Spokane, WA—Olympic marathon runner and author Kenny Moore will join 31st Bloomsday celebrations with a talk at the Trade Show on Saturday, May 5th, 2007 at 2:00 p.m. Moore, whose exploits as an athlete and inspired writing for Sports Illustrated have earned him an unparallelled reputation in the sport, will talk about his latest book, Bowerman and the Men of Oregon.
A native of Portland, Oregon, Moore enjoyed a solid running career at the University of Oregon under the direction of legendary coach Bill Bowerman. After graduating in 1966, he found his niche in long distance events, including the marathon, and in 1969 he set the US marathon record with a time of 2:13:29. He also scored six consecutive wins at San Francisco’s Bay-to-Breakers from 1968-1973. In 1972, he represented the U.S. at the Munich Olympics, where he placed fourth in the marathon.
After enjoying a stellar athletic career, Moore took his interest in sports in a different direction in becoming a writer for Sports Illustrated. He stayed with the magazine for 24 years (1971-1995) while working on various side projects, including co-writing and appearing in the 1980 film “Personal Best” and the 1988 “Tequila Sunrise” with Mel Gibson and Kurt Russell.
Throughout his life, Moore’s passion for the University of Oregon and its track coach never wavered. He co-wrote and produced “Without Limits,” a Warner Brothers feature film about Steve Prefontaine and Bowerman (1995-1997). Later he moved back to Eugene to research and publish Bowerman and the Men of Oregon, the complete biography of the coaching legend. After his talk on Bloomsday weekend, Moore will have copies of the book available for sale.
Over 100 vendors have signed up for this year’s Bloomsday Trade Show, which is one of the largest health and fitness expos in the nation. Those wishing to enter this year’s Bloomsday Run can do so online at www.bloomsdayrun.org, or fill out and mail in a printed entry form, which are available at numerous locations throughout the Inland Northwest. Mailed entries must be postmarked by April 17 to take advantage of the low $14.00 entry fee. In addition, participants can sign up at The Sports Authority’s two local stores from now until the entry deadline of April 17.
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