Athletics Hall of Fame
Brooke Bell Burns was a national champion sprinter for the UW-Whitewater track and field program from 2008-10. Burns, the 2008 Indoor Track Performer of the Meet and 2009 Outdoor Track Performer of the Meet at the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships, is a five-time conference champion. The sprinter claimed indoor league titles in the 55-meter dash and 200-meter dash in 2008, reclaiming her title in the 55 in 2010. During the outdoor campaign, she secured conference titles in the 200 in 2008 and 2009, adding a title in the 100-meter dash in 2009. Burns went on to earn All-America honors for the first time in 2008 after placing seventh in the 200. The next season, she finished fifth in the 100 before earning a national title in the 200 at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships – becoming the first national champion in outdoor women's track in UW-Whitewater history. During her time as a Warhawk, Burns broke the record in the 60-meter dash – a mark that currently ranks among the top ten – and she still holds the outdoor record in the 200 (23.89). Burns is also ranked among the top ten in the UW-Whitewater record book in the indoor 200 and outdoor 100. A Milwaukee, Wisconsin native and graduate of Hamilton High School, Burns earned a bachelor's degree in liberal studies in 2016.
