RRCA Announces 53rd Class of Distance Running Hall of Fame Inductees

February 15, 2023

Molly Huddle, Carey Pinkowski, Galen Rupp receive honor

Arlington, VA /ENDURANCE SPORTSWIRE/ – Founded in 1971, the RRCA Distance Running Hall of Fame inducts American runners that have attained extraordinary levels of achievement in the sport of distance running as either an athlete or a key influencer (an individual that has contributed a considerable amount of their time and knowledge to the betterment of the sport of distance running).

The RRCA is proud to announce its 53^rd class of RRCA Distance Running Hall of Fame inductees. These outstanding contributors to our sport will be honored at the RRCA National Running Awards Luncheon and Ceremony on March 25, 2023 in Chicago, IL.

Molly Huddle is a 10-time All-American at Notre Dame and was the runner-up in the 5,000 at the 2011 NCAA Outdoor Championships. She also was named all-BIG EAST 15 times and won seven BIG EAST track and field titles. Huddle won a silver medal in the 5,000 at the 2010 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships.  She also finished sixth in the 5,000 at the 2013 World Championships. On June 28, 2012, Huddle finished 2nd in the 5000 at the 2012 United States Olympic Trials to qualify for the 2012 London Olympics. At the London Games (2012), Huddle placed 11th in the 5,000. She set the American record in the 5,000 in 2014 (14:42.64). Also in 2014, her win at the NYRR New York Mini 10K made her the first American to win the title in a decade, and her time of 31:37 set an American record for a women-only race. In 2015, Huddle won her first United Airlines NYC Half, set the American road 5K record (14:50) at the B.A.A. 5K, won the USATF Outdoor Championships 10,000 meters, and placed fourth at the IAAF World Championships 10,000. She swept the 5,000 meter and 10,000-meter events at the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials, becoming the first woman in history to win both races in the same year. On August 12, 2016, Huddle achieved an American record of 30:13.17 in the 10,000 at the 2016 Olympic Games while placing sixth, breaking Shalane Flanagan’s 2008 Olympic time of 30:22.22. In November 2016, Huddle ran the New York City Marathon as her marathon debut where she finished in 3rd place in 2:28:13.  On January 14, 2018, at the Aramco Houston Half Marathon, Huddle broke Deena Kastor’s 67:34 American record in the half marathon set in 2006 by running 67:25.  This record has subsequently been broken twice by Emily Sisson, most recently in 2023.  Huddle has won 28 national titles in her career as a professional runner.

Galen Rupp is one of the greatest distance runners in University of Oregon history. He became the first person ever to win six NCAA distance races in the same calendar year when he captured the 2008 NCAA Cross Country crown, the 2009 NCAA Indoor 3,000 meter, 5,000 meter and distance medley titles and the 2009 NCAA Outdoor 5,000 and 10,000 meters. He went on to win the 10,000 meters at the USA Championships in his final race in an Oregon uniform. Rupp redshirted the 2008 college track season to focus on the 10,000 at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials, where he finished second (27:43.11), earning a spot on the 2008 U.S. Olympic team. He went on to finish 13th at the 2008 Olympics with an U.S. Olympic–record time of 27:36.99.  In 2009, Rupp announced that he was turning pro. In 2011, Rupp ran the New York City Half Marathon, his debut half, and finished third with a time of 1:00:30. On June 28, 2012, Rupp broke Steve Prefontaine’s last remaining record – his Olympic Trials 5000-meter record from 1972 – winning the race in 13:22.67. On August 4, 2012, at the London Olympic Games, Rupp took the silver medal in the 10,000-meter with a time of 27:30:90.  This was the first time a U.S. man had earned a medal in the Olympic 10,000-meter run in 48 years, the last being Billy Mills’s gold in the 1964 Olympics. Rupp placed seventh with a time of 13:45.04 in the 5000 m Olympic final.  At the 2016 Olympic Trials Marathon on a hot day in Los Angeles, Rupp won his debut marathon with a time of 2:11:13.  A few months later, on July 1, Rupp won the 10,000-meter run at the United States Olympic Trials with a time of 27:55.04, qualifying for the Olympics in a second event. At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Rupp placed fifth in the 10,000-meter run. Eight days later, Rupp finished third and earned a bronze medal in the Olympic Marathon with a time of 2:10:05. On October 8, 2017, Rupp won the Bank of America Chicago Marathon with a time of 2:09:20, becoming the first American male to win the race since Khalid Khannouchi in 2002. On February 29, 2020, Rupp won the 2020 United States Olympic Marathon Trials in Atlanta with a time of 2:09:20. On August 8, 2021, Rupp finished eighth in the Olympic Marathon held in Sapporo, Japan with a time of 2:11:41.

Carey Pinkowski came to the helm of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon nearly three decades ago, serving as its executive race director since 1990. During his tenure, the Chicago Marathon has experienced astronomical growth, expanding from 6000 registered runners in 1990 to a record 45,786 finishers in 2019, including runners from all 50 states and more than 130 countries. For 30 years, Pinkowski has been a key player in building the marathon’s dynamic relationships with the city, the corporate community and the local neighborhoods along the course. Under Pinkowski’s leadership, the event generates an economic impact on the City of Chicago of $378 million, and, since 2002, charity runners have helped the Chicago Marathon charity program raise more than $234 million for local, national and global causes. In 2006, Pinkowski helped found the Abbott World Marathon Majors (AbbottWMM). Pinkowski, along with the race directors at the Boston, London, Berlin and New York City marathons, created a series – which now includes the Tokyo Marathon – to award the world’s top male and female marathon runners. Pinkowski’s legacy with the Chicago Marathon includes designing its record setting and spectator friendly course that traverses 29 diverse Chicago neighborhoods, starting and finishing in Chicago’s “front yard,” Grant Park. Pinkowski’s course design allows for more than 1.7 million spectators to watch the race. Four of the Chicago Marathon’s five world records have been set during Pinkowski’s time: Morocco’s Khalid Khannouchi (1999), Kenya’s Catherine Ndereba (2001), Great Britain’s Paula Radcliffe (2002) and Kenya’s Brigid Kosgei (2019).  To commemorate his 20th anniversary as Executive Race Director, the City of Chicago and Bank of America bestowed Pinkowski with an honorary street naming – “Carey Pinkowski Drive” – at the intersection of Monroe Street and Columbus Drive, the site of the race’s start line.