[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 176 (Wednesday, November 19, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2263]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HONORING LEE ANGELICH

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. JIM COSTA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 19, 2008

  Mr. COSTA. Madam Speaker, I rise today along with Congressman 
Radanovich to congratulate Lee Angelich upon his induction into the 
Fresno Hall of Fame. Mr. Angelich will be honored at the 50th 
anniversary enshrinement dinner of the Fresno Athletic Hall of Fame on 
Thursday, November 6, 2008.
  Lee Angelich, the youngest of five boys, was born to a Serbian 
immigrant family and starred in track and field in high school and 
college. Mr. Angelich qualified for the State Finals his senior year at 
Shasta High School. In his two years at Sacramento Junior College, he 
led the Panthers to league and state titles and in 1941 he led them to 
a national title. Mr. Angelich placed second in the 120 high hurdles 
and fifth in the high jump at the national meet. He then went on to the 
University of California, where in 1943 he won Pacific Coast Conference 
titles in the 120 high and the 220 low hurdles, and finished fifth and 
sixth respectively in the same events at the NCAA Championships. In 
1943, Mr. Angelich joined the Navy and served as an officer on the 
U.S.S. Rixey in the Pacific. After the war, he enrolled at California 
State University Fresno and placed third in the West Coast Relays in 
the 120 high hurdles.
  After completing his education Mr. Angelich began coaching. As a 
coach he stressed fundamentals, defense and teamwork. He guided boys' 
teams at Kerman High, Porterville High and Fresno High to eight league 
championships and an overall record of 255-76 from 1947 to 1963. His 
Kerman team won the Central Section small schools championship, and his 
Fresno High teams won forty-eight straight games at home, second best 
in section history. Under Mr. Angelich, Fresno High won four 
consecutive North Yosemite League titles (1957-1960). He is one of the 
rare coaches to win central Section titles in two different sports, as 
Fresno High captured the boys' track-and-field championship in 1957. He 
became one of the winningest high school basketball coaches in central 
section history. Additionally, after turning down a chance to coach 
Greece's national men's basketball team in 1959, he organized and 
coached the Libyan national team that participated in the North African 
Games in 1961.
  Madam Speaker, we rise today to commend and congratulate Lee Angelich 
upon his achievements and induction into the Fresno Athletic Hall of 
Fame. I invite my colleagues to join me in wishing Mr. Angelich 
congratulations on his many accomplishments.

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