View source for Jim Ryun

{{Short description|American politician and track athlete (born 1947)}}
{{Similar names|Jim Ryan (disambiguation){{!}}Jim Ryan}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2018}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Jim Ryun
| image = jimryun.jpg
| state = [[Kansas]]
| district = {{ushr|KS|2|2nd}}
| term_start = November 27, 1996
| term_end = January 3, 2007
| predecessor = [[Sam Brownback]]
| successor = [[Nancy Boyda]]
| birth_name = James Ronald Ryun
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1947|4|29}}
| birth_place = [[Wichita, Kansas]], U.S.
| death_date = 
| death_place = 
| party = [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
| spouse = {{marriage|Anne Ryun|1969}}
| education = [[University of Kansas]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])
| module = {{Infobox sportsperson
| embed = yes
| name = Jim Ryun
| height = 188cm<ref name=sr>{{cite Sports-Reference |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ry/jim-ryun-1.html |title=Jim Ryun |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417171540/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ry/jim-ryun-1.html |archive-date=2020-04-17}}</ref>
| weight = 76kg
| country = {{USA}}
| sport = [[Sport of Athletics|Athletics]]/[[Track and field#Running|Track]], [[Middle-distance running|Mid-distance running]]
| event = [[Mile run|Mile]], [[1500 meters]], [[800 meters]]
| collegeteam = [[Kansas Jayhawks]]
| club = Club West
| olympics = '''1964 Tokyo'''<br>1500m, 18th (sf)<br>'''1968 Mexico City'''<br>1500m, {{silver medal}}<br>'''1972 Munich'''<br>1500m, 55th (h)
| pb = {{ubl
|'''Outdoors'''
|'''[[880 yards|880yd]]/[[800 m|800m]]:''' 1:44.9/1:44.3 ([[Terre Haute]] 1966)
|'''[[1500 m|1500m]]:''' 3:33.1 ([[Los Angeles]] 1967)
|'''[[Mile run|Mile]]:''' 3:51.1 ([[Bakersfield]] 1967)
|'''[[Two miles|2mi]]:''' 8:25.2 '''[[United States junior records in athletics|AJR]]''' ([[Los Angeles]] 1966)
|'''[[5000 m|5000m]]:''' 13:38.2 ([[Bakersfield]] 1972)
|'''Indoor'''
|'''[[880 yards|880yd]]/[[800 m|800m]]''' 1:48.3{{AthAbbr|i|indoors}}/1:47.7{{AthAbbr|i|indoors}} ([[Lawrence, Kansas|Lawrence]] 1967)
|'''[[Mile run|Mile]]:''' 3:56.4{{AthAbbr|i|indoors}} ([[San Diego]] 1971)}}
| medaltemplates =
{{MedalSport|Men's [[Sport of athletics|athletics]]}}
{{MedalCountry| {{USA}}}}
{{MedalOlympics}}
{{MedalSilver| [[1968 Summer Olympics|1968 Mexico City]] | [[Athletics at the 1968 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|1500m]]}}}}
}}
'''James Ronald Ryun''' (born April 29, 1947) is an American former [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] politician and Olympic [[track and field]] athlete, who at his peak was widely considered the world's top middle-distance runner. He won a silver medal in the [[Athletics at the 1968 Summer Olympics – Men's 1500 metres|1500 m at the 1968 Summer Olympics]], and was the first high school athlete to run a mile in under four minutes. He is the last American to hold the world record in the mile run. Ryun later served in the [[United States House of Representatives]] from 1996 to 2007, representing [[Kansas's 2nd congressional district]].

==Athletics==
According to Ryun, he began running because

{{blockquote|I couldn't do anything else. When you're cut from the church baseball team, the junior high basketball team, and you can't make the junior high track and field team ...

