Keith Tinner

Keith Tinner, born on Sept. 5, 1955 in Seattle, is one of the finest sprinters to have laced on a pair of track spikes in Pierce County.

Competing for Lincoln High School, Tinner was a three-time state champion in the 440-yard dash and a two-time state champ in the 220-yard dash. He won his first state 440 title as a sophomore in 1972, clocking 48.7. That same year, he anchored Lincoln’s state champion mile relay team that clocked 3:19.9. As a junior, Tinner won the state 440 crown in a time of 48.5 and made it a double with a winning time of 22.0 in the 220. As a senior in 1974, Tinner made it three in a row in the 440, clocking 47.3 in the title race. He also notched his fastest time in winning the 220, a blazing 21.6. That same summer, he became the first high school athlete in the state to run a sub 47-second 440, his 46.7 counting as a high school mark because he had not yet entered the University of Washington. In addition, Tinner’s fastest mile relay split was an incredible 45.6. Because of this success, he earned a spot on the U.S. Junior National Team.

Not only was Tinner a great quarter-miler, he put down some impressive best times in the shorter sprints: 9.8 in the 100-yard dash, and the aforementioned 21.6 in the 220-yard dash.

After graduating from Lincoln in 1974, Tinner lettered three times for the University of Washington. As a freshman, he ran the lead leg on the Huskies’ 1975 national champion mile relay squad. The team clocked 3:04.0, which stood as the school record for 30 years, finally being broken in 2005. The relay’s finish helped Washington to finish 17th at the national meet. Tinner also ran on the 400-meter relay team that clocked 39.7, a time that still ranks sixth in UW track & Field history.