Olympic Wildcats – Here’s a look at the K-Staters with great Olympic success
K-State enjoyed plenty of success in athletics from marquee victories to conference
championships. The university also has a longstanding tradition of Wildcats seeing
success at the Olympics.
More than 30 K-Staters have competed in Olympic games since Ray Watson competed in the 1920 Games in Antwerp, Belgium.
Six Wildcats have earned gold medals in the Olympics. Additionally, K-Staters have
taken home 10 other Olympic medals.
Let’s look at those ’Cats who’ve earned the gold.
Thane Baker ’53
Thane Baker ’53 is K-State’s most decorated Olympian with four Olympic medals. He earned a gold medal in the 4x100 meter relay at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. Additionally, Baker earned two silver medals (one for the 200 meter dash at the 1952 Helsinki, Finland, games and one for the 100 meter dash at the Melbourne games) and a bronze (for the 200 meter dash at the Melbourne games). K-Stater magazine featured an excerpt from his biography, Running in Borrowed Shoes, in the summer 2024 issue.
Bob Boozer ’59
Bob Boozer ’59 played basketball for K-State from 1956-1959 leading the ’Cats to the Final Four. From there he went on to join the 1960 U.S. Olympic Men’s Basketball team competing in Rome, Italy. Boozer and Team USA won eight games by an average of 42.4 points. The team was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010. Boozer went on to have a career in the NBA from 1960 to 1971, winning an NBA championship with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Mitch Richmond ’88
Mitch Richmond ’88 played basketball at K-State from 1986-1988. He competed in two Olympic games including the 1988 Seoul, South Korea, games earning a silver medal for Team USA and with the 1996 Dream Team in Atlanta, Georgia. Richmond along with basketball legends Charles Barkley, Reggie Miller, Shaquille O’Neal, Scottie Pippen and others earned the gold, winning five straight games.
Kenny Harrison ’88
Kenny Harrison ’88 earned gold at the 1996 Olympics in the triple jump. At K-State Harrison was a three-time NCAA Champion in the event, winning the long jump indoors in 1986, and the triple jump outdoors in 1986 and indoors in 1988. He set two American records in his career, both at the Atlanta Olympics, with an early mark of 17.99 followed by his gold medal winning mark of 18.09, which through 2024 still leaves Harrison in third-place on the all-time triple jump performer list.
Erik Kynard ’13
Erik Kynard ’13 earned gold at the 2012 London Olympics. He earned the NCAA outdoor national championship in high jump in 2011 and 2012. Kynard competed in both the 2012 London and 2016 Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, games. He became the first Wildcat to win a medal with remaining eligibility as a student-athlete since Baker in 1950. Kynard is a member of the 2024 Kansas Sports Hall of Fame Class.
Eugene Omalla
Eugene Omalla earned an Olympic gold medal at this year’s games in Paris, France, competing for The Netherlands in the 4x400 Mixed Relay. In the Finals, Omalla ran the first leg of the relay, with teammates Lieke Klaver, Isaya Klein Ikkink and Femke Bol, to a time of 3:07.43, three-tenths of a second ahead of team USA with a silver medal time of 3:07.74. Omalla is not the first Wildcat to compete under another nation’s Olympic flag, but he is the first international K-Stater to get the gold.
Bonus ’Cat: Tara Davis-Woodhall
One of K-State’s newest assistant coaches for track and field, Tara Davis-Woodhall, earned the gold for Team USA in the long jump at this year’s Paris games. Davis-Woodhall is often seen wearing her trademark cowgirl hat around at meets.