CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — The University of Illinois is announcing its first Athletic Hall of Fame class that includes legendary football coach and Chicago Bears’ owner George Halas, baseball Hall of Famer Lou Boudreau and Harold “Red” Grange, the football star whose fame in the early 20th century rivaled that of Babe Ruth.
In a news release, the school lists 28 men and women who competed or coached in sports, ranging from football to volleyball.
The class includes well-known figures such as football great Dick Butkus. But it also includes Nancy Thies Marshall, who in 1972 became the only Illini women’s gymnast to compete in the Olympics.
Another inductee is Harold Osborn. In 1924 he became the first — and still the only — gold medalist in both the high jump and the decathlon.
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