Mizzou’s indoor track to be named in honor of legendary head coach
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
On Monday, Mizzou Athletics announced that legendary track and field head coach Tom Botts' name will now adorn the indoor track, inside the Hearnes Center.
It will now be known as the "Tom Botts Indoor Track," following what the university said was a transformative donation from his grandson's family. MU Athletics said that that donation will help enhance the training and competitive environment for all Mizzou track and field athletes.
"This is what makes philanthropy in college athletics so meaningful. Tom, Libbie and their children, Tom and Camillle, are honoring Tom’s grandfather's extraordinary legacy while making an investment in the future of Mizzou student-athletes,” Mizzou Athletic Director Laird Veatch said in a press release. "Coach Botts helped establish a championship standard at Missouri, and now generations of Tigers will train and compete on a track bearing his name. We are incredibly grateful to Tom and Libbie for their generosity, belief in Mizzou and commitment to ensuring his Coach Botts’ legacy continues to inspire."
Botts coached at Mizzou from 1947-1972. In that time he won the 1965 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championship, as well as eight conference championships. The lengedary head coach brought along five individual national champions, 23 All-Americans, 96 conference champions and two U.S. Olympians in his time in Columbia.
The Mexico, Missouri native was inducted into the State of Missouri SportHall of Fame for his efforts as a head coach in 1977, while also becoming a member of the Drake Relays Hall of Fame, National Track and Field Hall of Fame and the Mizzou Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame.
Coach Botts passed away in 1999 at the age of 94.
"My grandfather had an incredible impact on so many people, and I feel very fortunate to have known him not only as a coach and a legend at Mizzou, but as my grandfather," Tom Botts said in a press release. "What he taught his athletes went far beyond track and field. He believed in discipline, preparation, integrity and, most importantly, helping young people become better versions of themselves. Having his name on this track is a special way for our family to honor that legacy and, hopefully, inspire future generations of Tigers who will compete here."
"Coach Botts set a standard for excellence that continues to define what Mizzou track and field is all about," Mizzou track and field coach Brett Halter said in a press release. "His legacy isn't just measured in championships and All-Americans — it's measured in the lives he impacted and the values he instilled in his athletes. That value-based leadership is what’s most impressionable on the men he coached. We are incredibly grateful to Tom Botts for this meaningful investment and for giving our student-athletes a place where they can compete every day under the name of one of the greatest coaches in Mizzou history."
Mizzou announced there will be a naming dedication ceremony on Friday, Oct. 9 at the Hearnes Center. The event is open to the public.
