“Runar Stone” from the “1936 Franciscan” yearbook (page 51)

Photograph of San Francisco State’s Great Iron Man named Runar Stone.Ru Stone, San Francisco State’s “Ace” point-getter on track squads in 1935 and 1936 was the colleges great hope to bring home gold in the 1936 Olympic Games. Stone, a.k.a. “”Kichy Koo”, “Finn”, and Ru, was a champion decathlon athlete, one of the best three decathlon athletes in California. In 1936 Stone was ranked as San Francisco State’s number one athlete receiving two Block “S” awards, one for basketball and one for track. He was also awarded the Perpetual Sports Award for being State’s most outstanding athlete of the year. San Francisco State supported Stone, and conducted a fundraising campaign to help him finance his trip to the Olympic tryouts, because he was working his way through college. Stone was best in high jump and high hurdle events. Dean of Men David J. Cox, who served as the track coach mentored Stone who put San Francisco State in the sports headlines. Stone possessed the competitive spirit, under fire, he gave his best when it was most needed. In March 1936, Stone set a new State record for high point honors, making the “Purple and Gold Runners” proud. Then he received a head injury in a pole-vaulting accident that affected his performance for the rest of the season. At the end of his college career, Stone held four school records in track for the high jump, broad jump, high hurdles, and pole vault. When Stone went to the Olympic Game tryouts in Milwaukee, he finished fifth in the finals for decathlon. After he graduated from San Francisco State, Stone went on to work as supervisor of building and trade work on campus until 1962.