 Bill Dellinger (right) at the 1964 Olympics | ||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | William Solon Dellinger | |||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1934-03-23) March 23, 1934 (age 90) Grants Pass, Oregon, United States | |||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Track and Field | |||||||||||||||||
| Event(s) | 1500 m, 5000 m | |||||||||||||||||
| Club | Oregon Track Club | |||||||||||||||||
| Team | University of Oregon | |||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Bill Bowerman | |||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||
| Personal best(s) | 1500 m – 3:41.5 (1958) 1 mile – 4:02.7 (1961) 2 miles – 8:43.8 (1961) 5000 m – 13:49.8 (1964) | |||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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William Solon Dellinger (born March 23, 1934) is a retired American middle-distance runner, and track and field and cross country coach. He competed in the 5,000 m at the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Olympics and won a bronze medal in 1964, setting his personal record. He lettered in track at the University of Oregon in 1954, 1955, and 1956.
Coaching career
Upon retirement from competition, Dellinger took a position as the assistant coach to Bill Bowerman for the Oregon Ducks track and field team. After Bowerman's retirement in 1972, Dellinger succeeded him as head coach. In his 25 years of coaching, Dellinger's men won five NCAA titles, achieved 108 All American honors, and had a 134–29 meet record. He was the Pac-10 coach of the year multiple times.
Dellinger was instrumental in the development and coaching of Oregon and American great distance star Steve Prefontaine in conjunction with Bowerman, and their experience was made into a 1997 film Prefontaine, in which Bill Dellinger was played by Ed O'Neill.
In Co-Operation with Adidas, Dellinger developed the so-called "Dellinger Web", a Cushioning Technology used on various Shoes throughout the 80s and early 90s.
Dellinger also coached many post-collegians including Olympians Mary Decker, Bill McChesney, Alberto Salazar, Matt Centrowitz, Don Clary, and many others.
After retiring from coaching
Dellinger retired from the University of Oregon in 1998 and would later join his mentor, Bill Bowerman, as an inductee in the National Track and Field Hall of Fame in 2001. He retired after he had a stroke in 2000.
Since retirement, he has stayed out of the Track and Field world, except for a few appearances at meets named in his honor.
In 2021 USA Track and Field awarded Dellinger their Legend Coach Award.
Dellinger was inducted into the USTFCCCA Collegiate Athlete Hall of Fame in 2024.
Records
Records set by Dellinger:
- 1956 American Record holder: 5000 meters 14:16.2
- 1958 American Record holder: 1500 meters 3:41.5
- 1959 World Record holder (indoors): 2 miles 8:49.9
- 1959 World Record holder (indoors): 3 miles 13:37.0
- 1960 American record holder: 2 miles 8:43.8
See also
References
- ^ Bill Dellinger Archived 2015-07-01 at the Wayback Machine. sports-reference.com
- ^ Binder, Doug (August 20, 2008). "Bill Dellinger surged to '64 Olympic bronze and helped put Oregon on track map". The Oregonian. Retrieved 2008-08-20.
- "Dellinger voted Pac-10's award as coach of year". Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. June 20, 1986. p. 3C.
- "Bill Dellinger's Retirement from the University of Oregon".
- "LONGTIME UNIVERSITY OF OREGON COACH BILL DELLINGER TO RECEIVE 2021 USATF LEGEND COACH AWARD". United States Track and Field. June 22, 2021. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
- "Introducing the Collegiate Athlete Hall of Fame Class of 2024". March 22, 2024. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
- Duck Record Holders Archived 2011-07-09 at the Wayback Machine. goducks.com
External links
Media related to Bill Dellinger at Wikimedia Commons
- Bill Dellinger at the USATF Hall of Fame (archived)
| National Distance Running Hall of Fame inductees | |
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| Pan American Champions in men's 5000 metres | |
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| 1956 USA Olympic track and field team | ||
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| Men's track and road athletes |
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| Men's field athletes | ||
| Women's track athletes | ||
| Women's field athletes | ||
| Coaches |
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| USTFCCCA Collegiate Track & Field/Cross Country Athlete Hall of Fame | ||
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| Class of 2022 |
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| Class of 2023 | ||
| Class of 2024 | ||
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- USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners
- 1934 births
- Living people
- American male middle-distance runners
- Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in track and field
- Athletes (track and field) at the 1956 Summer Olympics
- Athletes (track and field) at the 1959 Pan American Games
- Athletes (track and field) at the 1960 Summer Olympics
- Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics
- Oregon Ducks men's track and field athletes
- Oregon Ducks track and field coaches
- American track and field coaches
- Sportspeople from Grants Pass, Oregon
- Medalists at the 1964 Summer Olympics
- Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in athletics (track and field)
- Track and field athletes from Oregon
- Medalists at the 1959 Pan American Games
- NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners
- 20th-century American sportsmen
- American track and field athletics Olympic medalist stubs