Tom Byers (athlete)
Encyclopedia
Thomas Joseph Byers, Jr. (born 1955) was a professional distance runner and current businessman. He was a runner at The Ohio State University in the 1970s and still holds the outdoor OSU distance record in the 1500m (3.37.5). He held the mile record (4:00.10.) until Jeff See broke it on on June 2, 2007. During his time at OSU, he also won the U.S. Junior 1500m title, finished second at the AAU outdoor championships, and participated in the '76 Olympic Trials. Byers temporarily retired from competitive running for several years to join the corporate world, but returned to professional running in the 1980s. One thing for which Byers was noteworthy was his hair. Unlike most middle and long distance runners, who wore their hair short, Byers chose to wear his long.
Byers took a dramatic victory in a 1500m race in Oslo in 1981. Steve Ovett
was a strong favourite to win the race, and Byers was expected to act only as a pacemaker. But Ovett and the pack did not follow his pace, and he was leading by almost ten seconds going into the final lap. Ovett ran the last lap almost nine seconds quicker than Byers but finished second by 0.53s.
His 3:50.84 mile ranks 7th fastest by a United States runner, while his 2:16.1 in the 1000 meters is the second fastest by a US runner.
He had two sons, one of whom is deceased. Thomas Joseph Byers III (1985–2005) was a distance runner for Coffman High School in Dublin, Ohio
(where he graduated in the same class as fellow student-athlete Brady Quinn
,) and went on to run at the University of Kentucky
and the University of Mississippi
. He died when he was struck by a train before his junior year at Kentucky.
Byers took a dramatic victory in a 1500m race in Oslo in 1981. Steve Ovett
Steve Ovett
Stephen Michael James "Steve" Ovett OBE , is a former middle distance runner from England. He was gold medalist in the 800 metres at the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow, U.S.S.R., and set world records for 1500 metres and the mile run...
was a strong favourite to win the race, and Byers was expected to act only as a pacemaker. But Ovett and the pack did not follow his pace, and he was leading by almost ten seconds going into the final lap. Ovett ran the last lap almost nine seconds quicker than Byers but finished second by 0.53s.
His 3:50.84 mile ranks 7th fastest by a United States runner, while his 2:16.1 in the 1000 meters is the second fastest by a US runner.
He had two sons, one of whom is deceased. Thomas Joseph Byers III (1985–2005) was a distance runner for Coffman High School in Dublin, Ohio
Dublin, Ohio
Dublin is a city in Franklin, Delaware, and Union counties in the U.S. state of Ohio. The population was 41,751 at the 2010 census. Dublin is a suburb of Columbus, Ohio. Approximately 57,000 people live within the Dublin school district....
(where he graduated in the same class as fellow student-athlete Brady Quinn
Brady Quinn
Brayden Tyler "Brady" Quinn is an American football quarterback for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League. Quinn was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Notre Dame.-Early Years:Brayden Tyler "Brady" Quinn was born on...
,) and went on to run at the University of Kentucky
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
and the University of Mississippi
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...
. He died when he was struck by a train before his junior year at Kentucky.