I got to thinking the other day about who the best American born runners are/were. This past week, Runners Roost in Denver had their usual Wednesday night group run. This time there was a theme, and that was “Happy Birthday Pre”. Apparently it would have been Steve Prefontaine’s 61st birthday had he lived. He died in a car crash in 1975 at the age of 24. So we “celebrated” him by wearing fake mustaches and singing happy birthday. Now I’m thinking, “why the fascination with Pre”? Yes, he was a great runner and had he not died so early, he may have set many records and won many medals at the Olympics. We kind of view him like we do James Dean (the actor, not the sausage guy). James Dean also died in a car accident in 1955 at the AGE OF 24, just like Pre! Wow! Coincidence? I think not.
But anyways, back to what I really want to discuss. Was Pre the greatest American born runner ever like most say he is? I think he gained cult hero status by dying therefore he is look upon as the greatest (just as James Dean is). But what about other guys? And I don’t mean to be sexist by only talking about guys, but that’s the way it is. The first guy that comes to my mind is Jesse Owens. On May 25, 1935, at the Big Ten championships, Owens had the greatest single day in men’s track history, He tied the world record of 9.4 in the 100-yard dash, set a world record with a 20.3 second 220-yard dash, set another world mark in running the 220 low hurdles in 22.6, and also long jumped 26-8 1/4, a mark that lasted 25 years. In the 1936 Berlin Olympics came Owens’ greatest accomplishment: he totally enraged Hitler as he won four gold medals. He tied the world record of 10.3 in the 100 meters, won the 200 meters and long jump while setting Olympic marks, and was on the gold medal 4 x 100 relay team, which also set a world record. In Pre’s only Olympics, he came in fourth in the 5000 meter race.
Two other guys on my list are Carl Lewis and Jim Ryun. In high School, Ryun ran a mile in 3:55.3 setting a record that stood for 40 years! In the 1984 Olympics, Carl Lewis won 4 gold medals which tied him with Jesse Owens. Lewis made 5 Olympic teams from 1980 to 1996! Amazing longevity.
So who is on your list? And where do you rank them compared to Pre? Is Pre an overrated cult hero, or a true champion that if he lived would have been the greatest ever? Tell us what you think.
