Roger Kamla ’74 led the NAIA in the discus throw throughout the 1974 season, topped by his McPherson school record throw of 188’8”, before finishing third at the NAIA National Outdoor Championships.

After qualifying for the 1973 NAIA national track & field championships in the discus, he opened his 1974 season by placing sixth at the NAIA National Indoor Championships in the shot put.

A four-year letter winner, and still the McPherson College record holder in both the shot put at 53’7” and discus, Kamla won three straight KCAC discus and shot put titles, sweeping those events his sophomore, junior, and senior seasons.

Following his summa cum laude graduation from McPherson with a BS in chemistry in the spring of 1974, Kamla competed for the Houston-based Gulf Coast Track Club and placed fifth nationally in the discus at the USATFF national championships.

Between 1986 and 1995, Roger was named a USATF Masters Track & Field All-American as he competed in 14 national age-group championships. In 1995, Kamla placed second in the discus and fifth in the shot at the World Veterans Games.

Kamla has remained active in athletics, coaching youth soccer, basketball, and track & field, and serving as a track & field official for McNeese State and Louisiana State University as well as Barbe High School.

He is a past officer of the Texas-Louisiana chapter of Society of Plastics Engineers, and has continued his education in chemical engineering and business with studies at McNeese State University and the University of Wisconsin.

Kamla currently resides in Lake Charles, La., where he works for Westlake Chemical as a technical service and development manager. Active in the United Methodist Volunteers in Mission, he assisted in Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.