From collection Member List
From the Spring 2024 Phi Gamma Delta Magazine (Volume 145, Edition 2):
The amazing story of Glenn Cunningham, unbelievable as it may seem, has inspired many athletes and others who have overcome daunting adversity.
When he was eight years old, the stove in his schoolroom in Elkhart, Kansas, exploded, severely burning his legs and killing his brother. For a time, it was feared that he might never walk again. But he recovered well enough to become America’s premier middle-distance runner of the 1930s, running the 1500 meters in both Olympic Games of that decade.
In the 1932 Games in Los Angeles, though he was suffering from a bad case of tonsillitis, Glenn was leading heading into the final lap of the 1500. Because of his illness, he could not maintain his lead and faded to fourth place.
Over the next four years his legend grew. In winter 1933, he won the Wanamaker Mile in the Millrose Games at Madison Square Garden. This was just the first of his six victories in that prestigious race during the 1930s. At the Big Six (now the Big 12) track meet in spring 1933,he won the half-mile, mile and two mile runs all in one afternoon. That summer he led a team of top U.S. track and field athletes on a tour of Europe, winning all 14 of his races over 26 days.
During all the training, running and winning, Glenn finally succumbed to three years of recruiting by the Pi Deuteron Chapter at Kansas and was initiated on March 5, 1934, as a senior.
In spring 1934, he set a new world record in the mile with a time of 4:06.7. He was selected later that year by the AAU to receive the Sullivan Award as the outstanding amateur athlete in the U.S. In early 1935, he set an indoor world record of 3:50.5 in the 1500 meters.
Glenn still held the world record in the mile at the time of the 1936 Olympics in Berlin and was one of three favorites in the 1500-meter f inal. With a field that included six of the top seven finishers from the 1932 Olympics, it was billed as one of the greatest races of all time.
After the initial jockeying for position through the first 400 meters, Glenn took the lead for the next two laps. Entering the backstretch of the final lap, he was passed by John Lovelock of New Zealand, who opened a six-meter lead. Glenn closed the gap slightly and crossed the finish line four meters behind Lovelock. Though he had to settle for the silver medal, his time of 3:48.4 had beaten the previous world record by four tenths of a second.
Even after his second Olympics, Brother Cunningham continued to compete, and in 1938 achieved his fastest time in the mile at 4:04.4 for another indoor world record. Many years later, in 1979, he was named the Outstanding Performer in the 100-Year History of Madison Square Garden, where he won 21 of the 31 races in which he competed
In later years Glenn and his wife devoted their lives and resources to young people, founding the Glenn Cunningham Youth Ranch. He was the keynote speaker at the 1979 Fiji Academy and received the Distinguished Fiji Award that year. He passed ad astra on March 10, 1988.
The amazing story of Glenn Cunningham, unbelievable as it may seem, has inspired many athletes and others who have overcome daunting adversity.
When he was eight years old, the stove in his schoolroom in Elkhart, Kansas, exploded, severely burning his legs and killing his brother. For a time, it was feared that he might never walk again. But he recovered well enough to become America’s premier middle-distance runner of the 1930s, running the 1500 meters in both Olympic Games of that decade.
In the 1932 Games in Los Angeles, though he was suffering from a bad case of tonsillitis, Glenn was leading heading into the final lap of the 1500. Because of his illness, he could not maintain his lead and faded to fourth place.
Over the next four years his legend grew. In winter 1933, he won the Wanamaker Mile in the Millrose Games at Madison Square Garden. This was just the first of his six victories in that prestigious race during the 1930s. At the Big Six (now the Big 12) track meet in spring 1933,he won the half-mile, mile and two mile runs all in one afternoon. That summer he led a team of top U.S. track and field athletes on a tour of Europe, winning all 14 of his races over 26 days.
During all the training, running and winning, Glenn finally succumbed to three years of recruiting by the Pi Deuteron Chapter at Kansas and was initiated on March 5, 1934, as a senior.
In spring 1934, he set a new world record in the mile with a time of 4:06.7. He was selected later that year by the AAU to receive the Sullivan Award as the outstanding amateur athlete in the U.S. In early 1935, he set an indoor world record of 3:50.5 in the 1500 meters.
Glenn still held the world record in the mile at the time of the 1936 Olympics in Berlin and was one of three favorites in the 1500-meter f inal. With a field that included six of the top seven finishers from the 1932 Olympics, it was billed as one of the greatest races of all time.
After the initial jockeying for position through the first 400 meters, Glenn took the lead for the next two laps. Entering the backstretch of the final lap, he was passed by John Lovelock of New Zealand, who opened a six-meter lead. Glenn closed the gap slightly and crossed the finish line four meters behind Lovelock. Though he had to settle for the silver medal, his time of 3:48.4 had beaten the previous world record by four tenths of a second.
Even after his second Olympics, Brother Cunningham continued to compete, and in 1938 achieved his fastest time in the mile at 4:04.4 for another indoor world record. Many years later, in 1979, he was named the Outstanding Performer in the 100-Year History of Madison Square Garden, where he won 21 of the 31 races in which he competed
In later years Glenn and his wife devoted their lives and resources to young people, founding the Glenn Cunningham Youth Ranch. He was the keynote speaker at the 1979 Fiji Academy and received the Distinguished Fiji Award that year. He passed ad astra on March 10, 1988.