I'd go to bed at night and I'd say, "Dear God, please help me do better at sports and let me find a good sport I am good at" I found myself trying out for the cross-country team and running [[two miles]] even though I'd never run that distance before. All of a sudden, I made the team, I got a [[letter jacket]], and I started thinking there's a girlfriend behind the letter jacket. But that's how it all began.<ref name="fraioli20101129">{{cite web | url=http://running.competitor.com/2010/11/interviews/the-best-ever-exclusive-interview-with-jim-ryun_17818 | title=The Best Ever: Exclusive Interview With Jim Ryun | publisher=Competitor.com | date=2010-11-29 | access-date=March 17, 2014 | author=Fraioli, Mario}}</ref>}}

===Early years===
In 1964, as a high school junior at [[Wichita East High School]], Ryun became the first high school athlete to run a mile in under four minutes in the time of 3:59.0, when he took eighth place at the 1964 California Relays, the last under four minutes in a historic mass finish under 4:00. His time of 3:55.3, set winning the 1965 AAU Championship race ahead of Olympic gold medalist and former WR holder [[Peter Snell]], was a high school record that stood for 36 years. Ryun ran five sub four-minute miles while in high school including the first sub four-minute mile run in a high school event, a 3:58.3, at the 1965 Kansas HS state meet. As a high school senior, he was voted the fourth-best miler in the world by ''[[Track & Field News]]''. [[ESPN.com]] named him the best high school athlete of all time, beating out people such as [[Tiger Woods]] and [[LeBron James]].<ref name="best_high_school_athletes_espn">{{cite web |title=The List: Best high school athletes ever |publisher=ESPN |url=http://www.espn.com/page2/s/list/highschool.html}}</ref> He was ''Track and Field News'' "High School Athlete of the Year" in 1965.<ref name="hs_boys_athletes_of_the_year_archive_org">{{cite magazine |title=High School Boys Athletes of the Year |magazine=Track & Field News |url=https://trackandfieldnews.com/index.php/component/content/article/35-stats/2114-t-fn-boys-hs-aoy |access-date=August 11, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170810170401/https://trackandfieldnews.com/index.php/component/content/article/35-stats/2114-t-fn-boys-hs-aoy |archive-date=August 10, 2017 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

===After high school===
In 1966, at age 19, Ryun set two world records, first in the half-mile (1:44.9), then the mile (3:51.3). He received numerous awards, including ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' magazine's "[[Sportsman of the Year]]" award, the [[James E. Sullivan Award]] as the nation's top amateur athlete, the [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]'s [[Wide World of Sports (U.S. TV series)|Wide World of Sports]] Athlete of the Year award, and the [[Track and Field News|''Track & Field News'']]' Athlete of the Year award as the world's best track and field athlete.

In 1967, Ryun set a world record in the indoor half mile (1:48.3) and the outdoor mile from (3:51.1), a record that stood for almost eight years. That same year, he set the world record for the 1,500 meters (3:33.1).  In NCAA competition, Ryun was the 1967 NCAA outdoor mile champion. He was also the NCAA indoor mile champion in 1967, 1968, and 1969.

Ryun still holds the [[United States junior records in athletics|American junior (19 and under) records]] at one mile (3:51.3) and two miles (8:25.1). His American junior record in the 1,500 meters of 3:36.1 was broken by [[Hobbs Kessler]] on May 29, 2021, awaiting ratification by [[USA Track and Field]]. His American junior record in the 800 meters lasted exactly 50 years. In all, he broke the American record for the mile four times, once as a high school senior (3:55.3 on June 27, 1965), twice as a college freshman (3:53.7 on June 4, 1966, and 3:51.3 on July 17, 1966), and once as a college sophomore (3:51.1 on June 23, 1967).

