SEATTLE – Dr. Ken Foreman, recognized as the founder of the Seattle Pacific track and field program and the man who coached 159 All-American athletes during his more than 37 years at the helm, will be inducted into the USA Track & Field Hall of Fame next month in Indianapolis.
The induction ceremony is set for Saturday, Dec. 5. Being inducted along with Foreman are athletes Joetta Clark Diggs, Andre Phillips, Willie Steele and Randy Williams.
Foreman served as SPU’s head coach from 1950-57, 1965-78, and 1985-99. He founded the Falcon Track Club in 1955, and served as that squad’s coach in 1977.
Considered the patriarch of the Falcon family, Foreman also served as the Seattle Pacific athletic director from 1952-57, had three stints as the cross country coach (1950-56, 1964-71, and 1973-77), and also was the basketball coach from 1952-57.
Among the many athletes who excelled under Foreman’s tutelage was Doris Brown Heritage, a five-time women’s cross country world champion and already a USATF Hall of Fame member. He also coached Olympic athletes Kelly Blair-LaBounty, Lorna Griffin, Pam Spencer and Sherron Walker.
Altogether, athletes coached by Foreman won 14 AAU titles between cross country, indoor track and outdoor track, and collected 26 collegiate championships. He saw 13 of his Seattle Pacific teams finish in the top 10, was the head women’s track coach for the 1980 U.S. Olympic team and served as the Team USA head coach at the 1983 World Outdoor Championships. In addition, he was the head coach of the U.S. world cross country team in 1967, 1970 and 1973.
Foreman is a charter member of the Falcon Legends Hall of Fame.