Differing Paths Led East Kentwood Stars to Olympics, but All Included Finals Titles
By
Steve Vedder
Special for MHSAA.com
August 19, 2026
When one of his eighth-grade teachers trotted out an assignment to write down an ultimate goal, Brian Hyde didn't even flinch.
Even then, Hyde knew that one day he badly wanted to be an Olympian.
Eight years later, that's exactly what happened for the former East Kentwood distance runner. One of three Falcons to become Olympians, Hyde wound up starring at East Kentwood and William & Mary University before performing in the 1,500-meter run during 1996 Summer Games in Atlanta.
"I was in middle school when I first wrote that as a goal," said Hyde, now a pilot for the Utah-based Sky West Airlines. "Like a lot of people, I grew up watching the Olympics, and it was always a dream for me to run there. It was a long-term goal and there are a lot of things you have to go through to make that happen.
"But I think it's good to have goals for things you really want to do. You don't really have to share them, but it's good to have those goals."
Hyde, a 1991 East Kentwood grad, joins hockey player Mike Knuble, who graduated in 1990, and shot putter Tia Brooks-Wannamacher, a 2008 graduate, as former Falcons who went on to the Olympics. What's unique about their stories isn't that they all became Olympians, but the radically different routes all three took to the Games.
All had major success in high school as Hyde won the 1991 Lower Peninsula Division 1 1,600-meter run (4:12.74), Brooks captured the 2008 shot put with a toss of 48-0.5 and Knuble scored 115 goals in 57 career games while helping the Falcons to the 1990 Class A title.
All landed in the Olympics in different ways. For instance, Hyde said his No. 1 goal growing up was always to run in the Olympics. He trained fiercely with that in mind from an early age. While Brooks had designs of becoming a sprinter like her idol Marion Jones, East Kentwood coaches convinced the 6-foot Brooks that her track & field future was more likely as a thrower. A 34-year-old Knuble was on the backside of a 16-year NHL career when he finally earned the opportunity to skate in the 2006 Torino Winter Games in Italy.
Knuble said he had a "stick-to-it-ness" that led to his Olympic participation, Hyde said he grinded out long, solitary hours running on a track, and Brooks credits her Olympic story to a combination of natural athleticism and astute coaches who correctly saw her future more clearly than she did.
All took major steps toward the Olympics post-East Kentwood. Hyde went on to become the school record holder in the 1,500 and 1,000-meter runs at William & Mary, Brooks was a two-time NCAA champ in the shot at Oklahoma and Knuble tallied 96 goals over 114 games at Michigan before becoming the 76th player taken in the 1991 NHL draft.
Knuble said dates, age and even past resumes cannot define an athlete.
"Most Olympic athletes would be in their 20s," said Knuble, who would play 34 games with USA Hockey and scored a goal and had an assist in the Torino Games. "But there was a stick-to-it-ness for me. Guys can get written off – that's how I looked at it. You can get passed over when you're 30, and I didn't want to get written off. I wanted that door to stay open for me. I had kind of a career resurgence in my thirties."
Brooks, who retired from competitive track & field when she was 27, had exactly zero thoughts of becoming an Olympian until the January before the 2012 Summer Games in London. But after winning an NCAA shot put title in 2011 along with placing sixth at the Moscow World Cup and 13th in the world at Beijing's World Games, Brooks began considering London qualification.
"The coaches saw something in me and pushed me," said Brooks-Wannemacher, now a projects manager for the Grand Rapids-based Marvelous Style Outreach program. "They thought I had the potential of being an Olympian. I don't want to say it was happenstance, but I really didn't know much about the Olympics. I was competitive and grew up playing all sports and had a sibling rivalry with my brother where we would make up games to play."
Hyde said he became an Olympian through sheer hard work, dedication and sacrifice. He would miss Friday night Falcons football games, for example, because he was in bed making sure he had enough energy for a Saturday meet. Combine that sacrifice with a burning desire to make the Games and the talent he had as a runner, and Hyde said he was able to meet his personal goals.
