Was thinking about how almost all of today's best runners had good success in college and I know next to nothing about how Joan Benoit Samuelson did in her college years. Did she ever run 5000 and 10000 meters in track? If so, how good was she? Only thing I could find out was that after Bowdoin, she transferred to NC State and made All-American in XC in 1978. What place was she?
I don't know how Benoit did collegiately. However, the NCAA did not become involved in women's athletics until approx. 1981. Until that time the AIAW was the governing body of women's intercollegiate athletics.
Benoit took to long-distance running to help recover from a broken leg suffered while slaloming. At Bowdoin College she excelled in athletics. In 1977, after two years at Bowdoin, she accepted a running scholarship to North Carolina State, where she began concentrating solely on her running. She earned All-America honors at NC State in both 1977 and 1978, and in 1978 helped lead the Wolfpack to the Atlantic Coast Conference cross-country championship.
WIkipedia.
I read her book, and she did well in college. She won Boston while in college.
She was like Rodgers and raced a lot. One of the best ever.
page 14 on, she shows up on the lists.
Found this compilation of the best efforts by college women and also world-wide thru '83, Joan on these lists. Looks like she won races as well:
3000m
16th best ever
1979
9:02.71
10000m
3rd best ever
1979
32:52.7
5000m
12th best ever
15:43.08
of course, she set the world record in marathon twice.
and won the gold
When did she set two world records in the marathon? Boston was aided, so perhaps a world best.
She actually advanced the record three times, one in Eugene. Boston course is much tougher than London or Chicago. We all know that. Let's see Paula Radcliffe ever run 2:15 at Boston. After all these years, Joan's Boston performance (best 2:22:43) is still among the best, with all the great African runners coming through, the best at Boston is still just 2:20:43. Some might dispute any run from Boston as being a world record, but anyone who has run Boston and London will tell you Boston is much tougher. Whether or not the IIAF disputes her record or not, it was a world record at the time, and run on a tough course. I refuse to neg on Joan Benoit, ever. Arguably the best ever. And she didn't dope. She's still kicking ass.
Thanks Joanie Fan. Your link was a fantastic source of direct information!
Only thing confusing is the Bowdoin/NC State info. All the listings in the T&F archive list Bowdoin, even at a date after she supposedly transferred to NC State. Did they just get it wrong in the archive?
Curious Georgie wrote:
Thanks Joanie Fan. Your link was a fantastic source of direct information!
Only thing confusing is the Bowdoin/NC State info. All the listings in the T&F archive list Bowdoin, even at a date after she supposedly transferred to NC State. Did they just get it wrong in the archive?
Joan Benoit finished her collegiate career at Bowdoin after going from NC State back to Bowdoin.