October 30, 2007
From USA Track & Field

Olympic legend and National Track & Field Hall of Famer Billy Mills will 
be the special guest of honor at the 2007 USATF National Junior Olympic 
Cross Country Championships.  More than 3,000 athletes are expected to 
compete at the event to be held December 8 in Lawrence, Kansas.

The 1964 Olympic 10,000-meter champion and University of Kansas graduate, 
Mills will provide the young athletes attending the Junior Olympic 
Championships with an inspirational talk during the opening ceremonies. 
Mills will sign autographs and will be on-hand race day to support USATF's 
young athletes.

"We are truly honored to have Mr. Mills attending the Junior Olympics
and hope the young athletes can learn from his wonderful life story,"
said USATF Missouri Valley President Gilbert Castillo, whose Association
is hosting the Championships. "He's not just a national hero, he is a
local legend who is greatly admired by a wide range of people."
"I look forward to returning to Lawrence where I have so many fond
memories," Mills said. "I am honored to be around our wonderful young
athletes as they fulfill their dreams."

Born in Pine Ridge, S.D., Mills is an Oglala Lakota (Sioux) Native
American who was was raised on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and
orphaned at the age of 12. At the University of Kansas under Hall of
Fame coach Bill Easton, he was an All-American in cross country in 1958
and 1959. After graduating from Kansas, he became a lieutenant in the
Marine Corps. Considered a huge underdog, his win at the 1964 Tokyo
Olympics has been called the greatest upset in Olympic history. His
winning time of 28:24.4 was almost 50 seconds faster than he had ever
run before, and he set an Olympic record for the event. He also placed
14th in the Olympic marathon.

The following year, Mills set a six-mile world record, running 27:11.6.
Mills later became active in Native American affairs and in 1972 was
named one of America's "Outstanding Young Men". He was inducted 
into the National Track & Field Hall of Fame in 1976 and the U.S. Olympic 
Hall of Fame in 1984. He is the subject of the 1984 film Running Brave, 
starring Robby Benson.

Mills serves as the spokesperson for Running Strong for American Indian
Youth, an organization that helps support projects that benefit the
American Indian people.

For more information on Billy Mills, read his
National Track & Field Hall of Fame biography.

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