Are there any runners who didn't do anything in hs or college but went on to become pro?

There might be some rare cases, but it's not very likely, is it? hmmm??

However, that doesn't mean you can't improve and feel good about yourself by beating up on hobby joggers all over the land. Especially if you move up in distance and run on the roads, like 10-ks, half, or full marathons. Most of my teammates have quit running seriously after college but the few who kept it up with any sort of commitment run marathons that are pretty impressive, like low 2:20's, which is far better than any of their times on the track (comparatively) in college, or they win shoes and money and stuff in road races. You can do it! Just not very fast! Go for it! Loser!

Bruce Denton. Well technically he did it as a graduate runner, but that's still past 22.

Lisa Weidenbach, Joanie Benoit, all the Mexicans, most of the Kenyans, Ethiopians, etc. Kyle Heffner, Serena Burla, Magdelena Lewy Boulet are a few that come to mind.

Moe's Tavern wrote:

Lisa Weidenbach, Joanie Benoit, all the Mexicans, most of the Kenyans, Ethiopians, etc. Kyle Heffner, Serena Burla, Magdelena Lewy Boulet are a few that come to mind.

Kenyans and Ethiopians?

At 22 a lot of them were winning World Junior Champs.

Hope for you yet.

Moe's Tavern wrote:

Lisa Weidenbach, Joanie Benoit

Lisa was NCAA All-America in swimming, cross-country, and track.

Joanie won the Boston Marathon as a 21-year-old senior at Bowdoin.

Moe's Tavern wrote:

Serena Burla, Magdelena Lewy Boulet are a few that come to mind.

Regarding Serena Burla:

She is the former Serena Ramsey, who ran for the University of Missouri through 2006. She’s 5’1" tall and married to former Missouri shot-putter Adam Burla. She was sixth in the 10,000 at the 2006 NCAA Championships and holds University of Missouri records in the 10,000 (33:52.59) and the indoor 5000 (16:22.67). She was a runner-up in the 5,000 and 10,000 at the Big 12 Championships in ‘06.

Regarding Magda:

She attended the University of California-Berkeley and was third in the 5000 at the 1997 NCAA Championships.

Jen Toomey, diver in college? Started running on a bet?

Mo Trafeh.

Beeeeeeeel Rodgers

bill rodgers 9:36 for 2 miles in high school.

8:58 for 2 miles in college.

both not that fantastic.

becomes 4 time boston and 4 time new york winner and also won amsterdam, fukuoka and many more. an all time legend.

elijah lagat- not a runner, his doctor tells him he is fat and a high risk for heart attack if he does not start exercising, he goes onto run a 2:07 marathon and a boston marathon winner.

mark kiptoo starts running in his late 20's past college age then runs a 12:53 for a track 5k at age 34.

Priscilla Welch didn't start stop smoking and start running until 33 or 34... British Olympian and something like a 2:28 at age 42??

Seem to remember something about Hammou Boutayeb (sp?) of Morocco not starting to run until 33 and then was an Olympic 10,000 medalist two years later. But that's an anomaly and anecdotal in any event.

Almost forgot former Kiwi legend Jack Foster who began competitive running after a cycling career around age 33 as well and ran an at-the-time masters record of 2:11 and change and won (?) the Commonwealth Games marathon.

I'm sure there are others.

patti catalano-lyons-dillon

Alan Webb

Actually, Boutayeb may not have medalled but instead paced fellow countryman Brahim Boutayeb to a medal. But he laid down an impressive 10,000 in his mid-30s nonetheless.

Sagarin wrote:

Seem to remember something about Hammou Boutayeb (sp?) of Morocco not starting to run until 33 and then was an Olympic 10,000 medalist two years later. But that's an anomaly and anecdotal in any event.

Although I believe that Hammou did get a late start, and only rose to international caliber in his mid- to late-30s, I think you're confusing him with Brahim Boutayeb, his younger countryman, who won the Olympic 10,000 in 1988. I don't believe that Hammou ever won an Olympic medal.

I think that the original poster was really looking for runners who competed in high school and college without much success, but later blossomed into good runners. Those cases may be much less common than the instances in which talented athletes simply got a late start as competitive runners.

Sagarin wrote:

Actually, Boutayeb may not have medalled but instead paced fellow countryman Brahim Boutayeb to a medal. But he laid down an impressive 10,000 in his mid-30s nonetheless.

Closer, but not quite right. In the 1992 Olympic 10,000, Khalid Skah and Richard Chelimi were lapping Hammou Boutayeb, and some people thought that Hammou unfairly aided Skah, who won the race and received the gold medal, but only after initially being disqualified for receiving improper assistance.

Bernard Lagat was good in college, but got A LOT better after.