Browning Ross

Browning Ross has been called the “father of long distance running in the United States”. He won eight AAU titles at various distances from 1950-55, usually cross-country or on the roads, but on the track, he was the first Pan American Games champion at 1,500 metres in 1951, and won a silver medal at those games in the steeplechase. He competed for Villanova and the Penn AC, winning the first NCAA steeplechase title in 1948 for Villanova. He later started a small newsletter of distance running results, called Long Distance Log. This eventually evolved into Runner’s World. He also founded the club that became the Road Runners Club of America.

Personal Bests: Mile – 4:13.5i (1949); 2 miles – 9:06.5i (1956); 3 miles – 14:17.5i (1955); 6 miles – 29:35.3 (1957); 3000S – 9:08.3 (1952).