Loras College Athletics

His stride was as recognizable as those late 1960’s/early 1970’s eyeglasses. His success on the track in that time was second to none. Back when the track distances were a little different (yards), Tom Bryan was the same hard-working runner everyone came to know.

Bryan built a career like many runners do, learning about himself as a runner and navigating the track to learn his best distances. When his career was over, he was a conference, regional, and national champion.

Bryan was a part of the Midlands and NAIA Regional winning Mile Relay teams of 1970-71, his junior season. That year, he added three more titles in the 880-yard race. He won the Midlands Conference title, the NAIA Regional title, and eventually the NAIA National title in the middle distance event in Kansas City in 1:55.8 seconds. He was regularly a national qualifier and records indicate he was the first national champion on the Loras College track and field team.

Bryan finished his degree in Business in 1975 and was a member of the cross country team at that time, where he provided leadership to that team, much as he did for his track teammates earlier in his running career.

Bryan went on to become a master’s level track official and continued his amateur running with the University of Chicago Track Club, winning multiple events. In 2007, he was awarded a U.S. Patent.

He now resides in Wilmette, Illinois with his wife Jane.