"I loved to compete and trying to win," he said. "Sometimes there is a grind to it, but in running you're the only one out there. I would tell myself I'm doing this because I have a meet on Saturday and I want to win. You work, have these long-term goals because you tell yourself, 'I can do this.'
"I have no regrets for my career. You control the things you can control. You tell yourself no one is going to outrace you. It's not like you're not having fun, but I'd never miss a workout. Six days a week with Sunday being my rest day."
Knuble, Hyde and Brooks-Wannemacher agree that it's that work, dedication and looking big picture are keys. Lose sight of one, and it can have a domino effect.
"There are times when you're out there working and no one is watching, no one is paying attention," Knuble said. "But you have to put that work in. It's all about figuring out what you did wrong and then getting back at it."
Brooks-Wannemacher called the desire to become an elite athlete "watering a seed." In her case, the seed was the knowledge that the only way a young girl from a one-parent family was going to college was through an athletic scholarship. Places like Michigan and Michigan State had no interest, and the only offers came from Oklahoma and Central Michigan. While the dream was to emulate Marion Jones, Brooks bowed to the suggestions of East Kentwood coaches who said shot put was a ticket to a free education.
"I had a long talk with my mother and coaches, and they said this is the only way to college," she said. "So I started throwing the shot, broke the freshman record at Kentwood, became a Regional and state champ and I kept going. But people had to believe in me.
"It got so that I enjoyed the process. I had a natural talent, but I would push my body to the limit. But for me, the motivation was going to school for free."
Success aside, all overcame major hurdles to achieve it. Hyde suffered a swelling of the spine and terrible pain caused by a tightening of back muscles and wasn't able to finish a race five months before the summer Olympics. Brooks at one point suffered from a narrowing of the spine and bulging discs in her back amid suggestions from doctors she give up throwing a shot. Knuble was physically healthy, but he had to overcome the life-altering experience of dealing with the death of his father when he was 15.
But all say the dedication to athletics, the people they met along the way, great teammates and the will to succeed helped them to greater things.
"There are moments when it's just you and nobody else," Knuble said. "There's no person out there with you, no teammates telling you what to do, how to act, what to eat. For me, being on a team was structure.
"Timing for all of us is huge. You want to be at your peak when you're competing. You want to beat your best for that one race, that one throw, that one game. For me, I had a body of work to work from. I think the others did, too."
PHOTOS Clockwise from top left: East Kentwood’s Tia Brooks-Wannamacher prepares to launch the shot. Brian Hyde (front) takes a relay handoff for William & Mary. Mike Knuble holds up one of the many trophies the Falcons earned during his time on the ice. (Middle) Brooks-Wannamacher as a high school senior. (Knuble and Hyde photos courtesy of those individuals. Brooks-Wannamacher photo from MHSAA archives.)
Lawrence's Schuman Sets Example for Well-Rounded Success
By
Pam Shebest
Special for MHSAA.com
December 14, 2022
LAWRENCE — If redshirting was a thing in high school, at least two coaches at Lawrence would stick that label on senior John Schuman.
“We don’t want to lose this kid ever,” said Derek Gribler, the Tigers’ first-year varsity football and baseball coach.
“If we could put a red shirt on this kid every year, we would.”
Athletic director John Guillean, who also coaches varsity basketball, agreed.
“He is what we strive to have all our student-athletes achieve: high GPAs, multi-sport athletes, good, overall well-rounded human beings,” Guillean said.
Schuman has participated in five of the seven boys sports Lawrence sponsors.
As a freshman and sophomore, Schuman played football, wrestled, ran track and played baseball.
He had wrestled since he was 4, and went from the 119-pound weight class as a freshman to 145 the following year. That sophomore season he qualified for his Individual Regional. But as a junior, he traded wrestling for basketball.
“My older brother wrestled at Lawrence, so I would come to practices,” he said. “I quit for a couple years (in middle school) because I liked basketball, too. It was hard to do both. Obviously, in high school, I still struggled with choosing,” he added, laughing.
Guillean is thrilled Schuman made the switch.
“He’s 6-(foot-)4, he’s super athletic, defensively he’s a hawk, offensively he can put the ball in the bucket. But really, aside from his skills, just that positive attitude and that positive outlook, not just in a game, but in life in general, is invaluable,” the coach said.
