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Photo of Lynn St. John

Lynn W. St. John

A strong advocate of amateur basketball, Lynn St. John lobbied for formal national and international basketball rules for nearly three decades. A formidable administrator and a “master of diplomacy,” St. John served on the NCAA Basketball Rules Committee from 1912 to 1937, serving with James Naismith and for the last 18 years as chairman. He served as a member of the 1936 Olympic Basketball Committee, and played an active role during the inaugural Olympic competition. The basketball arena at Ohio State University, where St. John coached from 1912 to 1919 and later served as director of athletics from 1915 to 1947, is named in his honor. The time St. John spent at Ohio State coincided with the rise of the Buckeyes to national prominence in several sports. He was a great ambassador for the university where he played football and was known to those around him simply as “Saint.”

Enshrined

1962

Born

November 18, 1876 Union City, PA

Died

September 30, 1950

Contributor Stats

3 DECADES SPENT LOBBYING FOR
FORMAL NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
RULES FOR AMATEUR BASKETBALL
25 YEARS SERVED ON
NCAA RULES COMMITTEE
28 YEARS SERVED AS CHAIRMAN
RULES COMMITTEE
MEMBER OLYMPIC BASKETBALL
COMMITTEE
NAMED OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY
BASKETBALL STADIUM
IN HIS HONOR