Rick Wanamaker attended Iowa Valley High School in Marengo, where he played basketball. He earned a scholarship and attended Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, where he studied advertising. As a freshman, he wanted to participate in the Drake Relays, and chose the decathlon.
Rick Wanamaker was a top ten United States. decathlete from 1970 to 1974. Rick Wanamaker was the 1971 gold medalist in decathlon at the Pan American Games with a score of 7648. Injured prior to the 1972 Munich Olympic trials.
Rick is one of the tallest successful decathletes, at 6"-8", 210 lbs in 1971.
He is best known for blocking a shot against Lew Alcindor in the 1969 National Collegiate Athletic Association national semi-finals in Louisville. Block of Lew Alcindor"s shot, now Kareem Abdul Jabbar, is one the 100 top plays in National Collegiate Athletic Association tournament history, according to www.BleacherReport.com.
Rick was a member of the Drake Bulldog basketball team that finished third in the 1969 National Collegiate Athletic Association basketball tournament.
