Billy Mills

Billy Mills
	Mills (left) and Gammoudi at the 1964 Olympics
Personal information
Native name	Tamakhóčhe Theȟíla
Full name	William Mervin Mills
Nationality	Oglala Sioux Tribe, American
Born	June 30, 1938 (age 86); Pine Ridge, South Dakota, U.S.
Alma mater	Haskell Institute; University of Kansas
Height	180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Weight	68 kg (150 lb)
Sport
Sport	Athletics
Club	U.S. Marine Corps
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	5000m: 13:41.4 ; 10,000m: 28:17.6 ; Marathon: 2:22:56
Medal record
Representing the United States
Olympic Games

William Mervin Mills (born June 30, 1938), also known by his Oglala Lakota name Tamakhóčhe Theȟíla, is an American Oglala Lakota former track and field athlete who won a gold medal in the 10,000 metre run (6.2 mi) at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. His 1964 victory is considered one of the greatest Olympic upsets because he was a virtual unknown going into the event. He was the first non-European to win the Olympic event and remains the only winner from the Americas.^[3] A United States Marine, Mills is a member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe.

^ ^a ^b Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Billy Mills". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Billy MILLS - Athlete Profile". IAAF.
^ "Marine Corps History Division". Marine Corps History Division, United States Marine Corps. August 13, 2008. Archived from the original on April 8, 2007. Retrieved August 14, 2008. Then-1stLt William 'Billy' Mills, USMCR, wove through a field of lapped runners and passed the race favorite, Ron Clarke of Australia, to win the 10,000 metre race at the 1964 Olympic Games. His victory has been described as the biggest upset in the history of the Olympic 10,000-metre run (and one of the biggest of all time in any Olympic event). Mills is still the only American ever to win a gold medal in that event.

[sr-1] Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Billy Mills". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020.

[IAAF-2] "Billy MILLS - Athlete Profile". IAAF.

[USMChisory-3] "Marine Corps History Division". Marine Corps History Division, United States Marine Corps. August 13, 2008. Archived from the original on April 8, 2007. Retrieved August 14, 2008. Then-1stLt William 'Billy' Mills, USMCR, wove through a field of lapped runners and passed the race favorite, Ron Clarke of Australia, to win the 10,000 metre race at the 1964 Olympic Games. His victory has been described as the biggest upset in the history of the Olympic 10,000-metre run (and one of the biggest of all time in any Olympic event). Mills is still the only American ever to win a gold medal in that event.

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