Today in Running History

Today is Friday, September 12, 2025, and on this day in 2014, darling of the London Paralympic Games turned murderer Oscar Pistorius was found guilty of causing the death of Reeva Steenkamp 19 months before.   It is #FueledFriday, which mean's that today's episode is sponsored by Fuel Goods! This is the sports nutrition marketplace and monthly subscription service that I've been using for the past...

Today is Thursday, September 11, 2025 and on this day in 2012, American physiotherapist Dr. Mike Studer set a new world record for the underwater marathon at his clinic in South Salem, Oregon.   In this episode, we’ll hear from Studer himself about how he prepared for this challenge, why he did it, and what surprising components made the feat harder than you’d imagine.   You can check out Studer's...

Today is Wednesday, September 10th, 2025 and on this day in 1972, American Frank Shorter won gold at Olympic Marathon in Munich, less than a minute after an imposter had attempted to claim the victory as his own.   In this episode, we’ll meet with Frank himself to hear his memories of that day that are way more interesting than the kid who tried to overshadow him.   This episode and every single o...

Today is Tuesday, September 9th, 2025 and on this day in 2000, American skating champion Chad Hedrick won the inline skating division at the Berlin Marathon.   In this episode, we’ll learn more about the world’s largest inline marathon, as well as the only Abbott World Major with a skating division, and then sit down for a conversation with Hedrick himself to hear about a very different side of ma...

Today is Monday, September 8, 2025, and on this day in 1881, future three-time Olympian, longtime Dartmouth and US Olympic track and field coach, and co-developer of a safer hurdle Harry Hillman was born in Brooklyn, New York.   This episode and every single other was edited and produced by my good friend Rob Garcia, who many know by his own ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠podcast "Rob on the Run"⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ . If you are lookin...

Today is Sunday, September 7th, 2025, and on this day in 1965, 3-time Berlin Marathon champion Uta Pippig was born in Leipzig, East Germany.   In this episode we will learn more about her early life at the epicenter of the Cold War, and how that first Berlin win in 1990 began an incredible career with 7 World Marathon Major wins in 7 years.   This episode and every single other was edited and prod...

Today is Saturday, September 6th, 2025, and on this day in 1907, Boston Marathon legend John A Kelley was born in Medford, Massachusetts.   In this episode, we’ll hear how as a young man, Kelley made a name for himself as a two-time Boston Marathon champion, and then dive into how his running career evolved over the decades, ending with his 58th Boston Marathon finish at the age of 84.    It is #S...

Today is Friday, September 5, 2025, and on this day in 2008, disgraced sprinter Marion Jones completed a 6-month prison stint for her involvement in the BALCO doping scandal and a linked check-fraud scheme.    In this episode, we'll discuss Jones's athletic career pre-scandal, how the how the crimes and punishment played out, and what Jones has done to make amends in the 17 years since.    It is #...

Today is Thursday, September 4th, 2025 and on this day in 1972, Kenyan superstar Kipchoge Keino won Olympic gold in the men’s 3,000 meter steeplechase, setting a new Olympic record in the process.   In this very special pod-ception episode, I am joined by Tommy McClellan, host of the Laugh and Run Podcast, and together we break down Keino’s background, Olympic performances, and lasting legacy. You...

Today is Wednesday, September 3, 2025, and on this day in 1947, Nova Scotia and the tightly knit and still-small running community mourned the death of Ronald J MacDonald, husband, father, country doctor, proud Canadian, Olympian, and winner of the 2nd-ever Boston Marathon.    This episode and every single other was edited and produced by my good friend Rob Garcia, who many know by his own ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠p...

Today is Tuesday, September 2nd, 2025 and on this day in 1960, Wilma Rudolph won the first of 3 gold medals she would earn at the Rome Olympics.   In this episode, we’ll learn more about Rudolph’s sickly childhood,and  hear how she overcame the odds to become the fastest woman in the world.    It's #Tattoosday, and listeners of Today in Running History can save 20% off your order using my code "Hi...

Today is Monday, September 1st, 2025 and on this day in 1980, Canadian athlete and activist Terry Fox ended his Marathon of Hope after running for 143 days and making it 3,339 miles and raising more than $1 million for the Cancer Society.   In this episode, we will learn more about Fox and how he turned his own battle with osteosarcoma into a movement to help others, then hear from the COO of the...

Today is Sunday, August 31st, 2025, and on this day in 1904, Tswana tribesmen Jan Mashiani and Len Taunyane departed St Louis after having competed in the Olympic Marathon the previous day.   In this episode, we’ll learn more about how Mashiani and Taunyane became the first Black athletes of any country to compete in the Games, what obstacles they overcame along the way, and why so much of their s...