[[Image:TV-icon-2.svg|thumb|110px|'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYzvUhVS-iw Official 1968 Olympic Video Highlights]''']]
Ryun participated in the [[1964 Summer Olympics|1964]], [[1968 Summer Olympics|1968]], and [[1972 Summer Olympics]]. At age 17 years, 137 days in 1964, he remains the second youngest American male track athlete to ever qualify for the Olympics, behind Quincy Wilson.<ref>{{cite web |author=Richard Hymans |title=The History of the United States Olympic Trials — Track & Field  |url=http://www.usatf.org/statistics/champions/OlympicTrials/HistoryOfTheOlympicTrials.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.usatf.org/statistics/champions/OlympicTrials/HistoryOfTheOlympicTrials.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 1968, he won the silver medal in the 1,500 meters in [[Mexico City]], losing to [[Kip Keino]] from Kenya, whose remarkable race remained the Olympic 1,500-meter record for 16 years. Before the race, Ryun had thought that a time of 3:39 would be good enough to win in the high altitude of Mexico City. He ended up running faster than that with a 3:37.8, but half-way through the race Keino had moved into the first position at world record pace. Ryun continued to move up during the last two laps from eighth to second but was never closer than about 30 yards from Keino, who finished in 3:34.91, an Olympic record that would stand until 1984, despite the altitude.<ref>{{cite Sports-Reference |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417171520/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1968/ATH/mens-1500-metres.html |title=Athletics at the 1968 Ciudad de Mexico Summer Games: Men's 1,500 metres |archive-date=2020-04-17 |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1968/ATH/mens-1500-metres.html |url-status=dead}}</ref> Years later, in 1981, he told Tex Maule in an interview for ''The Runner'' magazine, "We had thought that 3:39 would win and I ran under that. I considered it like winning a gold medal; I had done my very best and I still believe I would have won at sea level." Ryun was attacked by some writers who believed he had let his nation down. "Some even said I had let down the whole world. I didn't get any credit for running my best and no one seemed to realize that Keino had performed brilliantly." In the 1972 [[Munich, Germany]], Games, he was tripped and fell down during a 1,500-meter qualifying heat. Although the [[International Olympic Committee]] (IOC) acknowledged that a foul had occurred, U.S. appeals to have Ryun reinstated in the competition were denied by the IOC.<ref name="Wendel2013">{{cite book|author=Tim Wendel|title=Summer of '68: The Season That Changed Baseball&mdash;and America&mdash;Forever|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GPMJUJ6e5e0C&pg=PT162|date=12 March 2013|publisher=Da Capo Press|isbn=978-0-306-82248-3|pages=162–}}</ref><ref>{{cite Sports-Reference |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417171502/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1972/ATH/mens-1500-metres.html |title=Athletics at the 1972 Munchen Summer Games: Men's 1,500 metres |archive-date=2020-04-17 |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1972/ATH/mens-1500-metres.html |url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[Image:TV-icon-2.svg|thumb|110px|[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhkjIrzTiEA British Pathe' Highlights]]]
Ryun's 1,500-meter world record, run in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum during the United States vs. British Commonwealth meet in July 1967, was one of Ryun's greatest running performances. ''Track and Field News'' reported that "after 220 yards of dawdling, a record seemed out of the question." However, after 440 yards, which Ryun, in third, passed in 60.9 seconds, Kip Keino took the lead and ran the next lap in 56 seconds (the fastest second lap ever run at the time). Ryun, just behind, passed the 880-yard mark in 1:57.0. At 1,320 yards the two were side by side in 2:55.0. Ryun pulled away to finish in 3:33.1, a record that stood for seven years. With a last 440 yards of 53.9, a last 880 yards of 1:51.3, and the final 1320 yards in 2:47.4, [[Cordner Nelson]] of ''Track and Field News'' called it "the mightiest finishing drive ever seen," and said of Ryun's performance, "This was most certainly his greatest race."<ref>Nelson, Cordner (1967) ''The Jim Ryun Story''. Tafnews Press.</ref>

Ryun's final season as an amateur in 1972 included the third-best mile of his career (at the time, the third-fastest in history - a 3:52.8 at Toronto, Canada, on July 29), a 5,000-meter career best (13:38.2 at Bakersfield, California, on May 20), and a win in the 1,500 m at the U.S. Olympic Trials. His last race at the [[Athletics at the 1972 Summer Olympics &ndash; Men's 1500 metres|Olympics]] was a 1,500 m preliminary heat on September 8, 1972. He fell after a collision with [[Ghana]]'s [[Billy Fordjour]] as both trailed in the last 500 m. He got up despite being 80 m behind and completed the heat, but finished 30 m in back of the pack and did not qualify for the final.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1972/09/09/archives/jim-ryun-falls-and-fails-to-qualify-in-1500-ryun-falls-fails-in-a.html "Jim Ryun Falls and Fails to Qualify in 1,500," ''The Associated Press'' (AP), Friday, September 8, 1972.] Retrieved August 6, 2024.</ref> He left amateur athletics after 1972, and for the next two years, ran professionally on the [[International Track Association]] circuit.

