Greg Meyer
Greg Meyer (born September 18, 1955) is an American long-distance runner. Meyer's winning time for the 1983 Boston Marathon race was 2:09.00. He was the last American to win the Boston Marathon until 2014, and the last person born in America to win the Chicago Marathon until 2017. He set ten American road racing records and two world records, and won the River Bank Run, in his home town of Grand Rapids, seven times.
Personal life
Meyer was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan to parents Rita and Jay. He has one older sibling, Matthew Meyer. Meyer is a 1973 graduate of Grand Rapids West Catholic High School. In 1977 he earned a degree in education and social studies from the University of Michigan.[1] In 1986 he earned a Master of Education degree from Boston University. He met and married fellow runner Paula Lettis in 1980 [1] while living in Boston and together they had three children, Nicolle (1981), Jacob (1983) and Daniel (1986)[2]. Meyer and Lettis divorced in 2005 while living in Dexter. Meyer remarried in May 2019. He and his wife Kerry reside near Rockford.
Career
Greg was employed from approximately 2000 through 2008 by the University of Michigan as director of Major Gifts for the Greater Michigan Region,[3] where he helped raise over $125 million for the university. From 2008 to 2012 Meyer served as Associate Vice President for Institutional Advancement at Aquinas College.[2] In Fall of 2012, he became the VP & Executive Director of the Aquinas Foundation. After his time at Aquinas, he served as the VP of Development and Communication for the YMCA of Greater Grand Rapids from 2015 to 2018. In October 2018, Greg joined University of Michigan Health-West as their Chief Community Officer aligning his track record (no pun intended) in building community relationships perfectly with the hospital system's mission of relentlessly advancing health to serve West Michigan.
Running accomplishments
Meyer set American road racing records in the 8K, the 10K, and the 15K. He set world records in the 10-mile run and the 25K. He was the first University of Michigan runner to break the four-minute mile mark. In 1978, Meyer won the U.S. Amateur Athletic Union's cross country running title, in 29:35.9, narrowly edging out Alberto Salazar.[3] The U.S. boycotted the 1980 Summer Olympics, and Meyer finished 7th in the 1984 Trials. Meyer's winning time for the 1983 Boston Marathon race was 2:09.00. He was the last American to win the Boston Marathon until 2014, and the last person born in America to win the Chicago Marathon until 2017. He set ten American road racing records and two world records, and won the River Bank Run, in his home town of Grand Rapids, seven times. Meyer was inducted into the U of M Athletic Hall of Honor and was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 2011.
Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Representing the United States | |||||
1980 | Detroit Marathon | Detroit, United States | 1st | Marathon | 2:13:07 CR |
1981 | Boston Marathon | Boston, United States | 11th | Marathon | 2:13:08 |
1982 | Chicago Marathon | Chicago, United States | 1st | Marathon | 2:10:59 |
1983 | Boston Marathon | Boston, United States | 1st | Marathon | 2:09:00 |
1984 | U.S. Olympic Trials | Buffalo, NY, United States | 7th | Marathon | 2:13:29 |
See also
References
- ^ Marathon man Greg Meyer keeps going and going
- ^ "Fundraising Specialist and Marathoner Greg Meyer to Join Aquinas College". Archived from the original on 2010-05-28. Retrieved 2008-03-07.
