Rich Luther was honored for being selected into the SD Track and Field/Cross Country Coaches Hall of Fame during the 2022 State A Track and Field Meet.
During the 2022 State A Track and Field Meet held the last weekend in May, former Lennox High School track coach Rich Luther was honored for being selected into the South Dakota Track and Field/Cross Country Coaches Hall of Fame.
“I am very honored and humbled by this award,” said Luther. “This does not happen without the many great athletes we have had over the years and the many outstanding coaches I have had the pleasure to work with. I have been very fortunate in that regard.”
Luther served 39 years as coach with the Lennox School District, until his retirement in 2017. He served as the assistant coach of the Lennox Track and Field program from 1979-1985 and head track and field coach from 1986-2017.
During his time as coach, Luther enjoyed outstanding results from his teams. His accomplishments included: 15 girls’ Region Championship titles, and 17 boys’ Region Championships titles. Luther also helped the teams earn State runner up honors three times with the girls’ program and five times with the boys’ program. He also led them to State Championship titles with the LHS girls claiming the title in 1998, 1999, and 2000.
In 2003 and 2004, Luther helped the LHS boys’ claim State Championship honors.
Under Luther’s direction, the LHS boys and girls won combined team titles in 1991, 2001 and 2003. Luther coached athletes to a combined 48 individual and relay State titles and earned the honor of South Dakota Track and Field Coach of the Year in 1999 and 2003. He was a finalist for SDHSCA State Track and Field Coach of the Year in 1991, 1998, and 1999.
Luther was the National High School Athletic Coaches Association Track and Field Coach of the Year Finalist in 2017 and was the NHSACA South Dakota Track and Field Coach of the Year in 2000, 2005 and 2008.
Luther was also instrumental in the design of the track and field complex that the LHS track and field athletes use today and has hosted many conference, region, and state track and field meets.
To honor the dedication Luther has shown to track and field in the State of South Dakota and to the Lennox Community, the Lennox School District renamed the Lennox Booster Club Qualifier Track and Field Meet to the “Rich Luther Relays” in April of 2021.
“I love track and field and enjoyed every aspect of it,” added Luther. “It’s been an honor to be a part of Oriole Track & Field for so many years.”
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