Henry RonosV)78 RecotdHere are the details of Henry Rono's competitive record for 1978. In a word: Remarkable.Rono won 40 ofhis 52 races. Ofthose races, 48 were track events (40 outdoors and eightindoors), three were in cross-country, and one was on the road. He ran the one-mile, two-mile, three-mile, 2,000-meter, 3,000-meter, 5,000-meter, 10,000-meter, and 3,000-metersteeplechase as well as cross-country distances of8,000 meters and 10,000 meters and a half-marathon road event. During one period, from March 25 through August 16, Rono won 28 of30 track races-and broke four world records. Some denotations: WR (worid record); CR(U.S. collegiate record); h (qualifying heat); sc (steeplechase).

DATE EVENT TIME/PLACE MEET SITE

(2) Sunkist Invitational Los Angeles, CA(1) Vandal Invitational Moscow, ID(4) Maple-Leaf Games Toronto(3) Jaek-in-the-Box San Diego, CA(3) Examiner Games Daly City, CA(1) NCAA Championship Detroit, MI(2) NCAA Championship Detroit, MI(6) NCAA Championship Detroit, MI

INDOOR TRACKl-21 2-mile* 8:18.3 CRLn Mile 4:00.92-10 3-mile l3..V1.62-17 2-mile** 8:20.02-18 Mile 4:01.63-10 Mile 4:72.2h3-11 !-mil6 8:t13.4

3-11 MiIe 4:50.0

4*4-r54-2,4-295-75-135-195-19

&.1G1

1)1)1)1)1)1)

1)

1)

1)

1)

1)

1)

1)

OUTDOOR TRACK1-28 10,(XX)-meter 27:48.6 (1)

3-25 5,0(X)-meter 13:31.8 (1)

4-l 5,(XX)-meter l3:D.7 (1)

InternationalSan Jose RelaysWashington StateInvitationalTYiangular MeetWash. St. vs. OregonQuadrangular MeetWashington vs.U. of Wash.Pepsi InvitationalNorthwest RelaysPac-8 ConferencePac-S ConferencePac-S ConferencePhilips InvitationalNCAA ChampionshipNCAA ChampionshipNCAA ChampionshipInternationalAfoican GamesSportfestBritish ChampionshipsBislett GamesWorld GamesInternationalAfrican GamesAfoican GamesInternationalCommonwealth GamesCommonwealth GamesCommonwealth GamesCommonwealth GamesWeltklasseInternationalInternationalBritain vs. Finland (Guest)InternationalInternationalCoca-Cola InvitationalInternationalInternationalInternational

San BIas Run

5,O0O-meter 13:08.4 WR (

3,0OO-m sc 8:14.8 CR (Mile 4:00.93,0(X)-m sc 8;21.43,(XX)-meter 7:4i|.03,00O-m sc 8:05.4 WR (

lOfi[-meter 27:46.6 (

3,(XX)-m sc 8:18.6h5,(XX)-meter 13:21.8h

3,(XX)-m sc Did Not Finish

Auckland, N. Z.San Jose, CAFullman, WA

Berkeley, CAEugene, ORPasco, WAPuilman, WAL.A., CASeattle, WACorvallis, ORCorvallis, ORCorvallis, ORLondonEugene, OREugene, OREugene, ORViennaMombassa, Ken.Cologne, W. Ger.LondonOsloHelsinkiMilanAlgiersAlgiersEdmontonEdmontonEdmontonEdmontonEdmontonZurichFrankfurtKoblenz, W. Ger.LondonRieti, It.lngleheim, W. Ger.LondonGateshead, Eng.OsloTokyo

Coamo, P. R.