Last season, Schuman earned honorable mention all-league honors in the Berrien-Cass-St. Joseph Conference, averaging 9.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game.
Lawrence left the BCS for the Southwest 10 Conference this year, joining Bangor, Bloomingdale, Hartford, Decatur, Comstock, Marcellus, Mendon, Centreville, White Pigeon and Cassopolis. Schuman and senior Tim Coombs will co-captain the Tigers, with Guillean rotating in a third captain.
At a school of fewer than 200 students, Schuman will help lead a varsity team with just nine – joined by seniors Andy Bowen and Gabe Gonzalez, juniors Christian Smith, Noel Saldana, Ben McCaw and Zander Payment, and sophomore Jose Hernandez, who will see time with the junior varsity as well using the fifth-quarter rule.
“I attribute a lot of (last year’s successful transition) to my coach, helping me get ready because it wasn’t so pretty,” the senior said. “But we got into it, got going, and my teammates helped me out a lot.”
Great anticipation
Gribler is one coach already looking ahead to spring sports after seeing what Schuman did during football season.
In spite of missing 2½ games with an injury, the wide receiver caught 50 receptions for 870 yards and 11 touchdowns.
“I just like the ability to run free, get to hit people, let out some anger,” Schuman laughed.
Gribler said the senior is “an insane athlete.
“On top of his athletic ability, how smart he is in the classroom (3.88 GPA), he helped mold the culture we wanted this year for football. He got our underclassmen the way we wanted them. He was a big asset in many ways.”
Schuman earned all-conference honors for his on-field performance in football as well.
“I would say that my main sport is football,” the senior said. “That’s the one I like the most, spend the most time on.”
In the spring, Schuman competed in both track and baseball, earning all-conference honors in both.
“Doing both is tough,” he said. “I have to say my coaches make it a lot easier for me. They help me a lot and give me the ability to do both, so I really appreciate that.
“Throughout the week you’re traveling every day, it seems like. Baseball twice a week and track, but it’s worth it.”
Schuman’s commitment is so strong that he made a special effort not to let his teammates down last spring.
“He qualified for state in the long jump and did his jumps up in Grand Rapids, then he drove all the way to Kalamazoo to play in the District baseball game,” Guillean said. “That speaks volumes about who this kid is. He did his jumps at 9 a.m. (but did not advance) and made it back to Kalamazoo for a 12:15 game.”
Big shoes to fill
As the youngest of four children of Mark and Gretchen Schuman, the senior was following a family tradition in sports.
Oldest brother Matthew played football, basketball and baseball as well as competed in pole vault and wrestling.
Middle bother Christopher competed in football, wrestling and baseball.
Sister Stephanie played basketball, volleyball and softball.
“I like to say they blazed a pretty good trail for me at this high school,” Schuman said.
As for feeling pressure to live up to his siblings, “I used to when I was younger, but now I feel like I’ve made my own way and done enough things to be proud of that I’m happy with it.”
His own way led him to achieve something none of the others did.
He was named the Tigers’ Male Athlete of the Year, just the third junior to earn the boys honor over the last 25 years.
“I was very honored to win that as a junior,” Schuman said. “There were good athletes in the grade above me. I guess hard work pays off.”
Guillean said while Schuman is “darn good at every sport here,” an athlete does not have to be a “top dog” in every sport.
“Learn how to take a back seat,” he said. “Learn how to be a role player. That will make you a better teammate and a well-rounded human being.
“Johnny has that work ethic, in the classroom, on the field, on the court, on the track. It doesn’t go unnoticed and, obviously, he’s reaping the benefits now.”
Pam Shebest served as a sportswriter at the Kalamazoo Gazette from 1985-2009 after 11 years part-time with the Gazette while teaching French and English at White Pigeon High School. She can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Calhoun, Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Lawrence’s John Schuman has participated in five varsity sports during his first 3½ years of high school. (Middle) Lawrence athletic director John Guillean. (Below) Lawrence football and baseball coach Derek Gribler. (Action photos courtesy of John Schuman; head shots by Pam Shebest.)