Hall of Honor
A Beloit High School graduate, Richard Raddant became a four-time Midwest Conference track champion during his Beloit College career. He was a Midwest Conference champion twice in both the broad jump and the 100 yard dash and on two occasions was the leading scorer at the Midwest Conference meet. In 1939, Raddant won the broad jump and the 100 and 220 yard dashes at the Midwest Conference Freshman Telegraphic Meet and was on the winning freshman spring medley relay team at the Beloit Relays. As a sophomore, he won the broad jump, the 100, and 220 yard dashes in his first two varsity meets against Ripon and Carroll, earning him high-point honors. Bothered by a leg injury in his junior and senior years, he nonetheless continued to excel. As a junior, he won the broad jump and the 100 yard dash and took second in the 220 at the Midwest Conference Meet and anchored the winning 440 relay team at the Beloit Relays. At the State Meet he took top honors in the broad jump but was unable to compete in other events due to injury. A captain in 1942, he won top-athlete honors at the Beloit Relays with a victory in broad jump at personal best 23’3½” and he anchored the winning 440 and 880 relay teams. Although not expected to compete in the state meet, he won the 100 in a record-tying 10 seconds and topped the field in the broad jump. A decorated WWII Navy veteran who then pursued a career in journalism and public relations, Raddant died in an auto accident in 1977.
