Pre looks to make more history this weekend
■ Since its troubled start in
1973, the Pre Classic has grown
into the most popular track
and field event in the country
By Adam Jude
Oregon Daily Emerald
The emergence of the Pre
fontaine Classic into the interna
tional spotlight has not been an
easy one.
Originally, when it was estab
lished by the Oregon Track Club in
1973, the Pre was called the Hay
ward Restoration Meet and was in
tended to raise funds to build what
is now the west grandstand.
After two years, meet officials de
cided to change the name to the
Bowerman Classic in honor of for
mer Oregon head coach Bill Bower
man. But before the Bowerman
meet was held, tragedy struck.
{ { It’s the only annual
sports event [in Eugene]
that’s televised on a
network. It has a huge
impact on how people
perceive Eugene.
Tom Jordan
meet director
Steve Prefontaine, a four-time
NCAA champion in the 5,000-me
ter run, died in a car crash on Fri
day, May 30, 1975, just hours after
running the second-fastest 5,000
meter time in American history
(second to his own record of
13:22.8).
Eight days later, 8,500 fans
watched seven world record-hold
ers compete in the first Prefontaine
Classic at Hayward Field.
Thousands have watched, in the
stands and on their televisions, as
many athletes tried to mimic Pre
fontaine’s all-out desire when
rounding the Bowerman curve at
Hayward. Though they have tried,
not even the likes of Carl Lewis,
Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Michael John
son, Maurice Greene, Marion Jones
and countless other track and field
stars have lived up to Pre’s heroics.
Regardless, they come back for
the memories and stay for the one
of-a-kind excitement.
This year’s 27th annual Pre
Classic will feature Greene (100
meters), Jones (200 meters), Gail
Devers (100-meter hurdles),
Hicham El Guerrouj (mile) and
Maria Mutola (800 meters), just to
name a few.
The meet, which begins at 11:45
a.m. Sunday, will be broadcast live
on Fox Sports Net.
“It’s the only annual sports event
[in Eugene] that’s televised on a net
work,” meet director Tom Jordan
said. “It has a huge impact on how
people perceive Eugene.”
The Pre will be the first Interna
tional Amateur Athletic Federa
tion Grand Prix event held on
American soil this year, and one
of three all year. The event first
became a Grand Prix event in
1996.
“In my opinion, Hayward Field
is as world-class as it gets,” said
Mary Slaney, the Prefontaine
record-holder in the 5,000 meters,
set in 1985. “I’ve raced all over the
world in the Olympics and World
Championships, and the crowd
here gets so into it. The Pre meet is
the best outdoor track meet in the
country. This is the sort of thing we
train for.”
The Pre’s success, however, is
only a recent trend.
Struggling to keep the meet afloat
in the years following Prefontaine’s
death, the Classic had a budget of
just $6,000 in 1979. Conflicting
with the NCAA Championships,
which were held around the same
time, the Oregon Track Club moved
the Pre Classic to late summer in
the early ’80s in an effort to attract
more European talent.
The move failed, however, and
the meet folded, only to have its
name picked up by Pat Holleran, a
local distance runner, who started
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in the 200 and 400 meters.
Michael Johnson, who is not competing this weekend, is the world and Prefontaine Classic record-holder
the Hayward Classic in the Pre’s old
time slot at the beginning of the
summer.
With the support of a $7,000
sponsorship from Nike, Holleran
began bringing in more high-pro
file athletes and in 1981, about
7,000 fans came to watch the
meet, the most since Prefontaine’s
death.
“It was never in danger of failing,
but there certainly was a point
where it was struggling to survive,”
said Jordan, who became the meet
director in 1984. “Now, it’s like be
ing on the mountain top and look
ing down. It’s never been as good as
it is now.”
Today, with an annual budget of
about a half-million dollars, the
Prefontaine Classic is considered
by many to be one of the world’s
top 10 track and field events.
The track to international re
spectability was a bumpy one, but
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now.
Emerald
Fan support at Hayward Field is key to the success of the Pre Classic.
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