David Wottle, the 1972 Olympic 800 meter champion, loved racing the Mile and saw the storied distance as his best event, and he considers his first sub-4 minute Mile, 3:59.0 on June 6, 1970, as equal to his Olympic gold medal performance and 800m world record. He also was the 1972 NCAA 1500m champion and the 1973 NCAA Mile champion: indoor (4:03.4) and outdoor (his 3:57.1 set the still standing NCAA record).

In 1973, Wottle and 1972 U.S. Olympic teammate and 5000m specialist Steve Prefontaine raced the Mile at the Hayward Field Restoration Meet and Wottle kicked down Pre on his home track, clocking 3:53.3 to 3:54.6; both set personal records, and at the time, the legendary duo became the 3rd and 9th fastest men all-time in the Mile.

The Bowling Green graduate, known for his closing kick and golf hat, set the 800m world record (1:44.3) in 1972 and also competed in the 1500 meters at the 1972 Munich Olympics.

In June 2012, he retired from Rhodes College in Memphis where he was the long-time Dean of Admissions.

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