Lindgren Had No Peer In NCAA
Before Gerry Lindgren ever ran for Washington State varsity, he had set a world record, competed in the Olympics and left more than 50,000 fans roaring him to victory – all as a teenager.
Lindgren followed that with a Cougar career that made him the winningest NCAA athlete with 11 combined NCAA titles between cross country, indoor track & field and outdoor track & field. Today, he ranks No. 3 on that list and the two ahead of him (Edward Cheserek of Oregon and Suleiman Nyambui of UTEP) had four years of eligibility, while Lindgren only had three.
Collegiately, Lindgren had no peer in any sport. His six victories at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships – three straight doubles between 1966 and 1968 comprised of the 3-mile/5000 and 6-mile/10,000 – were by an average margin of more than 10 seconds. Indoors, he lost just once – to Jim Ryun in the 2-mile, relatively short for the long-distance wizard that was Lindgren. In cross country, he had one career loss, to a freshman from Oregon named Steve Prefontaine; he avenged it twice.
His dominance was nothing new.
Track & Field News called Lindgren “the 18-year-old baby of the team” in its report of the 1964 U.S. dual meet against the Soviet Union, held in front of more than 50,000 spectators in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. “He stole the hearts of the sun-drenched spectators.” He won by over a homestretch in just his second attempt at the 10K distance.
The prodigy from Spokane, Washington, was finally able to attend Washington State in the spring of 1965, but rules then did not allow freshmen to compete in the NCAA. His biggest race that year came against Billy Mills – his gold-medal winning teammate at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics – as both set the same world record of 27:11.6 in a thrilling 6-mile race at the AAU national championships (Mills was first to cross the finish line at Balboa Stadium).
The NCAA and collegiate track & field will mark a momentous milestone in the spring of 2021 -- the 100th anniversary of the NCAA Championships and with that, the NCAA Track & Field Championships. In June 1921, the University of Chicago hosted the first track & field championships in NCAA history.
This point can’t be emphasized enough: Not only was the event the first for NCAA track & field, but the first championships for any sport under the sponsorship of the NCAA.
To celebrate, over each of the next 365 days, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) will celebrate moments, student-athletes, and coaches that have made a century’s worth of championships special. From humble beginnings to important historical milestones to the modern-day, collegiate track & field has evolved with the American society.
The 2021 edition of the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships begin with preliminary round action on May 27-29 in Jacksonville, Fla., and College Station, Texas. The championships final site and culmination of the celebration is slated for June 9-12, 2021 at the newly rebuilt Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.
Texas’ Hooker High Jumped To NCAA Glory
Destinee Hooker won three career high jump titles at the NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships, including a massive victory in 2009 by more than two inches.
De Grasse Sprinted To Otherworldly Double
Andre De Grasse completed the 100-200 double at the 2015 NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships with scorching times: 9.75 (+2.7) in the 100; 19.58 (+2.4) in the 200.
Merritt Broke Long-Standing 110H MR In 2006
Aries Merritt broke a 28-year-old meet record in the 110H when he won the crown at the 2006 NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships in 13.21.
UGA’s Torrence Made NCAA History With Double
Gwen Torrence completed the 100-200 double at the 1987 NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships. Torrence was also the first woman to finish top-8 four times in the 100.
Bayer Gave It His All For NCAA 1500 Title
Andrew Bayer won the 1500 at the 2012 NCAA DI Outdoor Track & Field Championships in one of the closest finishes in meet history – 0.01 seconds.
Tipton Led 1-2-3 Oregon Finish In 1964 JT
Les Tipton led the first podium sweep of any event in the history of the NCAA Outdoor T&F Championships. Tipton and his Oregon teammates went 1-2-3 in the 1964 javelin.
K-State’s Jones Captured Heptathlon Crown In 2015
Akela Jones won the heptathlon at the 2015 NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships with 6371 points. That is the fourth-best score in both collegiate history & meet history.
Same Athletes, Same Result For LSU At NCAAs
The LSU foursome of Bennie Brazell, Pete Coley, Robert Parham, Kelly Willie swept the 4×100 & 4×400 crowns at the 2003 NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships.
Martin Won Distance Titles For Two Programs
Francis (Frank) Martin made history twice in the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
FSU’s Williams Soared To Jumps Double In 2009
Kim Williams swept the horizontal jumps at the 2009 NCAA DI Outdoor T&F Championships. Williams was particularly dominant in the TJ, winning at 14.38m (47-2¼) & by nearly 2 feet.