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User:Sletten1/Oregon Track Club

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Oregon Track Club
AbbreviationOTC
Formation1958 as Emerald Empire Athletic Association
Location
  • Eugene, Oregon
Websitehttp://www.runnerspace.com/oregontrackclub


The Oregon Track Club is a running organization based in Eugene, Oregon. Shortened to OTC, the Oregon Track Club has a long history at the pinnacle of American track and field. In the last decade, OTC athletes have begun to compete for the Nike Oregon Project, pushing the limits of American athletes.

History

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The OTC has gone through several distinct changes since forming over 50 years ago.

Emerald Empire Athletic Association

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Formed by Bill Bowerman, the Emerald Empire Athletic Association (EEAA) was the predecessor to the Oregon Track Club.thumb|right|alt=OTC and Nike cofounder Bill Bowerman.|Bill Bowerman, founder of the OTC In 1948, Bill Bowerman became the head coach track coach at the University of Oregon, in Eugene, Oregon. In order to spur interest in running with the local community, Bowerman formed an all comers meet for grade schoolers in 1949. The next year the meet was expanded to include high school and college athletes. The success of the all comers meet caused Bowerman to want to increase his efforts in promoting track and field in Eugene. In 1958, with the help of Ray Hendrickson and Bob Newland, Bowerman established the Emerald Empire Athletic Association. Ralph Christensen became the first president of the EEAA, and along with the other leaders established the goals for the EEAA [1]: 

   1.) To promote youth program for youngsters in track and field.
   2.) To provide training assistance and facilities for track and field athletes of all ages.
   3.) To sponsor one big track meet each summer as a fundraising event to support the other goals.

Change to Oregon Track Club

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In 1965 the Emerald Empire Athletic Association changed its name to the Oregon Track Club. This was in part due to the leadership's desire to concentrate mainly on track and field.[1] Beginning in the late 1960's, the OTC started to become a dominant force in American Track and Field. Due to the relationship between the University of Oregon and the Oregon Track Club (both in Eugene, same coaches), many athletes from the University of Oregon's strong cross country and track and field programs decided to remain in Eugene to compete with the Oregon Track Club. The most notable of these athletes are Steve Prefontaine, who while running with the OTC placed fourth in the 1972 Summer Olympics in the men's 5000 meters race [2], and Mac Wilkins, who received the gold medal in the discus throw at the 1976 Summer Olympics. During this period of dominance, the OTC sent dozens of athletes to the Olympics, won several medals, and would have even more success had it not been for the 1980 Summer Olympics boycott that the American athletes participated in.

Nike Oregon Project

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Main article: Nike Oregon Project

In 2001, Nike began the Nike Oregon Project. This is a program designed by Nike to promote the development of elite American athletes in Track and Field. Using advanced training techniques such as high altitude simulators, the Nike Oregon Project has been helping to push the limits of the elite group of American runners. [3] In order to recruit an elite crop of athletes to their program, Nike began to sponsor the elite level athletes from the OTC as well as bringing several elite athletes from all over the country. There are two groups of Nike Oregon Project athletes, one who live and train in Eugene, and another who live and train at Nike's headquarters in Portland, Oregon.

Branches of the Oregon Track Club

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The Oregon Track Club is made up of three branches: the general club, the elite club, and the masters club.

General Club

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Spectators watch a race at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon
Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon is one of the most famous track and field venues in the world

The general part of the OTC is the largest subgroup in the OTC. It is made up of athletes under the age of 30 who pursue running for enjoyment. Many of these runners had no or little NCAA running experience, but are still running everyday and competing in organized meets because of the passion they exhibit for the sport. Throughout the years, the dedicated members of the OTC have been instrumental in advancing Track and Field in the United States. This has come in several different ways, including but not limited to, helping to design the legendary Hayward Field, hosting a number of major meets such as the 2008 US Olympic Trials, and inspiring thousands to enjoy the sport of running.

Elite

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The Elite division of the OTC has now been swallowed up by the Nike Oregon Project. Before the Nike Oregon Project was created in 2001, elite runners used the OTC as a means to train and compete together against top flight competition. The athletes were not being paid specifically by the OTC, however oftentimes they competed as a team against elite runners from other clubs such as the Florida Track Club and the Greater Boston Track Club. In 2001, the Nike Oregon Project was created and the elite division of the OTC began running under the Nike name. However, even though many runners on the OTC Elite run with the Nike Oregon Project, there are many athletes who train and run exclusively with the OTC Elite and not with the Nike Oregon Project.

Masters

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The masters and submasters division of the OTC is a subgroup of the OTC designed for older members to stay competitive. The masters and submasters divisions have age restrictions to provide fair competition between athletes: 40 years old and older for the masters division and 30 to 39 years old for the submasters division. The OTC's masters division hosts the Hayward Classic, which is one of the premier masters track meets in the country.[4]

Runners

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Current Athletes

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The following elite athletes compete as part of the OTC and/or the Nike Oregon Project [5]:

Former Athletes

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The following notable athletes have competed in the past for the Oregon Track Club[6]:

Coaches

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Coach of Nike Oregon Project Alberto Salazar
Alberto Salazar is the current head coach for the Nike Oregon Project

The following have coached for either the OTC or the Nike Oregon Project:

  • Bill Bowerman
  • Bill Dellinger
  • Frank Gagliano
  • Ray Hendrickson
  • Bob Newland
  • Mark Rowland
  • Alberto Salazar (Nike Oregon Project)
  • Jerry Schumacher (Nike Oregon Project)

Nike Relationship

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Nike and the OTC have had a long relationship
Nike and the OTC have had a long relationship.

The OTC has had a long-standing close relationship with Nike, Inc. over the years. This relationship is due mostly to the face that one of Nike's founders was OTC founder Bill Bowerman. It is also because Nike's main founder Phil Knight was a middle distance runner for the University of Oregon[7] and had a close relationship with many of the athletes in the OTC. Throughout the years, Nike has contributed strongly to the OTC by supplying equipment and sponsoring competitions for athletes to compete against other track clubs across the nation. This relationship has greatly increased with the establishment of the Nike Oregon Project.

References

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  1. ^ a b "Oregon Track Club History", retrieved 23 November 2010
  2. ^ GoPre.com retrieved 23 November 2010
  3. ^ Patrick, Dick. "Choosing Running Over College", USA Today, Beaverton Oregon, 11 February 2005. Retrieved on 23 November 2010
  4. ^ "OTC Masters" retrieved 6 December 2010
  5. ^ "OTC Elite Roster, retrieved 6 December 2010
  6. ^ "Olympics at Sports-Reference", retrieved 6 December 2010
  7. ^ Krentzman, Jackie. "The Force Behind the Nike Empire", Stanford Magazine, retrieved 7 December 2010
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[[Category:Track and field clubs in the United States]] [[Category:Sports in Eugene, Oregon]] [[Category:Sports in Oregon]]

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