William ("Bill") Henry Rodgers (b. December 23, 1947 in Hartford, Connecticut) is an American runner and former American record holder in the marathon who is best known for his victories in the Boston Marathon and the New York City Marathon in the late 1970s. Rodgers won both races four times each between 1975 and 1980, twice breaking the American record at Boston with a time of 2:09:55 in 1975 and a 2:09:27 in 1979.

Tom Pappas (born September 6, 1976 in Azalea, Oregon) is an American track & field decathlete. Pappas won the gold medal at the 2003 World Championships held outside Paris, France, and was rated number 1 in the world that year by Track & Field News. He is a four-time US champion (2000, 2002, 2003, 2006) and was the 1999 NCAA champion while attending the University of Tennessee. He finished fifth at the 2000 Olympic decathlon, …

Wallace Spearmon, Jr., (born December 24, 1984) in Chicago, Illinois, USA is a sprint athlete. Spearmon is a graduate of Fayetteville High School and currently attends the University of Arkansas, where he competed collegiately for two seasons before turning pro. While at Arkansas, he won the 200 meter dash (200m) NCAA Outdoor title in 2004 and 2005 as well as the NCAA Indoor 200m title in 2005.

Stephen Michael James ("Steve") Ovett (born October 9, 1955), is a former middle distance runner from England. He was gold medalist in the 800 m at the 1980 Olympic Games, and set world records for 800 m, 1500 m and 1 mile. To this day, he holds the UK record for 2 miles, which he set in 1978. Born in Brighton and educated at Varndean Grammar School, Steve Ovett was an outstandingly talented teenage athlete.

Aarik Wilson (born October 25, 1982 in Fallon, Nevada) is an American triple jumper. US National Indoor Triple Jump Champion 2007(17.28 Meters), 3rd National Indoor Championships in Long Jump 2007(8.00 Meters). He also finished fifth at the 2003 Pan American Games and sixth at the 2006 World Athletics Final. He competed at the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships without reaching the final round.

William Augustus ("Willie") Banks III (b. March 11, 1956 at Travis Air Force Base, California) is an American athlete. He grew up in San Diego County and went to Oceanside High School. Banks is an Eagle Scout. He was a track & field athlete competing in the triple jump. On June 16, 1985 he set a world record of 58 feet 11.5 inches at the national championships in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. He earned his B.A. and J.D. from UCLA, but was unable to pass the bar exam.

Me'Lisa Barber is an American track and field sprint athlete. Barber won her first major international championships gold medal by running the lead leg on Team USA’s winning 4x400 m relay team at the 2003 World Outdoor Championships in Paris. She ran on the 2001 Team USA World University Games gold medal winning 4x400 m relay team with University of South Carolina teammates Demetria Washington, Carolyn Jackson and her twin sister Miki Barber.

Carl Brown (b. February 11 1970, Albion, Michigan) is a discus thrower. He currently lives in Americus, Georgia, United States. His current coach is Michael Judge. He attended Albion High School where he played football and basketball as well as athletics. He then spent two years at Southwestern Michigan College in Dowagiac before attending Siena Heights University in Adrian in 1993.

Karl Martin Lauer (born January 2, 1937) is a former West German athlete, winner of gold medal in 4x100 m relay at the 1960 Summer Olympics. Born in Cologne, Lauer was a German champion in 110 m hurdles from 1956 to 1960 and in decathlon in 1956. At the 1956 Summer Olympics, Lauer finished fourth in 110 m hurdles and was fifth in decathlon. At the 1958 European Championships, Lauer won the gold in 110 m hurdles. In 1958 Lauer also ran his first world record, …

William Frederick Crothers (born 24 December, 1940 in Markham, Ontario) is a retired Canadian track and field athlete. At one point, he held the Canadian record in all distances from 400 metres to 1500 metres and was holder of the world 800 metre indoor record. In 1963, he ran the two fastest 800 metre races of the year. He was named Lou Marsh Trophy winner as Canada's top athlete of 1963. Crothers competed for Canada in the 1964 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo, …

Doug taught social studies and coached track and cross country in Oxnard from 1971-76 at Channel Islands and Hueneme High Schools. Since 1976, he has been employed by the Arcadia School District, teaching social studies and physical education, and serving as Athletic Director from 2000 through 2004. He coached cross country and track & field until the mid-1980's when his daughters entered middle school time and more time on the home front was called for.

Lance Deal - Assistant Coach (throws): A four-time Olympic hammer thrower, national record holder, 21-time national champion and 1996 Olympic silver medalist, Deal is in his sixth year as an assistant coach at the University of Oregon. He was ranked #1 in the world in 1996 by Track & Field News and was top-10 five other seasons.

Joe Henderson has been writing about running for more than 25 years. He’s not only the West Coast editor and a featured columnist for Runner’s World magazine but also the author of more than a dozen books on running, including Long-Run Solution, Fitness Running, and Jog, Run, Race . He also promotes and participates in running events. As a veteran runner with more than 700 races to his credit, Henderson has seen firsthand how the sport has grown and evolved.