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William Mervin Mills ("Billy") was born in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, a Native American (Oglala Lakota (Sioux)), and was raised on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. He was orphaned at the age of 12. Mills took up running while attending the Haskell Institute, which is now known as Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence, Kansas. Both a boxer and a runner in his youth, Mills gave up boxing to focus on running.
He attended the University of Kansas on an athletic scholarship. He was named a NCAA All-America cross country runner three times and in 1960 he won the individual title in the Big Eight cross country championship. The University of Kansas track team won the 1959 and 1960 outdoor national championships while Mills was on the team. After graduating with a degree in physical education, Mills entered the United States Marine Corps. He was a first lieutenant in the Marine Corps Reserves when he competed in the 1964 Olympics.
Billy Mills was born on June 30, 1938 in Pine Ridge, South Dakota. He is an Oglala Lakota (Sioux) Indian and he was raised on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Billy's given Lakota name is Makata Taka Hela which means "love your country" or more traditionally translated, "respects the earth".
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Billy Mills is the National Spokesperson for Running Strong for American Indian Youth. An Oglala Lakota (Sioux) who was raised on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, Billy earned a track scholarship to the University of Kansas and later served as an Officer in the United States Marine Corps.
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National Distance Running Hall of Fame |
It is remembered as one of the greatest moments in Olympic history. At the 1964 games in Tokyo, Japan, a virtually unknown 26-year-old American athlete rocketed past the expected medal winners to win the 10,000 meter race - astounding the announcers, his coach and Olympic Fans around the world.
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