===World records===
{| class="wikitable"
! Distance !! Time !! Date !! City
|-
| 880 yards || 1:44.9 || June 10, 1966 || Terre Haute, IN
|-
| 880 yards (indoor) || 1:48.3 || 1967 || 
|-
| 1,500 meters || 3:33.1 || July 8, 1967 || Los Angeles, CA
|-
| One Mile || 3:51.3 || July 17, 1966 || Berkeley, CA
|-
| One Mile || 3:51.1 || June 23, 1967 || Bakersfield, CA
|-
| One Mile (indoor) || 3:56.4 || February 19, 1971 || San Diego, CA
|-
|}

Notes:
*Because the 880=yard race is longer than the 800 m, the 1:44.9 was converted into an estimated en route time at 800 m of 1:44.3, which equaled the existing 800 m world record, but was not ratified as a record in that event. The 880-yard mark remained the world and American records until broken by [[Rick Wohlhuter]]'s 1.44.6 in 1973.
*The 3:33.1 1,500 m mark remained the world record for six years until broken by Tanzania's [[Filbert Bayi]]'s 3:32.2 in 1974.
*The 3:51.1 one-mile mark remained the world record for eight years until broken by [[Filbert Bayi|Bayi]]'s 3:51.0 in 1975.

===Athletic awards===
[[File:Jim Ryun 1966.jpg|thumb|Ryun as a sports journalist in 1966]]
*He won the ''[[Track and Field News]]'' Athlete of the Year award for both 1966 and 1967, the first athlete to win this prestigious award two years in a row.
*He was the 1966 ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' [[Sportsman of the Year]]; he also was on the cover of ''Sports Illustrated'' five times.
*1966 [[James E. Sullivan Award]], presented to the best amateur athlete in the U.S.
*1966 [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] [[Wide World of Sports (U.S. TV series)|''Wide World of Sports'']] Athlete of the Year award
*Jim Ryun's ''Track and Field News'' world rankings:
:800 m: 1966 – 1<!-- no need for conversion -->
:1500 m/mile: 1965 – 4, 1966 – 1, 1967 – 1, 1968 – 2, 1969 – 7, 1971 – 6, 1972 – 9

In 1980, Ryun was inducted into the [[National Track and Field Hall of Fame]],<ref name=hall>[http://www.usatf.org/HallOfFame/TF/showBio.asp?HOFIDs=142 Jim Ryun] [[National Track and Field Hall of Fame]]</ref> and in 2003 into the [[National Distance Running Hall of Fame]].

Ryan has competed in [[masters athletics|Masters Athletics]], as well.<ref>''National Masters News'', March 1988.[http://www.mastershistory.org/NMN/03_1988.pdf] Retrieved Nov 2, 2020</ref>

==Personal life==
[[File:Jim Ryun with wife 1971.jpg|thumb|Ryun with his wife in 1971]]
Ryun was born in [[Wichita, Kansas]]. He now lives in [[Lawrence, Kansas|Lawrence]], though he was listed in the House roll as "R-[[Topeka, Kansas|Topeka]]". He also owns a farm in [[Jefferson County, Kansas|Jefferson County]].

Ryun met his wife, Anne, when she asked him for an autograph after he broke the world record for the mile in Berkeley.<ref name="gambaccini20061027">{{cite news | url=http://www.runnersworld.com/elite-runners/chat-jim-ryun-and-marty-liquori | title=Chat: Jim Ryun and Marty Liquori | work=Runner's World | date=October 27, 2006 | access-date=March 17, 2014 | author=Gambaccini, Peter}}</ref> They married in 1969 and have two sons, Ned and Drew Ryun, and seven grandchildren. Along with his sons, [[Ned Ryun|Ned]] and Drew, he has co-authored three books: ''Heroes Among Us'', ''The Courage to Run'', and '' In Quest of Gold – The Jim Ryun Story.''

After graduating from the [[University of Kansas]] in 1970 with a degree in photojournalism, Ryun moved to [[Eugene, Oregon]], looking for a good training situation to continue his track career.{{cn|date=April 2025}} Six months later, he moved to [[Santa Barbara, California]], with his family and remained for nine years. They moved back to Lawrence in 1981.{{cn|date=April 2025}}

Though raised in the [[Churches of Christ|Church of Christ]], Ryun and his wife are members of Grace [[Evangelical Presbyterian Church (United States)|Evangelical Presbyterian Church]] in Lawrence.{{cn|date=April 2025}}

President Donald Trump awarded Jim Ryun the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] on July 24, 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Schultz|first=Marisa|date=2020-07-24|title=Trump awards Presidential Medal of Freedom to Jim Ryun, 'master of the mile' and former Kansas rep|url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-awards-the-presidential-medal-of-freedom-to-jim-ryun-a-former-kansas-congressman-and-3-time-olympian|access-date=2020-07-24|website=Fox News|language=en-US}}</ref>
[[File:President Trump Presents the Presidential Medal of Freedom (50148095543).jpg|thumb|right|Ryun is presented with the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] by [[President of the United States|President]] [[Donald Trump]] in 2020.]]

