Ralph Piper’s career in coaching and physical education sent him all around the world, but his 41-year term as head coach of the University of Minnesota gymnastics program earned him a home in the Hall of Fame.
Serving as both assistant and head coach most years between 1929 and 1970, Piper’s teams collected six Big Ten titles, and his athletes won 34 conference and six NCAA individual championships during his career. During the years Piper wasn’t coaching at Minnesota, he spent time teaching physical education in Iran, Burma, and Iraq.
