There is a certain element possessed by athletes such as Michael Jordan, Pele, and Muhammad Ali that sets them apart from the many other talented athletes in their respective sports. Their exceptional athletic talents, combined with their individual personalities and histories set them apart from others, creating legends whose popularity transcends both athletic and national boundaries. Steve Prefontaine can be counted among these individuals. Unlike the majority of professional distance runners who are relatively obscure and unknown outside of the running community, Pre's popularity extends outside of both the running community and the United States. In spite of the fact that he died over 30 years ago, Pre t-shirts can still be seen at almost every high-school and collegiate cross-country and track competition, and there have been two movies and a documentary filmed about his life. While many runners today, myself included, were born long after Prefontaine's death, his story is still passed on and he remains one of the most well known and popular runners in America. Initially published in 1977, Tom Jordan's book Pre: The Story of America's Greatest Running Legend (St. Martin's Press 1994, $14.95) has become part of the reason for Pre's enduring popularity, and takes a look at Pre as both a person and a legend.

The story follows Pre's early life in Coos Bay, Oregon, through his running career at the high school, collegiate, and international levels. While he is too small to be a successful football player, Jordan describes how Pre instead takes up running, in which his talent and work ethic are immediately noticeable. His high school career includes two first place finishes at the Oregon State Cross-Country meet, multiple wins in both the mile and two mile distances at the Oregon State Track meet, as well as a national two-mile record. Even early on in his career, Jordan shows how there is something that sets Pre apart from other athletes. Pre's high-school coach is quoted, saying, "His talent was not that he had great style...No, his talent was his control of his fatigue and his pain. His threshold was different than most of us, whether it was inborn or he developed it in himself."

Pre's success at the high school level is translated into immediate and continued success at the collegiate level at the University of Oregon with a career including multiple NCAA National Cross-Country titles, NCAA Track titles, Collegiate records, American records, and individual victories at numerous invitationals and dual meets. His international competitions are also chronicled, with a focus on his performance in the 1972 Olympics in Munich at the 5000 meters final, where his attempt to force the race into a measure of "who's toughest," results in a fourth place finish, but also one of the most exciting Olympic races of all time. The three photo inserts accompanying these descriptions are a nice feature of the book and help to illustrate these races as well as Pre himself.

Along with describing Pre's athletic accomplishments, though, Jordan is also able to illustrate Pre's multiple personas. Jordan states that, "My primary goal when I wrote this book in 1977 was to focus on Pre the runner and legend. During the writing, however, I soon found it impossible to speak of his career without including anecdotes about Pre the person." Jordan is able to combine these elements by presenting many perspectives and quotes from Pre himself, as well as individuals who either knew Pre or have been influenced by him. Comments from Pre athletes such as Bob Kennedy, Todd Williams, Alberto Salazar, Mary Slaney, Don Kardong, and Frank Shorter, along with reporters, fans, coaches, teammates, friends, and family help to illustrate the complexity of Pre's character and how he comes to mean many different things to many different people. While many individuals are familiar with Pre's athletic accomplishments, the book contains details such as Pre starting a running club at the State Penitentiary, his work with youth athletes, his fight with the AAU to gain more fair treatment for amateur athletes, and his involvement with Nike. These descriptions help this book to extend beyond just a description of athletic accomplishments to help the reader really get a feel for what Pre was like as an individual.

While Pre died in a car accident at age 24 before his career running career was finished, this book helps to explain why it is that all American distance runners that have come after him are always overshadowed by his achievements both on and off the track. The book shows how it is not just his running success, but his attitude and symbolism of the American work ethic as he rises up from a small mill town to athletic greatness which contributes to Prefontaine's legendary status. The balanced analysis of Pre's character, the photos, and the descriptions of his races make this an excellent book, and a great read for anyone wanting to learn more about Steve Prefontaine.

Editor note: Elaine Binkley is junior at Denison University where she has earned NCAA Division III All American honors twice in cross-country. Last spring, she was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All- America(R) Women's Track & Field/Cross Country first team as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America. Elaine also earned All State honors in Cross Country and Track at Bishop Watterson High School.

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