==Career prior to election to Congress==
Before being elected to the House of Representatives in 1996, Ryun had operated Jim Ryun Sports, a company that ran sports camps, and worked as a motivational speaker at meetings of corporations and Christian groups around the country.<ref name="C&E">Chris Wilson and Greg St. Clair, [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2519/is_n4_v18/ai_19601706 "The runner's last lap: how Jim Ryun refused to go negative, lost a big lead, then recovered in the final week to win a U.S. House seat"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070322194348/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2519/is_n4_v18/ai_19601706 |date=March 22, 2007 }}, Campaigns & Elections, April 1997, published by Congressional Quarterly</ref> Among his projects, Ryun, who has a 50% hearing loss, helped the ReSound Hearing Aid Company develop a program called Sounds of Success, aimed at helping children with hearing loss. Since 1973, Ryun and his family have hosted running camps every summer for promising high school-aged runners.<ref>{{cite web |title=Jim Ryun Running Camps |url=http://ryunrunning.com/}}</ref>

==House of Representatives==
[[File:George W. Bush and Jim Ryun.png|thumb|right|Ryun with [[President of the United States|President]] [[George W. Bush]] in 2004]]
According to Ryun, he was interested in politics, but did not have plans to run for Congress until [[Todd Tiahrt]] told him during the [[1996 Summer Olympics torch relay]] that the Topeka-based [[Kansas's 2nd congressional district|2nd District]] would have a vacancy and suggested that he run.{{r|fraioli20101129}}

===Elections===
Ryun was first elected in 1996 to fill a seat vacated by Republican [[Sam Brownback]]. He won the three-person Republican primary with 62% of the vote, defeating former [[Topeka Mayor]] [[Douglas S. Wright|Doug Wright]] and Cheryl Brown Henderson,<ref>{{cite news | last = Toppo | first = Greg | title = Cheryl Brown Henderson | newspaper = [[USA Today]] | date = May 16, 2004 | url = https://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2004-05-14-cheryl-brown-henderson_x.htm | access-date = August 30, 2006 }}</ref> the daughter of [[Oliver Brown (civil rights)|the plaintiff]] in the historic ''[[Brown v. Board of Education]] of Topeka'' desegregation case.<ref name="C&E"/> In the general campaign, Ryun was in a tight race with [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]] John Frieden, a prominent Topeka trial attorney, who outspent Ryun $750,000 to $400,000.<ref name="C&E"/> Ryun won that contest with 52% of the vote. He did not face another contest nearly that close for almost a decade; he was re-elected three times with at least 60% of the vote.

In 2004, Democrat [[Nancy Boyda]], a former [[Moderate Republicans (modern United States)|moderate Republican]], ran a campaign with spending near that of Ryun's, $1,105,838 (compared to Ryun's $1,136,464).<ref>[http://www.opensecrets.org/races/summary.asp?id=KS02&cycle=2004 Total Raised and Spent 2004] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061123225358/http://www.opensecrets.org/races/summary.asp?cycle=2004&id=KS02 |date=November 23, 2006 }}</ref> Ryun defeated her by a margin of 55 to 42%, mainly due to the presence of [[George W. Bush]] atop the ticket.{{citation needed|date=June 2015}}

In the [[United States House elections, 2006|2006 election]], Boyda was again the Democratic nominee, with Roger Tucker of the [[Reform Party of the United States of America]] also on the ballot.<ref>{{cite web |author=Gunzburger, Ron |url=http://www.politics1.com/ks.htm |title=Kansas |publisher=Politics1}}</ref> Initially expected to win, Ryun found his campaign faltering as internal polling for both his campaign and Boyda's revealed Boyda was ahead. In response, Ryun's campaign recruited both President Bush and [[Dick Cheney|Vice President Cheney]] to visit Topeka to campaign and raise campaign funds for Ryun. Ryun was defeated in an [[Upset (competition)|upset]] by Boyda, 51 to 47%.<ref>{{cite news |author=Ranney, Dave |date=November 8, 2006 |url=http://www2.ljworld.com/news/2006/nov/08/democrats_dominate/?print |title=Democrats dominate |newspaper=[[Lawrence Journal-World]]}}</ref>

In March 2007, Ryun confirmed that he would run for his old seat.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.wibw.com/news/headlines/6544167.html |title=Ryun Plans to Run for Congress |publisher=WIBW |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928014217/http://www.wibw.com/news/headlines/6544167.html |archive-date=September 28, 2007 }}</ref> In the Republican primary, he faced [[Kansas State Treasurer]] [[Lynn Jenkins]], a slightly more moderate Republican who served two terms as state treasurer, a partial term in the [[Kansas Senate]], and two years in the Kansas House. Ryun lost to Jenkins, who went on to win the seat in the general election, 51 to 46%.<ref name="336053-KS-02-2008">{{cite web | url=http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=336053 | title=KS District 02 – 2008 | publisher=Our Campaigns | access-date=October 19, 2015}}</ref>

===Political actions===
Ryun served on the Armed Services, Budget, and Financial Services committees. He tallied a strongly conservative voting record.

Ryun generally supported [[George W. Bush]]'s legislative agenda, voting to support it 89% of the time, average for a House member who was from the same party as the sitting president.<ref>{{cite news|last=Silva |first=Mark |url=http://weblogs.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/blog/2006/08/bush_slipping_in_the_senate_ho.html |work=[[Chicago Tribune]] |title=Bush slipping in the Senate, holding the House |date=August 24, 2006 |access-date=January 13, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150430112028/http://weblogs.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/blog/2006/08/bush_slipping_in_the_senate_ho.html |archive-date=April 30, 2015 }}</ref> In 2003, he voted against the $373 billion end-of-session spending bill because he considered it to be too costly and had come to Congress to support fiscal restraint.

Ryun broke with the President over two major initiatives, [[No Child Left Behind]] and [[Medicare (United States)|Medicare]] reform legislation that included a prescription-drug benefit. In voting against No Child Left Behind, Ryun said he believed states should have more control over their own education system. In opposing the Medicare bill, Ryun said the bill did not provide enough reform to keep future costs from soaring.

In 2006, the ''[[National Journal]]'' rated Ryun as the nation's most [[Conservatism|conservative]] member of Congress.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://nationaljournal.com/voteratings/house/lib.htm |title=National Journal's 2006 Vote Ratings House Liberal Scores |magazine=National Journal |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080708233146/http://www.nationaljournal.com/voteratings/house/lib.htm |archive-date=July 8, 2008}}{{failed verification|date=September 2017|reason=archive is 2007 ratings; need archive of 2006 ratings}}</ref> He was a member of the [[Republican Study Committee]], a caucus of 103 fiscally and socially conservative House Republicans.

===Environmental record===
In 2005, Ryun scored 0 percent on the [[Republicans for Environmental Protection]] ("REP") scorecard. Twelve issues were considered by the REP to be critical environmental issues.<ref name="rep.org">[http://www.rep.org/2005_scorecard.pdf Republicans for Environmental Protection 2005 Scorecard]} {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080527191748/http://www.rep.org/2005_scorecard.pdf |date=May 27, 2008 }}</ref> Jim Ryun voted with what the REP would consider pro-environment on none of the issues voted upon. These issues consisted of the drilling of oil and natural gas, Congressman [[Richard Pombo]]'s bill designed to weaken the [[Endangered Species Act of 1973]], an amendment to the [[Energy Policy Act of 2005]], by Congresswoman [[Lois Capps]] to remove section 1502, a provision that would provide liability protection for manufacturers of the gasoline additive [[MTBE]], and the movement to increase fuel economy standards.<ref name="rep.org"/>

Ryun also scored a 0 on the [[League of Conservation Voters]]'s <!-- ("LCV") --> scorecard. Many of REP's critical issues were present on the scorecard.<ref>{{cite web |title=Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee |url=http://www.lcv.org/president-and-congress/senate/senate-energy-natural-resources-committee.html |publisher=League of Conservation Voters |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071010054733/http://www.lcv.org/president-and-congress/senate/senate-energy-natural-resources-committee.html |archive-date=October 10, 2007}}{{failed verification|date=September 2017|reason=Probably need a different archived version}}</ref>

