William Franklyn "Bill" Verner (June 24, 1883 – July 1, 1966) was an American

athlete An athlete is most commonly a person who competes in one or more sports involving physical strength, speed, power, or endurance. Sometimes, the word "athlete" is used to refer specifically to sport of athletics competitors, i.e. including track ...

and middle-distance runner who competed in the early twentieth century. Verner was born in

Grundy County, Illinois Grundy County is a county in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 52,533. Its county seat is Morris. Grundy County is part of the Chicago metropolitan area. In 2010, the center of population of I ...

. He competed in

Athletics at the 1904 Summer Olympics At the 1904 Summer Olympics, twenty-five athletics events were contested. A total of 74 medals (25 gold, 25 silver and 24 bronze) were awarded. Multi-event competitions, the all-around and triathlon, were introduced, along with a 56-pound weig ...

and won a

silver medal A silver medal, in sports and other similar areas involving competition, is a medal made of, or plated with, silver awarded to the second-place finisher, or runner-up, of contests or competitions such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, ...

in the

1500 metres The 1500 metres or 1500-metre run is the foremost middle distance track event in athletics. The distance has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 and the World Championships in Athletics since 1983. It is equivalent to 1.5 kilomet ...

in 4:06.8 behind

James Lightbody James Davies Lightbody (March 16, 1882 – March 2, 1953) was an American middle distance runner, winner of six Olympic medals (two of which are no longer recognized by the International Olympic Committee following its downgrading o ...

, and a

with the US

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

team in the four mile race. In the 2590 metre steeplechase competition he finished fourth and in the 800 metres event he finished sixth. He died in

Pinckney, Michigan Pinckney is a Administrative divisions of Michigan#Villages, village in Putnam Township, Michigan, Putnam Township, Livingston County, Michigan, Livingston County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,415 at the 2020 United States ce ...

References

External links

* * 1883 births 1966 deaths American male middle-distance runners American male steeplechase runners Olympic silver medalists for the United States in track and field Athletes (track and field) at the 1904 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1904 Summer Olympics 20th-century American sportsmen {{US-athletics-Olympic-medalist-stub