2015 National Black Distance Running Hall of Fame

MARATHONERS & ULTRAMARATHONERS

Mebrahtom “Meb” Keflezighi

• Received silver medal in the 2008 Olympic Marathon.
  
• Won 2009 NYC and 2014 Boston Marathons.
• Won four NCAA championships competing for the UCLA Bruins track and field team.
• Won the USA Cross Country Championships in 2001, 2002 and 2009.
• 2009 and 2014 USA Half Marathon Champion.
• Three-time USA 10,000-Meter Champion (2000, 2002, and 2004)
• Three-time USA 12,000-Meter Cross Country Champion (2001, 2002, and 2009)
  
• Six-time USA 15,000-Meter Champion (2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, and 2007)
  

Elizabeth P. Brown

• Began running and placing in triathlons in 1986, after turning 40 years old.
  
• Completed fourteen marathons, including Boston Marathon four times; 1993, 1994, 2005 and 2006.
• Has been among the top three rated persons in her age group in the Cincinnati running community, twice in the last four years.
  

• Won the 1982, 1983, and 1986 Cowtown Marathon in Ft. Worth, TX.
  
• Was one of 160 runners to qualify for the 1984 US Olympic Trials.
• Ran the 1983 Boston Marathon in 2:17.
  

Lisa Felder

• Completed over 300 marathons and 111 ultra marathons.
  
• Coached the East Bay run team for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training program (TNT) from 1998 through 2009.
  
• Launched the first ever TNT Ultra Team, the largest endurance program in the world in 2009.
  

Jon Rankin

• 2004 All-American honor for UCLA
  
• 1500M and one-mile record holder for UCLA and the Cayman Islands
  
• 17th African-American and 268th American to break the four-minute mile.
  
• Ran personal bests of 800m 1:47.11 in the 800, 3:35.26 in the 1500M, and 3:54.24 in the mile.
• Was an alternate for the 2008 US Olympic 1500M team.
  

• Ranked third in the world in the 5k (16:28) and ½ marathon (1:15:28) in his age division, in 1996 at 50 years old.
  
• Finished 3^rd in the PAUSTF Track & Field Grand Prix Championship in 1998.
• Served as the Head Coach for Team-in-Training’s East Bay Run Team for over 10 years and is also Athletic Director/Coach for Students Run Oakland.
  

• Won USA Indoor Track and Field Championships at 400 meters in 1975 and 1500 meters in 1974.
  
• Was a US Olympian at 800 meters in 1980 and 1984.
• Competed in every Olympic Trials between 1972 and 1984.
  

• 1950 and 1951 US Indoor 1,000-Yard Champion
  

COACH/AGENT/RACE DIRECTOR

Merhawi "Hawi" Keflezighi

• Launched HAWI Sports Management in 2005. Negotiated over $7 million in endorsement contracts.
  
• Clients include Leo Manzano, Meb Keflezigh, Peter Gilmore, Jon Rankin, and Jacques Sallberg.
• Earned a BA in Communication Studies from UCLA and a JD from the UCLA School of Law.
• Identified as one of the top 50 most influential people in running by Runner’s World.
  

• Served as the race director and coordinator for the Kwanzaa Fest Beat Obesity Walk/Run Events held annually in Dallas, TX since 2007. This is a free event.
  
• Coached a large number of beginner walkers and runners for national organizations like the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation.
• Is a Certified Fitness Coach and Certified Distance Running Coach.

• Formed by six runners in 1984. One of the nation’s oldest predominately Black running clubs.
  
• Organized numerous 5K races in the Cincinnati area.
• Coordinated aid stations in every Flying Pig Marathon since the inaugural race in 1999.
  
• Running club members include National Black Distance Running Hall of Fame honorees Francis Gilbert and Elizabeth P. Brown.