Today is Saturday, August 30th, 2025 and on this day in 1904, 32 men ran the marathon at the St. Louis Olympics.   In this very special pod-ception episode, I am joined by St. Louis resident and host of the Happy Pace podcast, Elaine Sims, and we will discuss every bizarre detail of the first Olympic marathon run on American soil.    You can check out the Happy Pace Podcast on Spotify here , and o...

Today is August 29, 2025, and on this day in 2004, Vanderlei de Lima finished third in the 2004 Olympic marathon in Athens, behind Italy’s Stefano Baldini and American Meb Keflezighi, the latter of whom won Team USA’s first medal in the marathon since 1976.    In this episode, we’ll look back on the event’s medalists, who refused to be derailed by the brief but impactful act of violence.   It is #...

Today is Thursday, August 28th, 2025 and on this day in 1981, English phenom Sebastian Coe reclaimed his mile world record from fellow Brit Steve Ovett, marking the third time the duo had traded the record in just 9 days.   In this episode we’ll learn more about the 2 men who dominated middle distance running for the first half of the 1980s, the 5 times in 23 months that they traded marathon world...

Today is Wednesday, August 27th, and on this day in 1983, Ken Chlouber and Merlilee Maupin hosted the first Leadville Trail 100 in Leadville, Colorado.   In this episode, we’ll talk to Ken and Merilee about how they turned their small mining town into the home of one of the most iconic ultramarathons in the United States.   This episode and every single other was edited and produced by my good fri...

Today is Tuesday, August 26th, 2025 and on this day in 1988, American trail runner Hillary Allen was born.   In this episode, we’ll be joined by Allen herself to discuss how she got into running in the first place, talk about her near-fatal fall back in 2017, and hear how she put the pieces back together and to become one of the top mountain trail runners in the world.   It's #Tattoosday, and list...

Today is Monday, August 25th, 2025, and on this day in 1996, American wheelchair racer Jean Driscoll won gold at the T52/53 marathon at the Atlanta Paralympics.   In this episode, we’ll hear directly from Jean herself about how she got into athletics, her incredible career as one of the most decorated American wheelchair racers of all time, and what she’s been up to in the 25 years since retiring....

Today is Sunday, August 24th, 2025 and on this day in 1980, American masters runner Toshiko D'Elia became the first woman over the age of 50 to run a marathon in less than 3 hours.    In this episode, I will tell you about D’Elia’s hardscrabble childhood in Kyoto, the surprising way she became a runner, and what she accomplished as a pioneer not just in women’s running, but in the then-new arena o...

Today is Saturday, August 23rd, 2025 and on this day in 1975, two-time Boston marathon champion Ellison “Tarzan” Brown died at the age of 61.   In this episode we will learn about Brown’s background as a member of the Narragansett tribe of Rhode Island, hear how he famously overtook hometown favorite Johnny Kelley during the 1936 Boston Marathon, which led to the naming of the infamous “Heartbreak...

Today is Friday, August 22nd, 2025 and on this day in 2004, Deena Kastor won the bronze medal in the women’s marathon at the Athens Olympics, making her only the second American woman in history to reach that podium.   In this episode, I’ll briefly cover Kastor’s background prior to the 2004 Games, and then we’ll sit down for a conversation with Deena Kastor herself.   It is #FueledFriday, which m...

Today is Thursday, August 21, 2025, and on this day in 1985, Mary Decker-Slaney broke the women’s world record in the mile, further cementing her place as the most accomplished American female middle-distance runner of the 20th century.   In this episode, we will learn more about running prodigy Mary Decker-Slaney, who did SO much more within her decades-long career than simply fall at the 1984 Ol...

Today is Wednesday, August 20th, 2025, and on this day in 1922, 77 female athletes competed at the first ever Women’s World Games in Paris.   In this episode, we’ll learn about Alice Milliat, who spearheaded the fight for the inclusion of women’s track and field events in the early 1900s, hear what that first women’s track meet in 1922 looked like, and discuss the role played by the Women’s World...

Today is Tuesday, August 19th, 2025 and on this day in 1946, Amby Burfoot was born in Charlottesville, Virginia.   In this episode, we’ll hear how Burfoot became the first college student to win the Boston Marathon in 1968 and how his career evolved from the running world to Runner’s World in the decades that followed, then welcome Amby Burfoot himself for a conversation about his lifelong love of...