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Kickapoo Tribe to Create New Cross Country Park

By Greg Bebermeyer

06/28/2013

( KNZA )-The Kickapoo Tribe will hold a groundbreaking ceremony Monday morning for a new cross country park to be named in honor of U.S. Olympic gold medallist Billy Mills.

The ceremony will take place at 10 o’clock at the Kickapoo Tribe Pow Wow Grounds located ¼ mile west of the Golden Eagle Casino on K-20 Highway. Mills will be the keynote speaker at the dedication.

Mills was the gold medal winner in the 10,000 meter race at the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, which is considered one of the greatest upsets in modern Olympic history.

The tribe and Mills are working together to create a cross country park, walking trails, arboretum and historic tribal center to bring attention to healthy lifestyles with an emphasis on the prevention and treatment of diabetes. The arboretum and tribal center will feature historic information and artifacts on the Kickapoo Tribe as well as the life of Mills.

Mills has strong ties to Kansas, having attended Haskell University in Lawrence and later the University of Kansas on an athletic scholarship where he was a three-time NCAA All-American cross country runner and in 1960 won the individual Big 8 cross country championship.

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