Steve prefontaine biography runners

Steve Roland " Pre " Prefontaine [ 1 ] January 25, — May 30, was an American long-distance runner who from to set American records at every distance from 2, to 10, meters.

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Prefontaine's career, alongside those of Jim Ryun , Frank Shorter , and Bill Rodgers , generated considerable media coverage, which helped inspire the s "running boom ". One of the premier track meets in the world, the Prefontaine Classic , is held annually in Eugene in his honor. Prefontaine's celebrity and charisma later resulted in two s feature films about his short life.

Prefontaine was born on January 25, , in Coos Bay , Oregon. Army in World War II. Prefontaine was an exuberant person, even during his formative years. He was always moving around, partaking in different activities and events. Later that year, he realized he could compete well in long-distance races during a three-week conditioning period in his physical education class.

With this newfound success and athletic ability, he fell in love with cross country running. Prefontaine's freshman and sophomore years were decent, and he managed a personal best of in the mile in his first year.

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Though starting as the seventh man, he progressed to be the second by the end of the year and placed 53rd in the state championship. However, his coach recalls that it was his sophomore year when his potential in the sport began to surface. With the advice of Walt McClure, Prefontaine's high school coach, he took it upon himself to train hard over the summer.

In his senior year, many of his highest goals were set. He obtained a national record at the Corvallis Invitational with a time of Some forty colleges across the nation recruited Prefontaine, [ 11 ] [ 15 ] and he received numerous phone calls, letters, and drop-in visits from coaches.