O'Brien, Jennings, Young Lead 2006 Inductees to National Track & Field Hall of Fame
Posted Monday, 27 November, 2006
INDIANAPOLIS - (November 21, 2006) - Track & field legends Dan O'Brien, Lynn Jennings and Kevin Young headline an impressive group of inductees for the National Track & Field Hall of Fame Class of 2006. The inductees, announced on Tuesday by USA Track & Field also include legendary Veteran athletes Rex Cawley, Ben Eastman, Matt McGrath and Bill Nieder, as well as former USATF Executive Director Ollan Cassell in the Contributor category.
The Class of 2006 will be inducted Saturday evening, December 2, at the Jesse Owens Awards and Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, held in conjunction with USATF's 2006 Annual Meeting in Indianapolis.
"I congratulate our tremendous Class of 2006 on their induction into the National Track & Field Hall of Fame," said USATF President Bill Roe. "These highly accomplished individuals have made invaluable contributions to the betterment of track and field in our country, and they are all most deserving of this high honor."
One of the greatest all-around athletes in history, Dan O'Brien earned the title of "world's greatest athlete" by setting the world record in the decathlon, along with winning the Olympic gold medal and three world titles in the grueling 10-event challenge. O'Brien ended his remarkable career having earned the #1 ranking in the world from Track & Field News on six occasions.
The 1992 Olympic bronze medalist in the 10,000 meters, Lynn Jennings will always be remembered for her remarkable career in women's cross country. Jennings captured an amazing nine USA cross country titles during a career that was capped off with three consecutive World Cross Country Championships, from 1990 to 1992.
One of the most unforgettable performances in Olympic history occurred at the 1992 Games in Barcelona, Spain when Kevin Young won the gold medal in the men's 400m hurdles in the world-record time of 46.78 seconds - a mark that still stands. The two-time NCAA champion and 1993 world champion, Young is the first and only man in history to crack the 47-second barrier in that event.
One of the greatest hurdlers in track and field history, Rex Cawley set the world record in the men's 400m hurdles in 1964 and also won the gold medal at the Olympic Games that summer in Tokyo, Japan. A star at the University of Southern California as a collegian, Cawley won the NCAA 440-yard hurdles national title in 1963.
One of three Americans to hold the men's 400m and 800m world records, Ben Eastman was a dynamic competitor who held world records on 14 separate occasions. The silver medalist in the 400 meters at the 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Eastman won the national 800m crown in 1934.
A former New York City policeman and known as one of the famous "Irish Whales", Matt McGrath competed in four Olympics, including the Games of 1908, where he toiled on the U.S. Tug of War team and won the silver medal in the hammer throw. McGrath won the gold in the hammer in the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm and added another silver hammer throw medal to his collection in 1924.
Part of the legacy of great American shot putters, Bill Nieder earned that classification by setting the world record on three occasions and winning Olympic gold in 1960 and silver in 1956. A collegiate star at the University of Kansas, Nieder won the NCAA men's shot put title in 1955.
The track and field administrator for the Amateur Athletic Union from 1965-1970 and that organization's Executive Director from 1970-1980, Ollan Cassell served as the executive director of The Athletics Congress / USA Track & Field from 1980-1997. First elected to the International Association of Athletics Federations Council in 1976, Cassell, a 1964 Olympic gold medalist, is a former Vice-President of the IAAF.
Hall of Fame Class of 2006 interviews at: USATF.org
Ryan Lamppa, Running USA Media Director
(805) 696-6232
Ryan@RunningUSA.org | www.RunningUSA.org
Facebook 
Twitter
i