Bill
Nieder

Bill Nieder
Bill Nieder overcame a debilitating knee injury to become one of the greatest athletes in University of Kansas history. Nieder, who was an All-American high school football player at Lawrence High School, initially signed on to play football for the Jayhawks. During his first varsity game against Texas Christian he suffered a career ending knee injury. With football out of the equation, Nieder was approached by KU track and field coach Bill Easton to take up the shot put. He accepted and after months of rehabilitation he started a new career. Nieder mastered the shot put extremely quickly winning the 1955 Big Seven Conference Indoor Championship. Then during the outdoor season he claimed the Texas, Kansas, and Drake Relays. His success continued when he won the NCAA Outdoor Championship. He continued winning in 1956, where he won the Big Seven Outdoor Championship and became the first person the clear the 60-foot mark. He had a minor slip up in the NCAA Outdoor Championship when he finished in second place. Nieder then moved on to the international scene where he won a silver medal at the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne. He went out on top of the world by winning the gold medal at the 1960 Olympics in Rome and then following the event he was forced to retire due to reoccurring knee problems.

Teams:
Track & Field (Men's) 1954
Track & Field (Men's) 1955
Track & Field (Men's) 1956

All-American
1955 - Track & Field (Men's)
1956 - Track & Field (Men's)

Olympian
1956 - Track & Field (Men's)
1960 - Track & Field (Men's)

National Champion
1955 - Track & Field (Men's)

Conference Champion
1954 - Track & Field (Men's)
1955 - Track & Field (Men's)
1956 - Track & Field (Men's)

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