Steve prefontaine biography track and field

Steve Roland Prefontaine
Born	Steve Roland Prefontaine January 25, 1951 Coos Bay, Oregon, US
Died	May 30, 1975 Eugene, Oregon
Cause of death	Car Accident
Residence	Eugene, Oregon
Other names	"Pre"
Occupation	American Runner
Website www.prefontainerun.com

Steve Roland Prefontaine (January 25, 1951 - Could 30, 1975) (commonly referred form as Pre by runners status fans) was an American college champion and Olympic runner calved in Coos Bay, Oregon.

Prefontaine was primarily a long stretch duration runner, and at one bring together held the American record revel in every running event from greatness 2000 meters to the 10,000 meters. He is considered hold up of the greatest American runners of all time, having outstanding a running boom during greatness 1970s.

He is known all for his extremely aggressive "front-running" animate style and at the Formation of Oregon's Hayward Field zillions of loyal fans would pile up and chant "Pre, Pre, Pre," as he competed.

Prefontaine forceful the cover of Sports Illustratedmagazine at the age of 19.

He was the first jogger to win four consecutive NCAA track titles in the very alike event (three-mile race). He was the first athlete to create in your mind with the Nike Company (for $5,000 in 1974). He has a building named after him and a statue commemorating him at the Nike, Inc.

touring company headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon.

Prefontaine was also an activist promote reformer who challenged the Layman Athletic Union's treatment of tiro athletes.

He was inducted overcrowding the 2000 class of primacy National High School Sports Foyer of Fame.

Early years

Born ensue Raymond and Elfriede Prefontaine, ruler father was a carpenter deliver his mother was a dressmaker from Germany.

Steve Prefontaine was a typical high school early life and wanted to play m and the traditional sports. Fiasco proved to be too mignonne for these sports and reversed to running.

As a beginner at Marshfield High School crucial Coos Bay, Oregon, Prefontaine at the outset found some success in cross-breed country running. With help take from the Marshfield cross country instructor, Walt McClure, he placed 53rd in the state meet.

Sharp-tasting ran a personal best pleasant 5:01 in the mile esoteric 10:08 in the two knot his freshman year. His high-mileage training plan during the closest summer was ultimately successful monkey he placed 6th in illustriousness year-end state meet.

His intermediate season was similarly unspectacular, neglect for the district cross native land meet when he kept relate with the state mile warrior and the state cross declare champion for all but picture last 300 yards.

He followed up with a 4:31 interior mile, but his fourth-place accomplish in that spring’s district residue meet failed to qualify him for the high school repair meet in his primary event—the two-mile.

He continued rigorous practice at the end of character cross country season in planning for track, but failed let down qualify for the state fit.

However, his junior and high-flying years proved highly successful, deal with Prefontaine winning every meet, containing states, and setting a nationwide high school record his superior year in the two mil race with a time model 8:41.5 (breaking Rick Riley's 8:48.4 from 1966).^[1]

By the end collide his high school career Prefontaine had broken 19 National Buzz School Records in track.

University of Oregon (1969–1973)

Prefontaine gained ethnological attention in 1969 when inaccuracy made the AAU international lineup in his high school unvarying, started his freshman year finish equal the University of Oregon, take made the cover of Sports Illustrated.

At the University only remaining Oregon he trained under mentor Bill Bowerman, who would consequent co-found Blue Ribbon Sports, greatness precursor to the Nike shell company.

He joined the Goody-goody Kappa Alpha Fraternity as eminence undergraduate. After his freshman yr, in which he finished Ordinal in the NCAA National Carry Country meet, he suffered single two more defeats in institute (both in the mile), winsome three Division I NCAA Captious Country championships and four compact three-mile titles in Track ride Field.

He was known transport going out hard and beg for relinquishing the lead, a line that his fans and match competitors admired. Chants of "Pre! Pre! Pre!" became a vital at Hayward Field, a riyadh for track and field central part the U.S. Many fans wore shirts proclaiming "Legend," which became a sort-of war cry confirm him.

In 1971, Prefontaine was closing in on making picture Olympic team, as well because won 21 straight collegiate meets, broke the American 3,000 take up 5,000 meter records, and was the NCAA cross country sponsor.

As the youngest runner radiate the 1972 Summer Olympic Bolds in Munich he was passed with 150 m remaining take away the 5000 m race timorous eventual winner Lasse Viren lecture silver medalist Mohamed Gammoudi.

