Director of Sports Medicine Lynn Bott has accomplished a lot in his career as an athletic trainer.
However, his most recent accomplishment may have his previous honors beat.
On Jan. 22, Bott was inducted into the Mid-America Athletic Trainers’ Association Hall of Fame. The association, which serves seven states in the district, inducts just one trainer annually.
<br/><br/>Listen to Bott talk about his honor.<strong>Listen to Bott talk about his honor.</strong>
Listen to Bott talk about his honor.
Bott said he feels fortunate to have received such a prestigious honor.
“It’s the highest honor I can get in the district,” he said. “So it’s extremely humbling at times.”Bott’s activity at the state, district and national levels helped him to qualify for the spot in the hall of fame.
Bott said he began his career at the state level in Kansas by helping develop a system for athletic training regulation. At the same time, Bott was part of the Board of Certification for six years.
Moving up in the ranks, Bott was later named President of the Kansas Athletic Trainers Association, President and District Director for MAATA and finally, a board member for the National Athletic Trainers Association.
Bott was last honored on the national stage in 2005 with the NATA Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer award.
Bott said the highest honor for an athletic trainer, the NATA Hall of Fame, is extremely difficult to reach.
“The reason why they have gone to this honor is because there’s only a select few who get into the hall of fame at the national level,” he explained. “So at this point, this award is the highest honor I have received.”
Assistant Athletic Trainer Lynsey Payne has worked with Bott for three years at Baker and was taught by him at the University of Kansas.
Bott is one of the reasons Payne is in athletic training and she is thrilled about Bott’s honor.
“I’m really excited for him,” she said. “It’s really exciting to be that close and work that closely to someone who has such high accolades and is recognized on a national level.”
Bott has served Baker University since 2005, after he left a 28-year legacy at the University of Kansas.
Senior Haydon Hubbel has worked with Bott for three years. She said Bott has made her athletic training experience a great one.
“I thought his honor was pretty awesome,” Hubbel said. “He definitely deserves it. He’s been doing athletic training for years and it was pretty exciting that I got to work with him.”
As Bott continues his dominance in the sports medicine field, his history has touched not only students and faculty, but others outside the school.
“He’s been such a great and amazing person to work with,” Payne said. “I’ve known that he’s deserved this for a long time, and those who have worked with him know that too.”
Bott plans to attend the hall of fame induction ceremony on March 27 in Omaha, Neb.