Carl Lewis selected for Texas Track and Field Hall of Fame

Former head coach Jack Patterson receives posthumous induction

Carl Lewis of the USA celebrates his gold medal winning jump of 8.5 meters in the men''s long jump competition at Olympic Stadiumat the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia. Mandatory Credit: Pascal Rondeau /Allsport

HOUSTON – Nine-time Olympic Gold Medalist and former University of Houston Cougars star Carl Lewis leads the 2015 Texas Track and Field Hall of Fame class.

Lewis, a six-time NCAA champion and NCAA All-American at U of H, will be joined by former UH head coach Jack Patterson.

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"This is an honor for a number of reasons," said Lewis, who returned to UH as an assistant coach for the 2014-15 season and helped lead the Cougars to the 2015 American Athletic Conference Indoor Championships. "Number one being that it represents Texas, because my whole career was based in Houston, and this is my home now, and this will be my home. Also to go into the Hall of Fame with my mentor and hero, Coach (Tom) Tellez, and my teammate and good friend Leroy Burrell is a thrill."

Patterson served as Houston's first track and field head coach from 1951-54, leading the Cougars to three consecutive second-place finishes in the Missouri Valley Conference from 1952-54.

The 2015 class, the seventh annual class to enter the Texas Track and Field Hall of Fame, will be inducted during a ceremony on Jan. 8, 2016, at the Crowne Plaza in Addison, Texas.

2015 Texas Track and Field Hall of Fame induction class

Walter "Buddy" Davis
Fred Hansen
Jim Hines
Darrow Hooper
Rafer Johnson
Carl Lewis
Bobby Morrow
Sanya Richards-Ross
Jeremy Wariner

Posthumous inductees:
Frank Anderson
Emmett Brunson
Oliver Jackson
Clyde Littlefield
Earle Meadows
Jack Patterson
Jerry Thompson
Fred Wolcott
Mildred "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias