El Paso Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2021: John Birkelbach

EL PASO, Texas - John Birkelbach's introduction to the shot put happened completely by accident.

But it would be the start of a great career that would eventually lead to a hall of fame induction.

Birkelbach was a freshman at Austin High School when his track and field coach discovered his talent at the shot put.

While waiting for his older brother to get out of practice, Birkelbach wandered into the shot-put ring and threw the shot put from the front of the ring.

He threw it further than all of the other upper classmen.

The coach happened to be watching and convinced Birkelbach to join the team.

Two days later Birkelbach finished runner-up in the shot put in the B-Team City Championships.

By the end of his senior year, Birkelbach was the first El Paso athlete to exceed 60 feet in the shot put, and he had the second-best throw among shot putters in the State of Texas.

He still holds the shot put record at Austin High School.

After graduating high school, Birkelbach joined the track and field team at UTEP.

He held the school record in the shot put his first and second years; finished 6th in the NCAA Indoor Championships in 1968 and 1969, and 8th in the NCAA Outdoor Championships in 1968.

Birkelbach had the second best shot-put throw among all college freshman back in 1968.

Despite all of his accomplishments, Birkelbach still wishes he could have done more.

"You still have fantasies," Birkelbach said. "What if I had done this or that, you have to shake it off. It was great at the time and I'm just glad I had the opportunity. I'm pretty excited. It was something I never really expected (getting into the hall of fame), but it will be an honor to be associated with a lot of the great names and athletes that are on that wall at UTEP for sure."

Birkelbach will be inducted into the El Paso Athletic Hall of Fame during an induction ceremony August 25.

ABC-7 will be livestreaming the event at kvia.com