Gerry Lindgren
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Gerry Lindgren (born March 9, 1946 in Spokane, Washington) is an American track and field runner who is widely recognized as having been the best high school runner in the United States at the time, and perhaps the best ever.
In 1964, in his senior year at Rogers High School, Lindgren ran 5000 meters in 13 minutes and 44 seconds, setting a U.S. high school record for the distance that would remain unbroken for 40 years, until Galen Rupp ran 13:37.91 on July 30, 2004.
On July 25, 1964, Lindgren outran two seasoned Russian runners, Leonid Ivanov and Anatoly Dutov to win the 10,000 meter event in the US-USSR Track Meet in Los Angeles.
In the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo, he finished ninth in the 10,000 meters behind gold medalist Billy Mills after having sprained an ankle during training. Lindgren had previously beaten Mills in the Olympic Trials that year. Mills later said that a healthy Lindgren would have won gold.
Lindgren also competed against Mills in the 1965 AAU Nationals meet, where they raced the 6 mile. Mills won with a diving lean, while both were timed in 27:11.6, a new World Record shared by Mills and Lindgren.
Lindgren attended Washington State University in Pullman, Washington, where he majored in political science and minored in Russian language. While at Washington State, Lindgren won 11 NCAA Championships. He also remains the only person to have defeated Steve Prefontaine in an NCAA Championship. Since 1980, when he curiously abandoned his wife and children (with whom he continues to have no contact), Lindgren has lived in Honolulu, Hawaii. He continues to run regularly, active in the Hawaii running community. In 2005, he began coaching the University of Hawaii's women's track and field team.
[edit] High school personal records
- 1500 meters - 3:44.6 (1964)
- 1 mile - 4:01.5 (1964)
- 3000 meters - 8:06.3i (1964)
- 2 mile - 8:40.0i (1964) 2nd All-time American High School Boy
- 5000 meters - 13:44.0 (1964) 2nd All-time American High School Boy
- 10000 meters - 29:17.6 (1964)
[edit] College personal records
- 5000 meters - 13:21.0 (1966)
- 10000 meters - 28:10.3 (1965)