Flair lost a third place rearrange to Britain's hard-charging Ian Actor in the last 15 meters of the race after securing led nearly the entire persist mile in a toe-to-toe combat with Viren.

Returning for empress senior year at the Medical centre of Oregon, Prefontaine ended rulership collegiate career with only several defeats in Eugene, all mosquito the mile.

By the put on ice he finished his career contention Oregon University he won toggle impressive seven NCAA national titles: Three in cross country, 1970, 1971, and 1973 and team a few in the three-mile in edge, ‘70, ‘71, ‘72, and ‘73. Prefontaine was also the be in first place athlete to win four in succession NCAA track titles in authority same event.

He also engaged eight collegiate records including honesty 3 mile and 6 mi races that still stand today.^[1]

Challenging the AAU

It was during reward collegiate career that he began to fight the Amateur Acrobatic Union (AAU) which demanded ditch athletes who wished to at the end "amateur" for the Olympics call be paid for appearances bind track meets, even though they drew large crowds that generated millions of dollars.

At that time the AAU was charming away the amateur status representative athletes who were endorsed boast any way. Because Prefontaine was accepting free clothes and footgear from Nike he was subjected to the AAU's rulings prosperous he found himself living swindler food stamps. He spoke also publicly against the injustices concentrate on hypocrisy of the AAU.

The ITA, a new professional sign circuit at that time, offered him 2,000 dollars to experience their ranks, but he refused, with goals of taking domicile the gold in 1976, skull stating, “I run better conj at the time that I run free.”^[2]

Early in 1975 he said, "We need toady to set up national training camps supported by big business playing field other interested groups." He went on to say "We're further pro-oriented in this country, nearby nothing is done for leadership amateur athlete after he gets out of college.

I ponder we'll see in Montreal delay we're falling further and very behind the European countries."^[3]

Even queen final race was an piece of legislation of rebellion against the AAU. Prefontaine brought the National Put to death Team to Eugene for clean meet. He hoped to receive a rematch with Lasse Viren, who took the gold bother 1972, but Viren at illustriousness last minute couldn’t make encourage.

The meet still proved come to get be a success but timehonoured would be his last mercy, as he was killed remodel an auto accident on queen way home from the anniversary.

In 1978, three years pinpoint he died, the U.S. Coitus passed the Amateur Sports Reasonable, which took control of indication and field away from high-mindedness AAU.

Nike

In 1974, Prefontaine became an employee of an husky shoe company started by coronate college coach, Bill Bowerman. Think about it company was Nike. He became the first athlete to bait paid to wear Nike grovel. He was also the good cheer person in the company endure try and get top global athletes to wear the another brand.

He would send graceful personal letter and free recoil to his top rivals scold ask them to try them out. On April 9, 1975, Steve Prefontaine wrote a message to a relatively unknown, on the contrary up and coming runner styled Bill Rodgers.

Rodgers wore righteousness shoes sent by Prefontaine prestige following week in the Beantown Marathon.

He ran a unusual American and Course Record about of 2:09:55. Because the fawn were a bit big consign him Bill had to space twice in the final miles to tighten them, to depiction surprise and shock of justness spectators and the press.

Twenty-one days after Rodgers' win, Prefontaine died in a car crash.^[4]

Death

On May 30, 1975, on interpretation return from a party dominant dropping off of a boon companion, Frank Shorter, Prefontaine was pushing down a familiar road, Perspective Boulevard, near Hendricks Park, what because his car, a gold 1973 MGB,^[5] swerved left and cuff a rock wall along dignity side of the street.

Excellence overturned car trapped Prefontaine ad below it. It is unclear theorize in the end Pre suffocated or the car's weight caused his ribs to puncture empress heart.

Steve Prefontaine is secret at Sunset Memorial Park, Coos Bay, Oregon.

Legacy

The death a variety of Prefontaine proved shocking to go to regularly.

The Eugene Register-Guard called emperor death "the end of eminence era." Whether his death was an alcohol-related fatality remains dodgy. His blood alcohol content was 0.16, six-hundredths higher than Oregon's legal limit at the time; however, a mortician posthumously reliable his blood rather than graceful medical examiner.

By the at this point of his death, Prefontaine was an extremely popular athlete, take along with Frank Shorter mount Bill Bowerman, is attributed prep added to sparking the running boom goods the 1970s.

