OTTUMWA– Indian Hills Community College is proud to announce the 2025 Indian
Hills Athletics Hall of Fame Inductees. This year’s class features former Indian Hills
Track & Field standout and two-time Olympic medalist, Kenny Bednarek, and the 1971
Indian Hills Golden Falcons Football team.
Kenny Bednarek – Men’s Track & Field, 2018-19
One of the most decorated individuals in Indian Hills Athletics history, Bednarek’s nod
to the Hall of Fame comes four months after the standout captured his second career
Olympic silver medal.
A three-time state champion as a senior at Rice Lake High School in Rice Lake, WI,
Bednarek brought his talents to Ottumwa in 2018 under head coach Brent Ewing.
Bednarek made an immediate impact for the Warriors, bringing the program to national
prominence in his lone season on the track.
Bednarek captured three National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA)
National Championships – the 2019 indoor 200-meter title and the 2019 outdoor 200-
meter and 400-meter dash titles. Bednarek made international headlines during the
outdoor championships, clocking the fourth-fastest all-conditions 200m dash time in
the world with a mark of 19.49. Bednarek, who captured 12 individual titles during the
2018-19 track & field campaign, capped his freshman season with two NJCAA records
that still stand to this day – the indoor 200m dash (20.43) and the outdoor 200, dash
(19.49).
At the 2019 NJCAA DI Men’s Track & Field Outdoor Championship in Hobbs, NM,
Bednarek became just the second individual in world history, the first American, and the
youngest of all-time to run sub-20.00 in the 200m and sub-45.00 in the 400m in the
same day.
Following an unprecedented freshman season at Indian Hills, Bednarek took his talents
to the professional circuit by signing a contact with Nike where he has continued to star
on the world stage. Representing the United States at the 2020 Olympic Games in
Tokyo, Bednarek brought home the silver medal in the 200m dash with a time of 19.68.
Bednarek followed suit in the 2024 Olympic games in Paris with a second silver medal,
clocking in at 19.62. Bednarek became just the sixth United States Olympian to earn two
200m Olympic medals.
Throughout his run on the professional circuit, Bednarek has added multiple titles
across the globe, including 200m Diamond League Final titles in Switzerland and Qatar
in 2021.
Bednarek becomes the first member of the Indian Hills Track & Field program to be
inducted into the Indian Hills Hall of Fame.
1971 Indian Hills Football Team
The first football program in school history to win a conference championship, the 1971
Indian Hills Golden Falcons featured a star-studded cast of National Junior College
Athletic Association (NJCAA) All-Americans and future NFL All-Pros.
Led by head coach Al Daniels, the 1971 squad made a remarkable run to the Iowa Junior
College Conference title by going 5-0-1 in league play and 6-2-1 overall on the year. The
Golden Falcons collected three NJCAA All-American honors in Rick Upchurch, Odell
Watson, and Terry Andringa while Daniels was named the conference’s coach of the
year.
The Golden Falcons outscored their opponents by 134 points on the year while the
formidable defense pitched three shutouts in nine contests. Indian Hills put the
finishing touches on a remarkable season by blanking No. 4 nationally ranked and
previously unbeaten Ellsworth Community College 35-0 in the season finale. On the
year, the Golden Falcons knocked off three top-15 programs, a feat that included a win
over No. 3 Grand Rapids Community College 22-21.
Along with the three All-American nods, Larry McClatchey and Bruce Oxenford were
named to the All-Conference team.
The 1971 squad currently features three members in the Indian Hills Hall of Fame – Rick
Upchurch (Class of 2012), Ron Oswalt (Class of 2012), and Ricky ‘Odell’ Watson (Class
of 2022).
Indian Hills encourages alumni, friends and fans to help celebrate these remarkable
athletes at events in their honor, January 17-18. The weekend will begin with a
reception at the Irma W. Winslow Education Center at 6:00 p.m. on Friday, January 17.
The 2025 class will be officially inducted into the Hall of Fame at halftime of the Indian
Hills vs. Southeastern basketball game on Saturday, January 18, and a reception
honoring the inductees will immediately follow the game.