In 2006, Ryun improved his REP scorecard when he voted pro-environment on two of seven critical issues. This earned him a 17% rating.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rep.org/2006_scorecard.pdf |publisher=Republicans for Environmental Protection |title=2006 Scorecard |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070615183627/http://www.rep.org/2006_scorecard.pdf |archive-date=June 15, 2007}}</ref> He voted to help reduce the impact the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers|Army Corps of Engineers]] had on the environment. The issues in which he voted against the REP were ones involving oil drilling in the [[Arctic National Wildlife Refuge]], renewable resource programs, and the movement to end debate and accept the [[Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act]].{{cn|date=April 2025}}

==Controversies==

===Townhouse purchase in 2000===
On December 15, 2000, Ryun bought a townhouse in the District of Columbia from [[U.S. Family Network]] for $410,000.<ref>[http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/docs/townhouse-purchase/?resultpage=2& Deed for sale of U.S. Family Network's townhouse.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060831011846/http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/docs/townhouse-purchase/?resultpage=2& |date=August 31, 2006 }}</ref><ref>Paul Kiel (March 28, 2006), [http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/000207.php "Just How Sweet Was Ryun's Townhouse Deal?"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060420234240/http://www.tpmmuckraker.com/archives/000207.php |date=April 20, 2006 }}, TPMMuckracker.com,</ref><ref>Smith, R. Jeffrey (March 25, 2006). [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/25/AR2006032501166_pf.html "Former DeLay Aide Enriched By Nonprofit"], ''The Washington Post''</ref> The townhouse had been purchased about two years earlier, for $429,000,<ref>[http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/docs/townhouse-purchase/?resultpage=1& Deed for purchase of U.S. Family Network's townhouse, January 12, 1999], TPMMuckracker.com {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060920150711/http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/docs/townhouse-purchase/?resultpage=1& |date=September 20, 2006 }}</ref> to house Ed Buckham's consulting firm [[Alexander Strategy Group]] and Tom DeLay's ARMPAC.

After questions were raised as to the purchase of Ryun's townhouse, his office released official documents showing that Ryun paid $80,000 more than the tax assessed value of the house, that he put another $50,000 into house repairs, and that another home on the same block was sold for $409,000 on the same day he bought his home. According to property records, the other home does not have a garage or a back patio and is on a plot about half the size of Ryun's. It was assessed in 2006 as worth $528,000, compared to $764,000 for Ryun's home. In contrast, homes across the street from Ryun's were sold for over $900,000.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna12073120 |title=Congressman denies improper real estate deal |agency=Associated Press |date=March 29, 2006 |publisher=NBC News}}</ref>

===Connection to Mark Foley===
After Rep. [[Mark Foley]] resigned in October 2006, following revelations he had sent sexually explicit emails to teenaged congressional pages, Ryun contended that he barely knew Foley, had never spent time with him, and was unaware that they lived directly across the street from each other in [[Washington, DC]]. "I know that [we were neighbors] only because somebody has mentioned that, too, already," he told reporters at the time. Later, though, Ryun and Foley were found to have hosted a joint fundraiser on their street on May 18, 2006, called the "D Street Block Party". An invitation to the fundraiser included side-by-side pictures of Ryun and Foley. Ryun's campaign manager later said that Ryun had always known he was Foley's neighbor.<ref>{{cite news |author=Moon, Chris |url=http://cjonline.com/stories/102306/loc_ryunboyda1.shtml |title=Ryun's story on Foley changes: Congressman has always known who lived across street |newspaper=The Topeka Capital-Journal |date=October 23, 2006 |access-date=November 16, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061103012733/http://cjonline.com/stories/102306/loc_ryunboyda1.shtml |archive-date=November 3, 2006 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Jim Ryun}}
{{CongLinks | congbio=r000566}}
*{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060721145223/http://www.distancerunning.com/inductees/2003/ryun.html |title=National Track & Field Hall of Fame entry}}
*{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718132635/http://kshof.xportcms9.com/siteresources/apps/records/halloffamer.asp?id=135 |title=Kansas Sports Hall of Fame entry}}
*{{Olympics.com profile}}
*{{Olympedia}}
*{{YouTube|P6Lo7A9y9pU|1968 Olympic 1500 final}}
*{{YouTube|xlwS0Fyq8vk|1967 World Record}}
*{{YouTube|9ots91-yh_o|high school record}}
*{{C-SPAN|45262}}

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