The Decline of American Long-Distance Running

Location: [Journal] [1995] [May] The Decline of American Long-Distance Running

For the better part of the last two decades, there has been a noticeable drop in the competitiveness of American long-distance runners in the international arena. This decline has been especially noticeable to the American public during Olympic years. With the 1996 Summer Olympics scheduled to take place in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, no doubt this issue will again come to the forefront.

Contents

• Introduction
• Scope
• Method
• Results
• Conclusions
• References

Introduction

At international track meets, at marathons, road races, and team distance relay events, the image of the American long-distance runner is one that is rapidly fading to the background. Where once American runners such as Johnny Kelly, Billy Mills, Jim Ryan, Frank Shorter, Bill Rodgers, and Alberto Salazar ruled the international long-distance running circuit, today the African nations, led by Kenya, Morocco, and Ethiopia rule supreme.

But why have American long-distance running fortunes fallen? Over the last decades, there has been a boom in recreational running, but this popularity as a form of exercise has seemingly not resulted in a growth in the long-distance running talent pool.

There are, of course, exceptions to this trend, such as current world-ranked distance man Bob Kennedy, but, for the most part, American long-distance runners have found themselves lapped by the field.

Scope

While a case can be made for the decline of world class long distance runners in both American males and females, my research was solely on male distance runners. For reasons of comparative research and statistics, I limited my research to three types of long distance running:

1. Track races of 5,000 meters or longer
2. Road races of 10,000 meters or longer
3. Marathons

I chose the time period of January 1, 1975, through December 31, 1994, for this study. For the boycotted Olympic years of 1980 and 1984, I compared national championship results with Olympic results.

My research focused on these points:

1. Participation in long-distance running as percentage of population.
2. Age group participation (Age Groups: 20 and under, 20-30, 30-40, over 40)
3. World record progression over the study period.
4. Where different, United States record progression over the study period.
5. World rankings, yearly, for the 5,000 meter-, 10,000 meter-, marathon, and road racing categories.

Method

My method of research can be broken down into the following areas:

Background informational research

I studied the race results for major races over the stated research period. Where available, I watched video tapes of meets and races. My research included sources in the United States, Canada, Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, and South America. Major long-distance running events, such as Olympics, World Cup Track Meets, the World Track and Field Championships, and the World Cross Country Championships carried the most weight in my statistical analysis. For marathoning, I chose the Boston Marathon, the New York Marathon, the Rotterdam Marathon, the Fukoka Marathon, the World Marathon Championships, and the Olympic Marathons to carry the most weight in statistical analysis.

Attendance at major events over the last 5 years

By attending these events I was able to see first hand what the racing methods of various nations and individuals were. I was also able to gauge crowd participation, crowd support, and knowledge of the long-distance running events in several countries (specifically, the United States, Japan, Kenya, Germany, Finland, Australia, and the United Kingdom).

Interviews

I interviewed current long-distance runners, coaches, and fans, as well as former long-distance running stars (including Kip Keino, Rod Dixon, Frank Shorter, Waldmar Ciepinski, Henry Rono, and Lasse Viren).

I compiled my results and information and then, for statistical purposes, made comparison studies of each year in the stated study period, comparisons for every 5-year period, comparisons for every 10-year period, and then a cumulative comparison for the 20-year study period.

Results

In all of the racing distances studied, (5,000 meters, 1,000 meters, marathon, and road racing), there has been a decline in the effectiveness of American distance running over the study period.

It has not been a steady decline. Especially in the marathoning study group, the United States showed dominance for most of the first 10-year study period, but has suffered a steady decline since then. In marathoning, the U.S. dominance was first headed by Frank Shorter (silver 1976 Olympics after winning gold in 1972), Bill Rodgers (ranked number one in the world, numerous wins at major marathons such as Boston and Fukoka), and Alberto Salazar (ranked number one in world, major wins at Boston and New York, American Marathon Record). However, in the second 10-year study, U.S. dominance in marathoning ends, and faces a steep decline every year.

In the 5,000 meter- and 1,000 meter- track events, the United States has had few bright moments since Billy Mills's gold medal in the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. There has been no sustaining star in these distances, although there have been numerous high world rankings (such as Sydney Maree, Alberto Salazar, Bruce Bickford, Bill Pfitzenger). In the study period, the African nations, especially Kenya and Morocco, have dominated these events, especially over the second 10-year study period.

For road racing, the United States showed dominance early. Statistical research was difficult for the first 5-year study period, due to the relative lack of world-class road racing events (Tyra, 1993). The boom in road racing, especially in the United States, resulted in far more research opportunities for each subsequent 5-year study period. In road racing, the Africans, again led by Kenya, have shown dominance over the last 5-year study period.

There are some interesting statistics to go along with the above results. In the time period studied, participation in high school and college track and field programs (for this study, includes cross country, indoor, and outdoor track programs) showed an overall decline in the study period. High school track and field participation grew in the late 1970s, until it was the second most popular team sport, in terms of overall participants in the United States (Ryca, 1994). By the last 5-year study period, high school track and field participation had shown a deep decline, dropping to the fourth most popular team sport. In the study period, overall performances (in terms of times over standard high school distances) showed an overall decline in quality.

Road racing participation showed a steady increase during the study period. This was especially evident during the first three 5-year study periods. Over the last 5-year study period, road race participation numbers have shown an overall leveling off (Davidius, 7594).

During the study period, the average age of participants rose by over 5 years.

Conclusions

The decline of American long-distance running is not one of perception, but rather of reality. The American long-distance running scene is one of quantity over quality. The United States still produces world-class distance runners, but not at the level or in the quantity it should. The reasons for my findings include:

• Lack of Exposure - Except for the Olympics, and some major marathons, long-distance running is not reported in the mass media (video, audio, paper). Long-distance running stars are not sports celebrities, and are not as noticeable as American sports professionals in the team sports of basketball, football, or baseball.
• The Road Race Boom - The backbone of the glory years of American long-distance running was track and field. Track and field is an afterthought for most road racers today. While there are more and more participants in road racing, few have backgrounds in track and field, or show a knowledge of track and field events.
• Big Fish in Little Pond Syndrome - In the years before the start date of this study, and well into the first 10-year study period, long-distance runners generally competed until they got out of high school, unless they went on to compete in college. Few remained in competition after that, unless they were world class. Today, road racing has changed all that. With the advent of prize money, it is easier for good long-distance runners to garner benefits remaining at the same fitness level, instead of trying to move forward to the next step of competition.
• Marathons - Like the road race boom, the boom in marathoning has not resulted in an increase in the quality or quantity of American world-class marathoners, nor has it resulted in more interest and appeal to the sport in general.
• Age-groups - Road racing also brought to the forefront age groups. In most races today, the winner of the over 40 age category is praised and treated the same as the overall winner of the race. This lessens the enthusiasm and drive to excel. While it's nice to know how one stacks up against participants their own age, for development of world-class distance runners, younger runners must be encouraged. Finishing first in your age group, but 15th overall, should not be treated the same as finishing first overall in the race. If the United States is to regain competitiveness at the world-class level, it will not do so led by 40-year-old men.

References

Tyra, Sinotte, History of the Olympics (Jipcho Press, Athens, 1993).

Ryca, Shih, The Illustrated History of Track and Field (Zatopek Publishing, Prague, Slovakia, 1994).

Davidius, Victor, Track and Field Contemporary Compendium (Volumes 1-25, 1975-1994, Prefon Publishing, Los Altos)