April 30, 2002

Contact: Cornel Pewewardy, KU School of Education, (785) 864-9687.

MEDIA ADVISORY: Olympic medalist, KU alum Billy Mills to speak April 30 at KU on tribal issues

WHAT: Free public lecture on "Battles of Tribal Sovereignty on the Home Front: Contemporary American Indian Issues and Solutions in the United States." A reception follows the lecture.

WHEN/WHERE: 6 p.m. today in Woodruff Auditorium, Kansas Union, University of Kansas

WHO: Billy Mills is Sioux Indian, a 1962 graduate of KU's School of Education and a 1993 recipient of the KU Award for Distinguished Service.

Born on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, Mills was orphaned at an early age. As a young boy, Mills became involved in athletics and eventually won a scholarship to KU. While attending college, Mills participated in track and tried out for the U.S. Olympic team in 1960 but failed. Determined to succeed, he started training by running 100 miles a week for four years. He made the U.S. Olympic Team in 1964 and won the gold medal in the 10,000-meter run at the Tokyo Olympics. He was the first and remains the only American to win this event. In the tradition of turning athletic accomplishment into movie magic, Mills' life story was made into a major motion picture titled "Running Brave" and starring Robby Benson.

Today Mills lives in California with his wife, Patricia, and daughters. He is president of Billy Mills Enterprises, an insurance agency and consulting firm. He is also national chairman of Running Strong for American Indian Youth, a national fundraising organization that funds projects on Indian reservations.

WHY: KU Center for Indigenous Nation Studies, American studies department, First Nations Student Association and the American Studies Association of Gradaute Students are sponsoring Mills' lecture.