Does a professional American distance runner make enough money in their career to retire off?

How much does one need to retire?

I hope to spend my retiree days eating canned beans, wearing an old pair of sneakers and running for 3 hours a day. How much does that cost? Maybe head to the library to whack off and then find me some old honeys who're interested in my svelte 65 year old physique.

bartholomew_maxwell wrote:

I don't think so. Just my opinion. There's no way they're making more money than the NFL minimum and the length of time an American distance runner is at the top is about the same as the average NFL career (2 to 3 years). So I'm guessing most go into coaching when they're done to make ends meet.

For sure. Centro Sr became an award winning coach after his running career.

If there is any it’s an incredibly small list. I can’t see many of these athletes breaking 40k a year. I could be wrong but the general public could care less about a guy hitting the Olympic standard in the 5k. Market dictates pay.

What was Alan Webb's original contract? $250K for how many years? 5 years starting in 2002-2003? What did he make from 2008 to 2014?

It all depends on how he invested his money.

https://www.statista.com/graphic/1/189758/dow-jones-composite-index-closing-year-end-values-since-2000.jpg

Now most runners I assume make far less from sponsors and are grateful for winning a race for the bonus prize money.

So that begs the question then...how much money does a cross country coach make? I can't picture them making as much money at the collegiate level as a football coach, nowhere close. And in high school, I can't picture them making much money unless they're also teaching part time.

At my high school, we had a very good football program and the football coach also worked as one of the gym period teachers.

The only way to make good money as a running coach is to either be part of a camp that trains elite runners and has the backing of a major shoe company or be part of a Division 1 program.

If you're the track and field coach over the entire program as opposed to just the cross country coach, your pay will likely be substantially higher.

bartholomew_maxwell wrote:

So that begs the question then...how much money does a cross country coach make? I can't picture them making as much money at the collegiate level as a football coach, nowhere close. And in high school, I can't picture them making much money unless they're also teaching part time.

At my high school, we had a very good football program and the football coach also worked as one of the gym period teachers.

The only way to make good money as a running coach is to either be part of a camp that trains elite runners and has the backing of a major shoe company or be part of a Division 1 program.

If you're the track and field coach over the entire program as opposed to just the cross country coach, your pay will likely be substantially higher.

I’m sure there are many talented high school cross country coaches who probably only get paid $2k a year. College..I could see power house teams like NAU and CU making maybe 60-90k depending on tenure. I’m being extremely generous with that offer. Obviously, recruits aren’t making sh!t as athletes in the NCAA and I bet it’s a small number of athletes with a full ride.

Rick Cheney wrote:

I’m sure there are many talented high school cross country coaches who probably only get paid $2k a year. College..I could see power house teams like NAU and CU making maybe 60-90k depending on tenure. I’m being extremely generous with that offer. Obviously, recruits aren’t making sh!t as athletes in the NCAA and I bet it’s a small number of athletes with a full ride.

That's pretty depressing.

But if you're fit enough to be a running coach you're probably fit enough to be a part time nutritional consultan or personal trainer. People will definitely pay you SOMETHING just to give them advice when you're that good.

If there's a running equivalent of being an independent consultant, that could make big money.

A few talented runners are the corporate physical fitness consultants at their business. Julie Stackhouse is one example that comes to mind.

To sum it up, if you're THAT good, there will always be someone who will pay you for your advice or your time.

a few can. Very few. How many doctors in your town make a solid 6 figures year after year?

after year wrote:

a few can. Very few. How many doctors in your town make a solid 6 figures year after year?

I live in a metropolitan area of approx. 1 million people. So probably quite a good many. Many probably make in the millions.

and how many runners are doing the same?

The Good ones can keep making money off of their name, not an American or Distance Runner, but Usain Bolt will always have Money coming, Bernard Lagat, Bill Rodgers, Frank Shorter, Steve Scott, Alberto Salazar,Joan Benoit Samuelson, Mary Decker-Tabb-Slaney probably make lots off of their names, Galen Rupp, Matt Centrowitz, Jordan Hasay Probably do, if Rupp, Centro, Hasay do not, what college would not want them for a coach? Basically if you have a huge name you are set.

douglas burke wrote:

Galen Rupp, Matt Centrowitz, Jordan Hasay Probably do, if Rupp, Centro, Hasay do not, what college would not want them for a coach? Basically if you have a huge name you are set.

Even then, it comes down to dollars and cents at the end. How much money does the Cross country and track team bring to the university? You're only paid what you're worth. Unfortunately cross country will never be worth that much to a university. You'll never be able to convince 10,000 peopel to watch your dual meets at $40/seat...

hitting you with knowledge wrote:

How much does one need to retire?

I hope to spend my retiree days eating canned beans, wearing an old pair of sneakers and running for 3 hours a day. How much does that cost? Maybe head to the library to whack off and then find me some old honeys who're interested in my svelte 65 year old physique.

You got it bro!

Sounds like your best bet is to become a corporate coach (Nike Project, Saucony, etc) or a personal trainer of A-list clients. I'm sure that if you're someone with the pedigree of a Ritz, Webb or any top American runner, you could easily be picked up by a celebrity A-lister or corporate executive to be their trainer/nutrition consultant.

Do you people have any idea what it takes to retire well. You posters have no idea what these distance runners have brought in and it ain't gonna do it. If they have no pension, and they can't get SS till 67 at least. Ah forget it, you all live in a diluted state of imagination, time to tune into the world of reality.

The brojos or Gault can probably answer this question (didn't they do an article on how much runners make?).

I think the answer is no.

A good runner who also served in the military has the best deal if they get their 20 years in.

For all the criticisim the military receives, it still has the best retirement option by far. A friend of mine will be retirning from the USMC with just over 20 years, at a rank of E-9, and will be able to collect his retirement immediately. That's as sweet as it gets. You're an early 40's person and don't have to work a real job for the rest of your life. At E-9 he falls in that camp. If you retire at an E-6 or E-7 it may be harder to stretch it. Depending on the state you retire in. Ones with no state income tax are your best bet.

WHHHHATTTTT! wrote:

Do you people have any idea what it takes to retire well. You posters have no idea what these distance runners have brought in and it ain't gonna do it. If they have no pension, and they can't get SS till 67 at least. Ah forget it, you all live in a diluted state of imagination, time to tune into the world of reality.

If you want to retire well without being a federal employee or running your own business, get a money market account and strive to save at least $50K by the age of 30. That's the reality of the situation.

after year wrote:

a few can. Very few. How many doctors in your town make a solid 6 figures year after year?

I'm a Doctor. We start in the 6 figures and it goes up, year after year. I knew I'd never break 28 minutes but could run high 28's. What would that have gotten me? I still run, a lot, but I also make decent coin year after year.

You need to do some research on Doctor salaries. P.A.'s can start in the 6 digits if they graduated near the top of their class.