Page 14
University Daily Kansan
Friday, April 16, 1965
OOMPI! Bill Nieder, former KU shot putter, lets go with another lengthy put. Nieder holds both the Kansas Relays records set in 1958, at $9' 77\frac{1}{2}$ " and the stadium record, set in 1960 at the Relays, of $63' 10\frac{1}{4}$ ". Nieder has broken the world's record in shot put twice.
Easton Stacks Up Many Honors In 18 Years As Jayhawk Mentor
To KU track coach Bill Easton must go a lion's share of the credit for the prestigious, position the KU Relays hold in the nation's cinder circles.
Easton, director of the Relays, has been instrumental in luring top talent to Mt. Oread for the annual spring classic during his 18-year tenure at KU. At least partly responsible for this ability to secure some of the best talent must be the high esteem in which he is held by rival track coaches and athletes.
In 1962 Easton received one of the top awards in sportdom by being named to the Helms Foundation Hall of Fame, an honor hard on the heels of his 1960 designation as the nation's top collegiate coach by the U.S. Track Coaches' Association.
Under Easton's tutelage, KU track fortunes have blossomed both in Big Eight and national competition. He is one of two coaches in history to coach the same school to NCAA championships in both cross-country and track—the other being Easton's old mentor at Indiana, Bill Hayes.
Easton's cross country harriers bagged the 1953 national title and his track teams in 1959 and 1960 earned NCAA titles. Only two other schools, the University of Southern California and Illinois, have put together back-to-back NCAA track and field championships.
Prior to coming to KU, Easton had coached three Drake University cross-country teams to the national championship.
In addition to these superlative honors, Easton-coached cross-country teams finished second three times and fourth three times in the national derby.
easton has stood like a colossus in Big Eight competition. His Jayhawks have won 11 of the last 16 indoor track championships, 10 of the last 13 outdoor crowns, and 16 of the last 18 cross-country titles.
Beginning in 1951-52 and ending in 1958-59. Easton's teams scored eight grand slams in indoor, outdoor, and cross-country competition in the Big Eight.
In individual competition, Easton's
proteges have broken three world proteges—Bill Niier in the shot put twice and Al Oerter in the discus; 14 American records and tied three; 14 intercollegiate records; seven NCAA meet records and tied one; three Olympic records, and two national freshman marks.
One of Easton's most recent thrills was in Billy Mills' Olympic games victory in the 10,000 meter run in Tokyo last fall.
Easton, a former Indiana University quartermiller, coached at Hammond, Ind., high school before moving into the college ranks at Drake University. He remained there for eight years before coming to KU.
Milers from Wichita East high school have held the record for the Kansas Relays since 1959.
In 1959, Archie San Romani set a new mark at 4:17.4 and that mark held until one of his teammates from Wichita East, Jim Ryun, shattered the old record and placed the new mark at 4:11.
Odd Race Gives Santee Victory
Wes Santee, former KU distance ace and star of the Kansas Relays, once proposed a rather strange race to his fraternity brothers to prove his prowess in the long-range jog.
Ryum is recognized now as the best high school miler in the nation.
Santee challenged the men of Acacia fraternity to a fourteen-mile race from Tonganoxie to Lawrence. The fraternity accepted.
Arrangements called for the fraternity brothers to each run a half-mile portion of the race, beginning in Tonganoxie.
All the participants were warmly bundled against the near-zero weather and snow flurries as the contestants met one weekend in mid-December, 1952. As the race began, Santee easily outdidanced a member of the freshman track squad and at times held a lead of 500 vards.
Santee finished the race some 200 yards ahead of the Acacia anchor man. His winning time was one hour, 14 minutes and nine seconds. The Acacias finished 50 seconds later.
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