Julie Brown (athlete)
Encyclopedia
Julie Ann Brown is a former American
distance runner who won the World Cross Country Championship in 1975 and represented the United States in the 1984 Summer Olympics
in the women's marathon placing 36.
Brown concentrated on track and cross-country running prior to the Olympic trials but a victory in the Avon marathon in 1983 convinced her that she could qualify for the Olympic marathon team. She ran a conservative race staying in the pack until the midway point and broke away finishing second, 37 seconds behind the Olympic trial winner, Joan Benoit Samuelson.
After her track career, Brown attended Western State University and after graduating, joined a law firm as an attorney.
, and competed in a variety of distance events winning several state championships while attending Billings Senior High School. She competed in the 880-yard run winning the state championship for three years in a row starting in 1970. She also won two 440-yard run championships and in her senior year, she was state cross-country
champion as well.
before switching to California State University, Northridge
. As a college athlete she won Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women
national championships in the 800 meters, 1500 meters, 3000 meters, and cross-country. She also won Amateur Athletic Union
national titles in the 1500 meters, 3000 meters, cross-country, and marathon, as well as winning The Athletics Congress national titles in 3000 meters, cross-country, and marathon.
At the 1979 Pan American Games
, Brown won three silver medals, taking second place in the 800 meters, 1500 meters, and 3000 meters.
Brown qualified for the 1980 Summer Olympics
in the 800 meters and 1500 meters but did not compete due to the boycott of the Olympics. She did compete in the 1984 Olympics in the marathon placing 36th.
Bobbi Gibb
, the first woman to have run the entire Boston Marathon
, sculpted the 12-inch bronze figurines of a pony-tailed girl running that were given as trophies to Joan Benoit Samuelson, Julie Brown, and Julie Isphording
, the top three women marathoners at the US Olympic trials in 1984.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
distance runner who won the World Cross Country Championship in 1975 and represented the United States in the 1984 Summer Olympics
1984 Summer Olympics
The 1984 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Los Angeles, California, United States in 1984...
in the women's marathon placing 36.
Brown concentrated on track and cross-country running prior to the Olympic trials but a victory in the Avon marathon in 1983 convinced her that she could qualify for the Olympic marathon team. She ran a conservative race staying in the pack until the midway point and broke away finishing second, 37 seconds behind the Olympic trial winner, Joan Benoit Samuelson.
After her track career, Brown attended Western State University and after graduating, joined a law firm as an attorney.
High school
Brown was born in Billings, MontanaBillings, Montana
Billings is the largest city in the U.S. state of Montana, and is the principal city of the Billings Metropolitan Area, the largest metropolitan area in over...
, and competed in a variety of distance events winning several state championships while attending Billings Senior High School. She competed in the 880-yard run winning the state championship for three years in a row starting in 1970. She also won two 440-yard run championships and in her senior year, she was state cross-country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
champion as well.
College
Brown started at the University of California, Los AngelesUniversity of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
before switching to California State University, Northridge
California State University, Northridge
California State University, Northridge is a public university in Northridge, a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles, California, United States....
. As a college athlete she won Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women
Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women
The Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women was founded in 1971 to govern collegiate women's athletics in the United States and to administer national championships. It evolved out of the Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics for Women . The association was one of the biggest...
national championships in the 800 meters, 1500 meters, 3000 meters, and cross-country. She also won Amateur Athletic Union
Amateur Athletic Union
The Amateur Athletic Union is one of the largest non-profit volunteer sports organizations in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs.-History:The AAU was founded in 1888 to...
national titles in the 1500 meters, 3000 meters, cross-country, and marathon, as well as winning The Athletics Congress national titles in 3000 meters, cross-country, and marathon.
International
Brown won a World Cross Country Championship in 1975; the first American woman to do so. She won the race in a time of 13:42, five seconds ahead of Bronislawa Ludwichowska from Poland.At the 1979 Pan American Games
1979 Pan American Games
The 8th Pan American Games were held in San Juan, Puerto Rico, from July 1 to July 15, 1979. The capital of Puerto Rico played host to 3,700 athletes from 34 countries competing in 22 sports, making the VIII Pan American Games the largest to date. Security was a concern due to turmoil over the...
, Brown won three silver medals, taking second place in the 800 meters, 1500 meters, and 3000 meters.
Brown qualified for the 1980 Summer Olympics
1980 Summer Olympics
The 1980 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Moscow in the Soviet Union. In addition, the yachting events were held in Tallinn, and some of the preliminary matches and the quarter-finals of the football tournament...
in the 800 meters and 1500 meters but did not compete due to the boycott of the Olympics. She did compete in the 1984 Olympics in the marathon placing 36th.
Bobbi Gibb
Bobbi Gibb
Roberta Louise "Bobbi" Gibb is the first woman to have run the entire Boston Marathon . She is recognized by the Boston Athletic Association as the pre-sanctioned era women’s winner in 1966, 1967, and 1968...
, the first woman to have run the entire Boston Marathon
Boston Marathon
The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon hosted by the U.S. city of Boston, Massachusetts, on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897 and inspired by the success of the first modern-day marathon competition in the 1896 Summer Olympics, the Boston Marathon is the world's oldest...
, sculpted the 12-inch bronze figurines of a pony-tailed girl running that were given as trophies to Joan Benoit Samuelson, Julie Brown, and Julie Isphording
Julie Isphording
Mary Julie Isphording is a retired female long-distance runner from the United States. She competed for her native country at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California. There she did not reach the finish...
, the top three women marathoners at the US Olympic trials in 1984.