Daily Egyptian F02
SIU Hall of Fame trackster Ross Mackenzie passes away
Jack Piatt
Daily Egyptian
Hall of Famer Ross Mackenzie, considered one of the greatest runners to come out of SIU, died of a heart attack at his home Monday in Balmoral, Manitoba. He was 56.
Mackenzie started competing in track and field as a freshman and ran all four years of his college career at SIU.
He was a varsity letterman from 1966 to 1968 and earned All-American status as a member of the SIU 4x400 team in the NCAA Championship meet during his sophomore year.
He qualified his junior year for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 440-yard dash, and his senior year qualified him for the 440-yard dash in both the indoor and outdoor meets. At the NCAA Indoor Championships, he finished second in the 440-yard dash, earning his second All-American honor.
In 1968, Mackenzie received the chance to represent his native country, Canada, in the Mexico City Summer Olympics. He ran a career best 45.10 in the 440-yard dash as a member of the Canadian 4x400 relay team.
Mackenzie is currently ranked fifth all-time in the outdoor 400 meter and sixth all-time in the indoor 400 meter in SIU history.
During his time at SIU, Mackenzie ran for former Saluki head track and field coach Lew Hartzog.
Hartzog said Mackenzie was a great athlete and a fantastic person. He said he never had to get on Mackenzie in practice because the runner always did everything right.
"He would come by my office after practice and ask if there was anything he could do," Hartzog said. "He wasn't brown-nosing, he was sincere."
Mackenzie and Hartzog stayed in contact throughout the years, calling each other at least five times a year to check up on one other.
The two of them would meet in Silver City, N.M., Hartzog's home, and drive to Arizona to hunt for quail and pheasant. Hartzog would also travel to Canada to visit Mackenzie.
"Ross was like a son or a brother," Hartzog said.
Bill Cornell was a teammate and close friend of Mackenzie's in 1965 and his assistant coach from 1966-68.
Cornell said Mackenzie was a leader and a great competitor.
"He would give a donation to the track team every year," Cornell said. "I can't say enough about him. I will miss him a lot."
Mackenzie is survived by his mother, Vivian, his wife, Lois and two daughters, Rochelle and Sherry.
Reporter Jack Piatt can be reached at jpiatt@dailyegyptian.com
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