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With the 50th anniversary of one of the most prestigious track and field meets, the Prefontaine Classic, around the corner, the spotlight returns to the man whose legacy lives on through it, Steve Prefontaine.
This year's Prefontaine Classic will take place on Saturday, July 5, at Hayward Field. The meet, headlined by Sydney McLaughlin Levrone, Sha’Carri Richardson, and Kishane Thompson, is close to selling out. According to Forbes, “Over 12,500 tickets have been sold for this year’s date, which marks the largest expected crowd for an event at the new Hayward Field since its renovation in 2020.”
As the crowd returns to Oregon's most iconic track venue, let’s take a look at the runner whose spirit and story continue to define this meet.
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Who is Steve Prefontaine?
Steve Prefontaine, who hailed from Oregon, was a legendary American long-distance runner in the 1970s. He had represented the US at the 1972 Munich Olympics and had held every American record from 2000 to 10000 meters event during his career. Shortly after the Olympics, he appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated as ‘ American Distance Prodigy’.
At just 22, Steve Prefontaine had already become America's dominant track and field athlete. His charisma and determination inspired a generation of runners.
“Some people create with words or with music or with a brush and paints. I like to make something beautiful when I run. I like to make people stop and say, ‘I’ve never seen anyone run like that before,'" said Prefontaine (via Nike)
Prefontaine’s rise came at a time when running was far from mainstream. He was also a strong critic of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), which at the time severely limited athletes' rights.
But tragically, he died in a car crash at age 24, shortly after running one of the fastest 5000m times in American history.
About Steve Prefontaine’s family
Prefontaine was born on January 12, 1951, to parents Elfriede Prefontaine and Raymond George Prefontaine in Coos Bay, Oregon. He had two sisters, Linda and Neta Prefontaine.
When did Prefontaine take up the sport?
In his early years, Prefontaine played gridiron football and basketball, and later shifted to cross country and track and field while at Marshfield High School. At 15, competing for Marshfield High School, he set his first national high school record in the 2-mile event, clocking 8:41.5. He won state cross-country championships in 1968 and 1969, going undefeated in cross-country and track during his junior and senior years.
Prefontaine’s Collegiate Career
Prefontaine pursued his education at the University of Oregon. He trained under Bill Bowerman at Oregon from 1969 and secured seven NCAA titles, including three in cross country and four in the three-mile distance in track.
He was one of the first major athletes to sign with Nike. Even though the biggest track and field star in the country came to a tragic end at just age 24, his legacy continues.
Between 1970 and 1975, he won 35 of 38 races at Hayward Field, and he set many of his records and won most of his important races at the University of Oregon's fabled track at Hayward Field. On July 5, more than 20 Olympic gold medalists and world champions will step onto that same track for the 50th Prefontaine Classic, where Prefontaine once dominated.
