided Don Ashby to the long jump championship in 1960.

ana girl to win both the 100 meters and 100 hurdles in the same championship meet. She had five IHSAA state championship gold medals, two silver and two bronze and was nine times all-state.

Tamara Adams, Lakieta Rox, Kyndal Carr & Zakiya Robinson

The Fort Wayne Northrop sprinters were the cream of the crop in 2003. They went first, second and third in the 200 meters, the only time in the girls finals that a team ever placed three in an event and the first three places. The 4x100 meter relay set an IHSAA record that still stands after 19 years. In accomplishing this feat, they didn't even use their 200 meter winner Shauntel Elcock. The record time of 45.75 broke crosstown rival Fort Wayne Concordia's 2002 record of 47.32 by 1.57 seconds.

The lead off runner was freshman Tamara Adams, who would in 2006 become they only Indiana girl to win both the 100 meters and 100 hurdles in the same championship meet. She had five IHSAA state championship gold medals, two silver and two bronze and was nine times all-state.

Opal "Shagg" Courtney was a most talented athlete at Gary Roosevelt, starring in track and field, football, basketball and baseball. Many say that he was the greatest athlete to have played in Gary, ignored by the Indiana High School Athletic Association and state sport groups because he attended an all-black school during a time when black schools could not participate in the IHSAA state championships. Therefore, Gary Froebel High School, a non-segregated school, tried to persuade him to attend but he was very true to his high school and remained there.

Courtney and Roosevelt High School made the most of those years just after the great depression, traveling any where they could find competition. He nearly alone won the United States All Negro Championships in track in 1931 at Hampton Institute in Hampton, Virginia, and runners-up in 1932. In 1930 they were Midwestern Track Champions at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri, and runner-up in 1931.

Running hurdles can be a metaphor for life. It’s not whether you fall, but whether you get up. So it was for Ashley Spencer.

As a junior at Lawrence North, she fell during the 300-meter hurdles at the state meet. She got up, caught up, and finished second – at the state meet. She was disqualified for impeding another runner. A spectator came up to her afterward and told her to stop crying. “Everyone here in the stands saw what happened and will never forget what you just did,” the spectator said. Video of that race persuaded coach Tonja Buford-Bailey to recruit her to Illinois. Thus began Spencer’s pathway to an Olympic podium.

Andy Bayer grew up in Leo, Indiana, and started running cross country and track in the sixth grade. He qualified for the state finals for the first time during his junior year. After a coaching partnership with his cousin Dan Zimmerman, Andy improved dramatically, finishing sixth at the cross country state meet and winning the 3200 to win a state title in one of the closest finishes of all time.

Just shy of a walk on, Andy headed to IU to join its cross country and track teams. By Andy's sophomore year, he had become one of IU's top scorers, breaking the four minute mile, and holding records in the 1500 and the indoor 3000. At IU, Andy was a six-time Big Ten champion and 12 time All-American. In 2012, Andy won the NCAA National Championship in the 1500 in another photo finish. At the national championships that year, Andy was fourth in the 1500, just one spot shy of qualifying for the US Olympic team.

In the Indiana city of the Petersburg in 1932, a boy was born to the Carter family who would grow into one of the city’s great athletes.

Richard Carter became a two-time IHSAA state pole vault champion (1949-1950), two-time Pocket Athletic Conference football running back (1948- 1949) and a very good basketball player.

Sophomore Carter won the 1949 IHSAA pole vault state championship with an amazing 12-8 3/4, after finishing third to Don Hajek and Tom Kincaid of Evansville Reitz in the regional. His 1949 vault had been bettered by only two vaulters before him (Walter Famer of Gary Froebel in 1935 at 12-10 and Bill Moore of Logansport in 1942 at 13-6 1/8) Both are members of the Indiana Track and Field and Cross Country Hall of Fame.