(Des Moines, IA) — Two-time Olympian Sam Kendricks will be inducted into the 2025 Drake Relays Athletes Hall of Fame, joining fellow pole vault standout Sandi Morris. The pair will be honored during an April 23 luncheon at the Schickler Club inside the Knapp Center on the Drake University campus.
Kendricks’ addition brings the total number of Athletes Hall of Fame members to 230. The Hall of Fame was established in 1959 as part of the Drake Relays’ Golden Anniversary celebration, featuring 72 original inductees, including Jesse Owens.
Drake Relays Director Blake Boldon said Kendricks’ accomplishments made him an easy choice for induction.
Kendricks is a four-time Drake Relays champion in the men’s pole vault and holds both the meet and stadium records. Morris has also left her mark on the Blue Oval, winning six titles and setting the Drake Relays record of 16 feet in 2018.
Kendricks first competed at the Drake Relays in 2012 as a freshman at Ole Miss, finishing fourth in the university-college division. He went on to win invitational titles in 2015, 2017 and 2018, setting a meet record of 19 feet, 1½ inches in 2018. He also captured the Capital Square pole vault that same year and placed second in 2019.
On the international stage, Kendricks is a two-time world outdoor champion (2017, 2019), an Olympic silver medalist in 2024 and a bronze medalist in 2016. He has also earned three World Indoor silver medals.
Kendricks has consistently ranked among the world’s best, finishing in the top three globally in eight of the last nine years, including a No. 1 ranking from 2017 through 2019.
In 2019, he set an American record of 19 feet, 10½ inches at Drake Stadium while winning his sixth consecutive USA outdoor title. Over his career, he has claimed seven USA outdoor championships and three USA indoor titles.
Collegiately, Kendricks was an NCAA outdoor champion in 2013 and 2014 for Ole Miss, and also earned SEC indoor and outdoor titles in 2014.
