Prefontaine's career, alongside those of Jim Ryun, Frank Shorter, and Bill Rodgers, generated considerable media coverage, which helped inspire the 1970s "running boom".

[7] His father, Raymond George Prefontaine (November 11, 1919 – December 21, 2004), was a welder who served in the U.S. Army in World War II.

[9] In junior high, Prefontaine was on his school's football and basketball teams but was rarely allowed to play because of his short stature.

[9][10][11] In the eighth grade, he noticed several high school cross country team members jog to practice past the football field, an activity he then viewed as mundane.

Later that year, he realized he could compete well in long-distance races during a three-week conditioning period in his physical education class.

[10][14] Some forty colleges across the nation recruited Prefontaine,[11][15] and he received numerous phone calls, letters, and drop-in visits from coaches.

[16] Steve Prefontaine decided to enroll at the University of Oregon to train under coach Bill Bowerman (who in 1964 co-founded Blue Ribbon Sports, later to become known as Nike).

At this time, he suffered only two more defeats in college (both in the mile), winning three Division I NCAA Cross Country Championships and four straight three-mile/5000-meter titles in track.

Along with his reputation for leading early instead of pacing himself until the last lap, Prefontaine had tremendous leg speed; his career-best for the mile (3:54.6) was only 3.5 seconds off the world record at the time.

Prefontaine rapidly gained national attention and appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated at age 19 in June 1970.

[18] In 1971, he began his training for the following year's Olympic Games in Munich, which had special meaning for his family (his mother was German, and his parents had met and married in Germany).

[24] This disappointment in his performance drove Pre to train harder than ever for his senior year of athletics, often logging over 10 miles per morning before he started his day.

Some viewed this arrangement as unfair, because the participants drew large crowds that generated millions of dollars in revenue, with the athletes being forced to shoulder the burden of all their own expenses without assistance.

After the event on Thursday, May 29, which included a 5,000-meter race that Prefontaine won, the Finnish and American athletes attended a party at the home of former Duck runner Geoff Hollister.

[2][3] While in the extended right curve near the base, his gold-colored 1973 MGB convertible crossed the center line, jumped the curb, hit a rock wall (44°02′36″N 123°03′18″W / 44.0433°N 123.0549°W / 44.0433; -123.0549) and flipped, trapping him underneath it.

[2][28] A nearby resident, Bill Alvarado (1936–2006), arrived next at the scene (he had heard Bylund's car screeching off) and reported that he found the man flat on his back, unconscious and pinned beneath the wreck.

[2] At his death, Prefontaine was probably the most popular athlete in Oregon and, along with Jim Ryun, Frank Shorter, Jeff Galloway and Bill Rodgers, was credited with sparking the national running boom of the 1970s.

In 2020, SuperWest Sports included Prefontaine in its list of The Greatest Pac-12 Male Track and Field Athletes of All Time.

For your dedication and loyalty To your principles and beliefs... For your love, warmth, and friendship For your family and friends... You are missed by so many And you will never be forgotten...

Runners inspired by Prefontaine leave behind memorabilia to honor his memory and his continued influence, such as race numbers, medals, and running shoes.

As University of Oregon professor Daniel Wojcik documents in his study of the memorial, Pre's Rock has become both a grassroots shrine and pilgrimage site for athletes and non-athletes from around the world.

The plaques bear an image of Prefontaine from his high school yearbook and various quotes and records from his time in Coos Bay.

The plaques were part of a grant from the Oregon Tourism Commission, the Coos Bay-North Bend Visitor & Convention Bureau, and the Prefontaine Memorial Committee.

This section includes medals he won during his career and the pair of spikes he wore when setting an American record for the 5,000 meters at Hayward Field.

Prefontaine was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 1983, where several exhibits showcase his shoes, shirts, and other memorabilia.

The Pete Susick Stadium at Marshfield High School in Coos Bay dedicated their track to honor Prefontaine, in April 2001.

On the 30th anniversary of his death in 2005, Nike placed a memorial advertisement in Sports Illustrated,[45] Eugene's Register-Guard,[46] and aired a television commercial in his honor.

[47] The day after Prefontaine's death, the Register-Guard printed Ode to S. Roland, a poem by chief American rival Dick Buerkle.