Why has Rupp been unable to become the social Symbol (and National force) for Running that Prefontaine achieved?

I agree with everything you just said. I think it is because people are just too stupid nowadays to look beyond the more popular sports (football and basketball for instance) and notice that running is amazing. People just tend to go with what is popular, and that's what makes runners special -- they aren't afraid of straying from the pack and know how to rebound from any type of adversity or criticism.

Pre had the personality of a star that could capture America's attention. Rupp has the personality of a peanut

Jimmy21 wrote:

Pre had the personality of a star that could capture America's attention. Rupp has the personality of a peanut

Right here.

Track stars can still hit it big with the right personality, just look at Bolt. But because distance races for the past five years consist of waiting for Mo Farah to outkick everyone, who cares? It's boring and the distance stars are mostly boring.

He is rather introverted by nature which has been made worse by Salazar's iron-grip on him, and further compounded by being Salazar's long-time favorite.

It's actually because Pre died that he is more popular. America likes its heroes dead and the younger the better.

Valentino,Dean, Morrison, Joplin, Presley etc.

Homie do you really think everybody knows PRE. Recognize the promotion behind Pre, probably because he had the IT factor. And at the same time when someone dies young that has lots of potential, that person is usually immortalized. But we have seen Rupp's highs and lows, also a lot of us envy him because we may think if only I had the talent and opportunities.

Introversion wrote:

He is rather introverted by nature which has been made worse by Salazar's iron-grip on him, and further compounded by being Salazar's long-time favorite.

This response is closer than any of the previous.

For one thing, to debunk a big myth Pre wasn't the star of the day 1970-75 era. Shorter, Ryun, Liquori, and Wottle were just as big or bigger in name recognition. Remember that. Pre died tragically and young and is thus immortalized.

Rupp is not so well known because of his personality (introverted and a little awkward) and being under the shadow of Salazar for his entire running life. Pre was and advocate for athletes rights and was outspoken on other matters. Rupp is neither of those.

Got it wrote:

Homie do you really think everybody knows PRE.

Comparatively, yeah. Without a doubt. Just ask ten people who one or the other is. I would bet over 50 percent have heard of PRE, but maybe, if you're lucky, one person may have heard of Rupp.

When speaking about Rupp I remind myself

http://anothermotherrunner.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Something-nice-close-up.jpg

Rupp is The Tallest Elf wrote:

When speaking about Rupp I remind myself

http://anothermotherrunner.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Something-nice-close-up.jpg

This isn't a Rupp-Bashing thread. Just trying to figure this out in me head.

I was not looking to insult you homie but u should try looking outside yourself.

and to add.....

when NOP is under scrutiny, Rupp just sits there like a tool and never gets vocal, he is told how to answer and to be a puppet. he is spineless and shows no emotional attachment to running. how do you root for a guy who is a pale pasty autistic looking rich kid who has no ambition or desire to be bold? never once has he tried to invite the worlds best to try to take them on in his back yard. no he is picky and choosy with when, where and who he races.

im sure its 99% salazar making those calls but come on, if he had a spine he would tell saladbar after a few sick workouts

"man i feel f*cking great, lets try to set up a AR attempt, or toss me in a super fast 5k or something and go for it"

but instead he never does, he is boring, he is an only child, selfish spoiled brat, dare i say "white privileged" nerd, who brings nothing to this sport.

you can argue all day who had a better career than him or mottram, but i guarantee more people enjoyed watching mottram run, and he prob had way more fun in his career than rupp.

rupp will be forgotten very quickly and eventually his records will be known to have been tainted when its all said and done. in a sport that 90% are prob juicing, you have to TRY to be an ambassador to the sport, rupp i dont think gives two sh*ts

1. Personality. Some people have charisma and an extroverted personality that attracts fans. Pre had it, Rupp doesn't. Bolt has it, Gay doesn't, etc., etc. It's just a random thing, and not fair, but that's how it is. Some athletes become celebrities (or semi-celebrities) because they combine athletic ability with the right personality, while equally talented athletes don't.

2. Association with Alberto Salazar. Lots of people look at Rupp as being created by Salazar or under Salazar's control and not his own man. Whether it's true or not, that's not a good public image for an athlete. Also, going back to his days as an athlete, Salazar has always rubbed lots of people the wrong way and lots of people are suspicious of him, whether he's ever actually done anything wrong or not, so the association is not a positive thing for many people.

Very different personalities. Rupp seems much more reserved and private. It is who he is.

Pre came along when magazines like SI covered track pretty regularly mainly because there were USA v USSR track meets and far fewer sports were on the national consciousness.

Baseball was the king of team sports. Pro football was not all that big yet. NBA? Ha! Not even sure they had a TV contract in the early 70s. Tennis was pretty big (Borg, Connors, Evert).

Now we have a sports scene dominated by the NFL. The NBA and NHL are bigger. MLB is suffering but only relative to its previous high and the NFL. Soccer has taken a big chunk (plus I think a lot of soccer players would have been track guys--and gals) of the coverage and interest. Lacrosse is still pretty small potatoes but fits the track demographic.

However the bottom line is that Rupp's personality is not outgoing or brash (at least publicly). Now if Nick Symmonds had Rupp's credentials you might be talking about a legit comparison.

Pre died when America was undergoing a running boom, helped to create it, and had an iconic look and race philosophy. It's like Hendrix dying when the world started celebrating guitar heroes. I'm sure there's some great guitarists today but millennials prefer autotune and low energy songs about meeting people in the club. Hence nobody cares. Same thing with distance running.

He doesn't have the confidence and character of a man of his achievements.

should've had some "STOP RUPP" signs made for the "PRE" event.

Dying young with unfulfilled promise is a great legacy move.

Was Pre even a national force? Or was he simply known by runners? I bet if I walked outside and asked 100 people who "Prefontaine" or "Pre" is, 99 would say no clue. And I live in an area where there are a lot of runners.