Rick Wanamaker (born March 20, 1948) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

track and basketball athlete who won the

decathlon The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of 10 track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek δέκα (''déka'', meaning "ten") and ἄθλος (''áthlos'', or ἄ ...

in the

1971 Pan American Games The 1971 Pan American Games, officially known as the VI Pan American Games () and commonly known as Cali 1971, were held in Cali, Colombia, from 30 July to 13 August 1971. (One source dates the Games from July 25 to August 8.) A total of 2,935 ...

, and blocked a shot against Lew Alcindor in the 1969 NCAA national basketball semi-finals. Rick Wanamaker attended Iowa Valley High School in Marengo, where he played

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

. He earned a scholarship and attended

Drake University Drake University is a private university in Des Moines, Iowa, United States. The University offers over 140 undergraduate and graduate programs, including professional programs in business, education, Legal education, law, and pharmacy. Drake U ...

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

, where he studied

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. As a freshman, he wanted to participate in the

Drake Relays The Drake Relays is an outdoor track and field event held in Des Moines, Iowa, Des Moines, Iowa, in Drake Stadium (Drake University), Drake Stadium on the campus of Drake University. Billed as ''America's Athletic Classic'', it is regarded as one ...

, and chose the

Track and field

Wanamaker was a top ten U.S. decathlete from 1970 to 1974. He was the 1970 NCAA national champion and an

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

, the 1971 AAU National Champion in decathlon, with a score of 7989,Ho, Ho, Ho Went The Jolly White Giant
''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

'', 1971-06-21. Accessed 2008-06-11. and was the 1971 gold medalist in decathlon at the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games, known as the Pan Am Games, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of th ...

with a score of 7648. He was injured prior to the 1972 Munich Olympic trials, and did not qualify for the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. It was the ...

. He did defeat

Mykola Avilov Mykola Viktorovych Avilov (, , born 6 August 1948) is a retired Ukrainian Soviet decathlete who competed at the 1968, 1972 and 1976 Olympics. He won a gold medal in 1972, setting a new world record, a bronze in 1976, and finished fourth in 1968 ...

, the 1972 Olympic Champion, during the 1971 USA–USSR Track and Field Dual Meet Series, held in Berkeley, California and Bruce Jenner, the 1976 Olympic Champion, now known as Caitlyn Jenner, at the 1971 Drake Relays and 1971 National AAU Championships in Porterville, California. Wanamaker placed fifth at the

1970 Summer Universiade The 1970 Summer Universiade, also known as the VI Summer Universiade, took place in Turin, Italy. After the city of Lisbon, Portugal failed to host the 1969 Summer Universiade, the games were assigned to Turin to be held next year. Sports at t ...

Men's decathlon in Turin, Italy. Wanamaker is one of the tallest successful decathletes, at 6'-8", 210 lbs. in 1971. He was the first high jumper, from the state of Iowa, to clear 7 feet, while competing in the 1970 Missouri Valley Conference Meet at Drake University. In 2007, he was named to the Missouri Valley Conference's All-Time Track and Field and Cross Country Teams. Wanamaker finished second to Dick Fosbury, the 1968 Olympic high jump Champion, by 1 inch, at the 1969 Drake Relays. A photograph of Rick Wanamaker running in the 1970 NCAA Championships at Drake University, taken by Jeff Jacobsen, was named the National Press Photographer’s Association best sports photo of the year.

Basketball

Wanamaker was a member of the Drake Bulldogs basketball team that finished third in the 1969 NCAA basketball tournament after losing to UCLA in the finals and beating the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the Public university, public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referre ...

in the consolation round. He is best known for blocking a shot against Lew Alcindor (now

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ( ; born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. , April 16, 1947) is an American former basketball player. He played professionally for 20 seasons for the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Associatio ...

) in the 1969 NCAA national semi-final game in Louisville.Drake stood up to mighty UCLA in 1969
''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...

'', 2008-03-18. Accessed 2008-06-12. Wanamaker's block of Alcindor's shot is one of the 100 top plays in NCAA tournament history, according to www.BleacherReport.com. He was drafted by the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

with the fourth pick in the 15th round of the

1970 NBA draft The 1970 NBA draft was the 24th annual NBA draft, draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on March 23, 1970, before the 1970–71 NBA season, 1970–71 season. In this draft, 17 NBA teams took turns selecting amate ...

, but he did not pursue a career in professional basketball.

References

Profile

External links

Rick and Marcia Wanamaker Realty site

Rick Wanamaker Profile

Iowa High School Athletic Association track & Field Timeline

Drake vs. UCLA 1969 First Half - YouTube

Drake vs. UCLA 1969 Second Half - YouTube

STILL SOMETHING OF A SUMMIT MEETING - Sports Illustrated Vault , SI.com

Wanamaker Wins Inaugural Decathlon Title :: USTFCCCA

Dolph Pulliam, Drake University And The Greatest Near Upset In NCAA Tournament History
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wanamaker, Rick 1948 births Living people American male decathletes Drake Bulldogs men's basketball players People from Marengo, Iowa American men's basketball players Athletes (track and field) at the 1971 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1971 Pan American Games Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in athletics (track and field) Sportspeople from Iowa NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners Drake Bulldogs men's track and field athletes 20th-century American sportsmen