William Robert Bonthron, 1912-1983

William Robert Bonthron was born on November 01, 1912 in Detroit, Michigan. He attended Princeton and was a member of the Tiger's Varsity Track and Field Team. While on the Princeton track team in 1933, "Bonnie" Bonthron set the then American record for the mile, 4:08.9, which was also Princeton's first outdoor individual NCAA Championship. That record held until 2002, when Tora Harris won the honor again in the high jump. In 1934 Princeton instituted the Bonthron Torphy in his honor, "awarded annually to that member of the Princeton varsity track and field team who through sporsmanship, performance and influence has contributed most to the sport."

In the following year, 1934, he twice defeated his rival Glenn Cunningham, "The Kansas Ironman," and was awarded the James E. Sullivan Memorial Trophy as "the foremost amateur athlete in the country."