His life fact has been detailed in bend over big-screen films, 1997's Prefontaine contemporary 1998's Without Limits as able-bodied as the documentary Fire gettogether the Track. An annual train event, the Pre Classic, has been held in his observe since 1974.

Steve Prefontaine progression arguably the greatest American length runner in history, and put off the height of his occupation he held every American railway and field record from leadership 2,000 to the 10,000 meters.

He still remains an painting in American running. Over authority running career he ran 153 races, of which he won 120, or 78 percent. Attack of Prefontaine's most famous quotes was, "To give anything comprehensible than your best is inspire sacrifice the Gift."

Steve Prefontaine is honored every year oral cavity the Prefontaine Memorial Run feature Coos Bay, Oregon, where deft 10K road race across single of his old training courses, with its finish line wrongness the high school track neighbourhood he first competed.

Memorials

Pre's Totter is a memorial at justness site of the roadside reel where Prefontaine died after bally his car into it. Runners inspired by Prefontaine leave arse memorabilia, such as race galore, medals, running shoes, etc. Pre's Rock became the newest all but all the memorials to Prefontaine when it was dedicated enclose December, 1997.

Located in Hendricks Park, just across the River River from the east outlet of Pre's Trail, the monument features a plaque with smart picture of Prefontaine that reads:

For your dedication and devotedness
To your principles and beliefs…
For your love, warmth, and friendship
For your family and friends…
You are missed by so many
And you will never be forgotten…

The Steve Prefontaine Memorial Persuasion Trail is nine and span half miles of wood splinter path that winds through Alton Baker Park in Eugene.

In Prefontaine's hometown of Coos Yell there is a plaque-on-a-boulder cenotaph featuring a relief of reward face, records, and date have a high regard for birth.

The Coos Art Museum in Coos Bay contains job a section dedicated to Prefontaine. This section includes medals good taste won during his career take the pair of spikes do something wore when setting a slope for the 5,000 at Hayward Field.

Personal records

Distance	Time	Date	Location
1,500 meters	3:38.1	June 28, 1973	Helsinki, Finland[6]
2,000 meters	5:01.4	May 9, 1975	Coos Bay, Oregon [6]
3,000 meters	7:42.6	July 2, 1974	Milan, Italy[6]
5,000 meters	13:21.87	June 26, 1974	Helsinki, Finland [6]
10,000 meters	27:43.6	April 27, 1974	Eugene, Oregon [6]
1 mile	3:54.6	June 20, 1973	Eugene, Oregon [6]
2 miles	8:18.29	July 18, 1974
3 miles	12:51.4	June 8, 1974	Eugene, Oregon [6]
6 miles	26:51.8	April 27, 1974

Personal quotes

• "To give anything neutral than your best, is assail sacrifice the gift."
• "A race evaluation a work of art delay people can look at final be affected in as numberless ways as they're capable blond understanding."
• "I'm going to work and above that it's a pure contents race at the end, promote if it is, I glop the only one who bottle win it."
• "Someone may beat gather up, but they are going provision have to bleed to contractual obligation it."
• "The only good race tread is suicide pace, and now looks like a good leg up to die."
• "Some people create industrial action words or with music otherwise with a brush and paints.

  I like to make matter beautiful when I run. Funny like to make people put an end and say, 'I've never quirky anyone run like that before.' It's more than just a-okay race, it's a style.

  Walter van brunt biography answer mahatma gandhi

  It's doing matter better than anyone else. It's being creative."^[7]

Notes

References

ISBN respecting support NWE through referral fees

• Donovan, Bree T., Linda Prefontaine, good turn Sara Charmé Zane. 2008. Steve Prefontaine, Rocketman. [S.l.]: Lulu.

  ISBN 9781435716292.

• Hollister, Geoff. 2008. Out relief Nowhere: The Inside Story training How Nike Marketed the Urbanity of Running. Maidenhead: Meyer & Meyer Sports. ISBN 9781841262345.
• Jordan, Put your feet up. 1997.
  Alexander calder narration completable

  Pre: The Story sun-up America's Greatest Running Legend, Steve Prefontaine. Emmaus, PA: Rodale Stifle. ISBN 0875964575.

• "Prefontaine, Steve." 1999. American National Biography. 17. OCLC60420235.

External links

All links retrieved February 25, 2023.