Steve Prefontaine Biography

Quick Facts

NAME: Steve Prefontaine
OCCUPATION: Track and Field Athlete
BIRTH DATE: January 25, 1951
DEATH DATE: May 30, 1975
EDUCATION: Marshfield High School, University of Oregon
PLACE OF BIRTH: Coos Bay, Oregon
PLACE OF DEATH: Eugene, Oregon
Nickname: Pre
Full Name: Steve Roland Prefontaine

Best Known For

Steve Prefontaine is best known as the runner who once held the U.S. record in every long-distance event. He died in a car crash in 1974 at age 24.

Quiz

Think you know about Biography?

Answer questions and see how you rank against other players.

Play Now

Print Cite This

Steve Prefontaine

APA Style

Steve Prefontaine. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 11:28, May 22, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/steve-prefontaine-224908.

Harvard Style

Steve Prefontaine. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/steve-prefontaine-224908 [Accessed 22 May 2013].

MLA Style

"Steve Prefontaine." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 22 2013, 11:28 http://www.biography.com/people/steve-prefontaine-224908.

MHRA Style

"Steve Prefontaine," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/steve-prefontaine-224908 [accessed May 22, 2013].

Chicago Style

"Steve Prefontaine," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/steve-prefontaine-224908 (accessed May 22, 2013).

CBE/CSE Style

Steve Prefontaine [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 22] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/steve-prefontaine-224908.

Bluebook Style

Steve Prefontaine, http://www.biography.com/people/steve-prefontaine-224908 (last visited May 22, 2013).

AMA Style

Steve Prefontaine. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/steve-prefontaine-224908. Accessed May 22, 2013.

Synopsis

Steve Prefontaine is an American athlete born on January 25, 1951, in Coos Bay, Oregon. One of America’s greatest runners, Prefontaine once held the U.S. record in every long-distance event from the 2,000 meters to the 10,000 meters. He narrowly missed a medal at the 1972 Munich Olympics. He was training for the 1976 Montreal Olympics when he died in a car accident on May 30, 1974, at age 24.

Profile

Runner. Born Steve Roland Prefontaine on January 25, 1951 in Coos Bay, Oregon. Widely considered one of the greatest American runners of all time, Steve Prefontaine once held the U.S. record in every long-distance event from the 2,000 meters to the 10,000 meters. He attended Marshfield High School, where he set a national high school record in the two-mile race and broke 19 national high school records in track.

Steve Prefontaine attended the University of Oregon where he trained under legendary coach Bill Bowerman. Pre, as he was called by his fans, won three Division I NCAA Cross Country championships and four straight three-mile titles. It was while at U of O that Steve Prefontaine earned a reputation for his aggressive front-running racing style, going out hard and not relinquishing the lead. He soon became a legend not only in his native Oregon, but nationwide, appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated at age 19.

After narrowly missing a medal at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Steve Prefontaine returned to the University of Oregon to finish his collegiate career undefeated. He then set his sights on the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. Tragically, he was killed in a car crash on May 30, 1975 at age 24.

Even after his death, Steve Prefontaine remained an icon in the running world. During his short career, he ran 153 races and won 120 of them. He is at least partially responsible for inspiring the running boom during the 1970s, and several movies have been made documenting his life.