Athletic Hall of Fame
The Gustavus Adolphus College Hall of Fame was established in 1978 at which time 19 "Charter Members" were inducted either as coaches or as athletes. As of the fall of 2022, 348 individuals (321 athletes, 16 coaches and 11 benefactors) have been elected to the Hall of Fame.
The former Hall of Fame room on the second floor of the Lund Center was originally partially endowed by the families of both Dwight Holcombe's (the only father/son combination holding membership in the Hall). The hardwood plaque upon which the individual plates are permanently displayed, now in the Hall of Champions, was donated by the family of former football coach and Hall of Fame member Jocko Nelson, who passed away in 1978.
Kristin Petersen Smith
Track & Field
Inducted: 2019
The greatest discus thrower in Gustavus women’s track and field history, Kristin Petersen Smith won the 2004 NCAA discus championship, becoming the first in program history to claim a national title. Petersen Smith improved every year with an effortless motion and great technique in the thrower’s circle, garnering two All-America honors and three Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships in the discus. Before winning the 2004 national championship, she placed fifth at the 2003 NCAA meet and claimed the MIAC title in 2002, 2003, and 2004.
Petersen Smith, who still owns the school record in the discus at 159’ 6”, claimed nine All-Conference honors in the discus, shot put, and hammer throw. She helped Gustavus finish in the top-four at the MIAC Indoor and Outdoor Championships from 2001-04 and teamed with fellow 2019 Hall of Fame inductee Jackie Luehmann to score 18 points at the 2004 NCAA Outdoor Championships, capturing 16th place (the most points and best finish by a Gustavus women’s track and field team in program history).
After graduating in 2004 with a degree in health and physical education, Petersen Smith earned her master’s degree from Minnesota State, Mankato and is currently a physical education teacher in the Mankato school district. She is still involved in her sport as the throws coach for the Mankato West High School boys and girls track and field teams. Kristin and her husband Aaron ’99, a 2014 Gustavus Hall of Fame inductee, live in Saint Peter with their daughters Kiercelyn and Annika.