Hall of Fame
Gary Gillis was a two-time outdoor track All-American in the 1976 1600-meter relay and 1978 200-meter dash. He manned the second leg of the 1600 relay team that was third at the 1976 NCAA Outdoor Championships, where Plattsburgh finished in a 10th-place tie – a school record.
Gary won nine SUNYAC championships in 100-, 220- (three times) and 440-yard dashes (twice) and relay events in the 400m and 1600m (twice). He also competed at two U.S. Olympic Invitational Track Championships, where he was part of two winning 1600 relays.
At the time of his graduation, Gary held four meet records including 9.6 seconds in the 100, 21.4 in the 220, 42.8 in the 440 relay and 3:18.7 in the 1600 relay--all at the 1976 SUNYACs. During his senior year, he set the conference record in the 440 with a winning time of 48.4. Today, he still holds Cardinals outdoor records for 100m (10.7) and 200m (21.3). He also holds four second-place SUNYAC finishes in the 1975 1600 relay, 1975 440-yard run, 1977 100-yard dash and 1977 440-yard relay.
Where are they now?
Gary is a video operation engineer for Fox News Channel in Washington, D.C. He lives in Owings Mills, Md., with his wife of 24 years, Valerie, who works as an art teacher and minister. The couple has a son, Brian, who served eight years as an Army Special Forces Ranger.
Favorite Plattsburgh Sport Moment
“This occurred at the 1976 NCAA Division III meet in Chicago. After running in eight races in two days -- which included four different events and turning my fastest time at 100 and 200 meters -- Coach Howard Hammonds on the third day in the last (relay) event of the meet tells me he is switching me from anchor to second leg and says we better be in the lead when you hand off. My response: ‘Coach I’m tired but I’ll try.’ Our first runner just didn’t have a good day and gave me the baton in last place. I got so mad that I forgot what I was doing and just started running like it was a 100 meter race. Then I caught and past everyone and gave us a 5-yard lead. Our third and fourth runners set personal records and were not caught until the last 10 meters of the race, so in 1976 Plattsburgh had the third-best 1600 meter relay in the nation.”