- ^ Meyer Runs 29:35.9, Takes A.A.U. Title, New York Times, November 26, 1978. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
External links
- National Distance Running Hall of Fame profile
- Greg Meyer Photo
- Greg Meyer: Running Man, Money Man
- Greg Meyer: helping kick start YMCA Run for Your Heart Program in Saginaw
- v
- t
- e
- 1897: John McDermott (USA)
- 1898: Ronald MacDonald (CAN)
- 1899: Lawrence Brignolia (USA)
- 1900–01: Jack Caffery (CAN)
- 1902: Sammy Mellor (USA)
- 1903: John Lordan (USA)
- 1904: Michael Spring (USA)
- 1905: Frederick Lorz (USA)
- 1906: Timothy Ford (USA)
- 1907: Thomas Longboat (CAN)
- 1908: Thomas Morrissey (USA)
- 1909: Henri Renaud (USA)
- 1910: Fred Cameron (CAN)
- 1911: Clarence DeMar (USA)
- 1912: Michael Ryan (USA)
- 1913: Fritz Carlson (USA)
- 1914: James Duffy (CAN)
- 1915: Édouard Fabre (CAN)
- 1916: Arthur Roth (USA)
- 1917: Bill Kennedy (USA)
- 1918: (Military Relay)
- 1919: Carl Linder (USA)
- 1920: Peter Trivoulides (GRE)
- 1921: Frank Zuna (USA)
- 1922–24: Clarence DeMar (USA)
- 1925: Charles Mellor (USA)
- 1926: John C. Miles (CAN)
- 1927–28: Clarence DeMar (USA)
- 1929: John C. Miles (CAN)
- 1930: Clarence DeMar (USA)
- 1931: James Henigan (USA)
- 1932: Paul de Bruyn (GER)
- 1933: Leslie S. Pawson (USA)
- 1934: Dave Komonen (CAN)
- 1935: John A. Kelley (USA)
- 1936: Ellison Brown (USA)
- 1937: Walter Young (CAN)
- 1938: Leslie S. Pawson (USA)
- 1939: Ellison Brown (USA)
- 1940: Gérard Côté (CAN)
- 1941: Leslie S. Pawson (USA)
- 1942: Joe Smith (USA)
- 1943–44: Gérard Côté (CAN)
- 1945: John A. Kelley (USA)
- 1946: Stylianos Kyriakides (GRE)
- 1947: Suh Yun-bok (KOR)
- 1948: Gérard Côté (CAN)
- 1949: Gösta Leandersson (SWE)
- 1950: Ham Kee-yong (KOR)
- 1951: Shigeki Tanaka (JPN)
- 1952: Mateo Flores (GTM)
- 1953: Keizo Yamada (JPN)
- 1954: Veikko Karvonen (FIN)
- 1955: Hideo Hamamura (JPN)
- 1956: Antti Viskari (FIN)
- 1957: John J. Kelley (USA)
- 1958: Franjo Mihalić (YUG)
- 1959: Eino Oksanen (FIN)
- 1960: Paavo Kotila (FIN)
- 1961–62: Eino Oksanen (FIN)
- 1963–64: Aurèle Vandendriessche (BEL)
- 1965: Morio Shigematsu (JPN)
- 1966: Kenji Kimihara (JPN)
- 1967: Dave McKenzie (NZL)
- 1968: Amby Burfoot (USA)
- 1969: Yoshiaki Unetani (JPN)
- 1970: Ron Hill (GBR)
- 1971: Álvaro Mejía (COL)
- 1972: Olavi Suomalainen (FIN)
- 1973: Jon Anderson (USA)
- 1974: Neil Cusack (IRE)
- 1975: Bill Rodgers (USA)
- 1976: Jack Fultz (USA)
- 1977: Jerome Drayton (CAN)
- 1978–80: Bill Rodgers (USA)
- 1981: Toshihiko Seko (JPN)
- 1982: Alberto Salazar (USA)
- 1983: Greg Meyer (USA)
- 1984–85: Geoff Smith (GBR)
- 1986: Robert de Castella (AUS)
- 1987: Toshihiko Seko (JPN)
- 1988: Ibrahim Hussein (KEN)
- 1989: Abebe Mekonnen (ETH)
- 1990: Gelindo Bordin (ITA)
- 1991–92: Ibrahim Hussein (KEN)
- 1993–95: Cosmas Ndeti (KEN)
- 1996: Moses Tanui (KEN)
- 1997: Lameck Aguta (KEN)
- 1998: Moses Tanui (KEN)
- 1999: Joseph Chebet (KEN)
- 2000: Elijah Lagat (KEN)
- 2001: Lee Bong-ju (KOR)
- 2002: Rodgers Rop (KEN)
- 2003: Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot (KEN)
- 2004: Timothy Cherigat (KEN)
- 2005: Hailu Negussie (ETH)
- 2006–08: Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot (KEN)
- 2009: Deriba Merga (ETH)
- 2010: Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot (KEN)
- 2011: Geoffrey Mutai (KEN)
- 2012: Wesley Korir (KEN)
- 2013: Lelisa Desisa (ETH)
- 2014: Meb Keflezighi (USA)
- 2015: Lelisa Desisa (ETH)
- 2016: Lemi Berhanu Hayle (ETH)
- 2017: Geoffrey Kipkorir Kirui (KEN)
- 2018: Yuki Kawauchi (JPN)
- 2019: Lawrence Cherono (KEN)
- 2020: cancelled
- 2021: Benson Kipruto (KEN)
- 2022–23: Evans Chebet (KEN)
- 2024: Sisay Lemma (KEN)
- World Marathon Majors
- Berlin Marathon – List (M/W)
- Boston Marathon – List (M/W)
- Chicago Marathon – List (M/W)
- London Marathon – List (M/W)
- New York City Marathon – List (M/W)
- Tokyo Marathon – List (M/W)