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By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

CJ Hamilton is being given one of the highest honors a Kansas high school coach can receive. But rather than take credit for the accomplishment, he quickly deflects recognition to the community he represents.

Silver Lake coaching legend CJ Hamilton will be inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame on July 25. [Photo by Brent Maycock/KSHSAA Covered]

Hamilton coached the Silver Lake football team to unmatched success, and for his 47 years on the Eagle sideline, Hamilton has been voted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame. But, as he puts it, he represents all the athletes, parents, coaches, administrators and community members who supported him.

“I’m just so appreciative of all the people who helped to make this possible,” Hamilton said. “It was a great honor to represent the community of Silver Lake and I wouldn’t have done what I did without all the people along the way. Silver Lake is a community that understands what it takes to have great accomplishments and is invested in helping their students do their very best.”

At a ceremony at the Kansas Star Casino on July 25, Hamilton will join the most decorated coaches in state history in the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame. Finding his name among the likes of Phog Allen, James Naismith, Adolph Rupp, Dean Smith, Bill Snyder, and Gene Mauch is heady stuff.

“To be put in the category with all the great coaches in the state is just a great honor,” Hamilton said.

Hamilton’s resume is unmatched. He retired in 2021 with a football coaching record of 447-98. No coach in Kansas history has approached the 400-win mark. He led the Eagles to 39 league titles, 40 playoff appearances and 18 appearances in the state championship game, winning eight – the most titles by any coach in Kansas history.

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By TODD FERTIG

TopSports.news

Judy Dyer has made a life out of overcoming obstacles. A metaphor for her life would be when she climbed over a fence to try out the hurdles assembled on the Washburn University track, even though her coach told her he didn’t want her to try the event.

Topeka High graduate and former Olympian Judy Dyer will be inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame on July 18. [File photo/TSN]

Without a track team – or any girls sports teams – in the Topeka Public Schools in the early 1960s, Dyer’s only outlet was to compete in track with a club team known as the Topeka Cosmopolitans. She did most of her training on her own and pushed herself to compete against her four brothers.

A Black girl growing up at that time might have seen too many barriers in her path to success, but Dyer didn’t see it that way.

“I still look back at it today when I come to any obstacle that I may have in my life,” Dyer said. “I tell myself, ‘If I can make it to the Olympics and jump over eight hurdles with three steps in between and make it to the highest level, I can do anything.’ It's the mindset. You know, you have to want it in life.”

Dyer applied that desire to a stellar track career that earned her a place among the greatest athletes in state history. On July 25, Dyer will be enshrined in the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame at a ceremony in Wichita.

What started out as a way to get out of the house at nine years of age turned into an outlet into which she poured her heart and soul. Dyer trained with boys sprinting in the halls of Topeka High and racing around the block under the watchful eyes of her brothers. Her club coach initially targeted her because of her coordination. With no opportunities to play team sports like basketball, softball or volleyball, Dyer gave track and field her all.

“I was a pioneer in those days because we only had a club. We didn't have a team,” Dyer said. “We didn't have all the equipment. We didn't know how to basically train, but we actually had natural talent. And that's what we thrived on was the natural talent.”

Already a nationally-ranked long-jumper and an accomplished sprinter by age 17, Dyer had to convince her club coach to allow her to compete in the hurdles. It proved a fortuitous decision. During her senior year of high school, she won the 60-yard hurdles at a meet in Kansas City and caught the eye of the coach of Texas Southern University, who offered her a full-ride scholarship.

The 1966 Topeka High graduate enjoyed a decorated college career that culminated with a trip to the 1968 Olympic Trials in California. Fortune shined upon Dyer when, despite finishing fifth in the 80-meter hurdles, she was bumped up to the Olympic team by injuries to other runners. Competing in the Mexico City games in October of 1968, Dyer made it to the semifinal round where her best time placed her in the top 15 fastest hurdlers in the world.

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Created: 08 July 2026

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

International basketball players like Slovenians Martin Vimos and Vid Jeric will obviously get the opportunity to see some of the sights the United States has to offer during their month-long stint with College Star International under the Darting Basketball Academy umbrella.

But the trip is probably one percent about sightseeing and 99 percent basketball as the 80 players (72 boys, eight girls) that will take part in this summer's program are looking to get accustomed to American basketball while also hoping to earn an opportunity to eventually play at the college or prep school level in the U.S.

The international boys teams took took part in a showcase event on Tuesday at Shawnee Heights, facing off against area stars representing Spradling Skills Academy, including Washburn Rural's Cooper Schmidt and Highland Park's JoJo Kingcannon. 

The international teams got a stern test from the local players, which Vimos said was a good thing.

"The program they have here is very good,'' Vimos said. "We played a warmup tournament last weekend in which the competition wasn't really strong. That was kind of to get the team going and right now we played a stronger match with better competition.

"My experience here in the U.S. is that the game is more physical and more fast. In Europe the game is much more slower and I would say it's more tactical. In Europe we run the plays a lot more and here it's more transition. I like it.''

Jeric agreed.

"I'm liking it,'' he said. "It will improve my game. I play point guard, so I move the ball and I like to involve all the five players. That's what I do here, so I appreciate the opportunity.

"I just turned 17 and I have two more years in high school and then I want to play college. Mostly this will help me to get my rhythm down and get my vision, my dribbling and court awareness all ready for next season.''  

The DBA/CSI international program has brought in athletes from Australia, Italy, Spain, Lithuania, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Norway, Turkey, Germany and Sweden since it launched in 2024.

Up next for the international contingent is tournaments in Omaha, Kansas City and Chicago.