Bill Bowerman
American track and field coach and co-founder of Nike, Inc / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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William Jay Bowerman (February 19, 1911 – December 24, 1999) was an American track and field coach and co-founder of Nike, Inc.[1] Over his career, he trained 31 Olympic athletes, 51 All-Americans, 12 American record-holders, 22 NCAA champions and 16 sub-4 minute milers.[2]
Bill Bowerman | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | William Jay Bowerman (1911-02-19)February 19, 1911 Portland, Oregon, U.S. |
| Died | December 24, 1999(1999-12-24) (aged 88) Fossil, Oregon, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Oregon |
| Occupation(s) | Coach Co-founder of Nike, Inc. |
| Spouse |
Barbara Young Bowerman
(m. 1936) |
| Children | Jon Bowerman William J. "Jay" Bowerman, Jr. Thomas Bowerman |
| Parent | Jay Bowerman |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Service/ |  U.S. Army |
| Years of service | 1942–1945 |
| Rank | Major |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | Silver Star Bronze Star (4) |
| Website | https://www.nike.com/ |
Bowerman disliked being called a coach,[3] and during his 24 years at the University of Oregon, the Ducks track and field team had a winning season every year but one, attained 4 NCAA titles, and finished in the top 10 in the nation sixteen times. As co-founder of Nike, he invented some of their top brands, including the Cortez and Waffle Racer, and assisted in the company moving from being a distributor of other shoe brands to one creating their own shoes in house.