SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) — The Illinois Sports Hall of Fame inducted 48 new members at this year’s annual ceremony in Springfield.
The 2026 class includes sports figures who played or contributed to Illinois athletics at the high school, college and professional levels.
Central Illinois inductees included Springfield native and Indy 500 racer Donnie Beechler and Champaign native, Illini and Olympic thrower Gia Lewis-Smallwood, along with Meridian grad and women’s rugby bronze medalist Lauren Doyle.
Several Illini products were in this year’s class, including Kiwane Garris, Christopher Gandy and Tom Michael for men’s basketball, Meredith Hackett Kindt and Jenna Hall for softball, Brad Hopkins, Rashard Mendenhall and John W. Wright for football, Tara Hurless for soccer, and father-son duo Ed and Scott Spiezio for baseball. Former Illinois wrestling coach Mark Johnson was also honored
Mendenhall, a Skokie native and 2007 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, was one of the night’s speakers.
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