Craig Leon (runner)

Craig Leon (born November 8, 1984) is an American distance runner who represented the United States in the men's marathon at the 2015 Pan American Games.

Craig Leon
Leon (left) racing with Kip Kangogo at the 2015 Pan Am Games men's marathon
Personal information
NationalityAmerican
Born (1984-11-08) November 8, 1984
Van Wert, Ohio
Sport
SportTrack, long-distance running
Event(s)5000 meters, 10,000 meters, marathon
College teamOhio University
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)5000m: 14:18.36[1]
10,000m: 29:49.90[1]
½ marathon: 1:04:02[1]
Marathon: 2:13:53[1]

Running career

High school

Leon first participated in competitive running at Van Wert High School. At the 2002 OHSAA Boys' Division II state cross country championships, Leon placed 11th overall in the 5K in 16:31.[2] In his senior year cross country season, his best result in the 5K was 16:03.[3] He graduated from Van Wert in 2003.[4]

Collegiate

Leon attended Ohio University, where he became a walk-on for Ohio's cross country and track teams. Ohio coach Mitch Bentley had told Leon, "You want to walk on? Sure, go ahead".[4] At the 2007 Hillsdale Relays, Leon ran the men's 10,000 meters in 30:06.54.[5]

Post-collegiate

After college, Leon took a brief hiatus from high-volume training for a period of two years until he began training for the marathon in 2009.[6] He made his marathon debut at the 2010 Eugene Marathon, where he won in 2:23:15.[7] He then qualified for the 2012 US Olympic Trials after running the marathon at the 2010 USA Marathon Championships in 2:18:29.[6] The following year, he moved to Eugene, Oregon, where he joined Team Run Eugene and signed a professional contract with Mizuno.[8] During the summer of 2015, he earned his first call-up to the United States' distance roster for the 2015 Pan American Games, where he finished in 5th place overall in the men's marathon.

References
  1. IAAF. "IAAF: Craig LEON - Athlete Profile".
  2. Ohio High School Athletic Association: 2002 Boys Cross Country Championships. Scioto Downs, Columbus. October 26, 2002 (accessed November 2, 2015)
  3. Van Wert High School Records: Men's Top 10 5K
  4. Dave Mosier (May 6, 2015). "The Van Wert Independent: Former Cougar now professional runner". Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  5. Ohio Bobcats Athletics. "Craig Leon Bio". Archived from the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  6. Craig Leon. "My Story". Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  7. 2010 Eugene Marathon Results: Top 5 Leaderboard. Accessed November 2, 2015
  8. "Daily Relay: 5 Questions with Craig Leon". April 18, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
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