5-20 5,(XX)-meter 13:20.25-71 3,000-meter 7:43.9

&3 3,0(Xlm sc 8:L2.4Gll 10,(XX)-meter27:2.5WR&18 5,O(X)-meter 13:32.0ilD, 3,fiX)-meter 7:41.56-A, 5,000-meter 13:20.8Gn 3,(XX)-meter 7:32.1 WR6% 3,(X)Gm sc 8:16.87-Z 5,(XX)-meter 13:18.27-20 10,000-meter2?:58.97-25 3,(XX)-m sc 8:15.8

$5 3,(XX}.meter 7:45.39-7 3,000-m sc 8:17.59-9 l0,fiX)-meter 27:53.89-10 5,(XX}'meter 13:15.5g-LZ 3,000-meter 7:49.3

1)

*2 2,(XX)-metcr 5:17.0 (5)&6 3,00O-m sc 8:26.3h (1)

L7 3,00O-m sc 8:,26.5 (1)

&8 5,(XX).meter l4.02.2h (

&10 5,(XX)-meter 13:23.0 (

&16 5,(XX)-meter 13:16.1 (

9-15 2-mile9-17 Mile9-20 2-mile9-?5 Mile Did Not Finish

8:14.74:03.88:32.7

(3)(2)(1)(1)(1)(2)(2)(1)

ROAD RACING2-5 Half- 1:04:46

marathon

CROSS-COT}I{TRYlG?A 8,O(X)-meter 39:37.211-11 10,(XX)-meter 29:22.0ll-20 10,000-meter 34:10.?

(1) Pac-10 Divisional Pullman, WA(1) NCAA Distriet Qualifying Fresno, CA(237) NCAA Championship Madison, WI

(1)

*En route to the 2-mile in the Sunkist Meet, Rono reached the 2,000-meter point in 5:7I.2, a

collegiate indoor record.**Eiroute to the 2-mile in the Jack-in-the-Box Meet, Rono reached 3,000 meters in 7:49.1, a

collegiate indoor record.-compiled,

b1,1 Walt Murphy

Chaplin. "He rn'as out there with worldrecord-holders and .just eating themalive. I couldn't believe it."

Chaplin realized then Rono had thepotential, the talent, to become a gr.eatrunner, but Rono's best times up to thatpoint were an 8:29 steeplechase and a13:30 5,000 meters----exceilent collegiatetimes, but far from world records. Therewas nothing, really, but the intensitywith which Rono assaulted the Canyon,to suggest those remarkable 80 days lastspring.

What made the difference? Whatmade the improvement? "Of course I'dlike to say it was the coaching," saidChaplin, "but it wasn't-Rono simply de-cided he would break those records."

John Chaplin has always been reluc-tant to take much credit for his runners'achievements-('1f,'s their legs," he likesto put it, and he prefers to point to theroliing wheatlands around the Universitycampus and say it's the climate, maybe,or the lack of distractions in the smallfarming community of Pullman. "Pull-man's like a security blanket for runnerslike Rono," said Chaplin. "He can comehere, and no one can find him. He can gethis work done here and then go out andface the world."

"He leaves me alone," Rono said,ccmmenting on his coach. "I see himmaybe trvice a $'eek when we get togeth-er to taik about my running and mYstudying."

"We have a very Iax program here,"explained Chaplin, "best suited to a cer-tain type of athlete, one who is veryindependent, very strong-willed. That'sthe rval' you have to be to be a gooddistance l'unner'. I recruit this type ofathlete-it \\'ould be wrong for me tobring someone here rvho needs a morestmctured progtam."

Chaplin is a heavy-set man of 42. Aformer top-level sprinter at WSU, he hasa bachelor's degtee in history from WSUand a master's in phiiosophy from OregonState in Corvaliis. He drinks 12-year-oldJameson Irish Whiskey, raises fightingcockr. collects art and now and thenteaches a cout'se in Zoroastrianism (an

ancient fliddle Eastern religion) at theL nii'ersitl'. He's worked as a newspaperreporter'. a bartender, a disc jockey andfor a ri hile he was in the Army in counter-intelligence, where, as he puts it, helearned to talk for three hours withoutsaling anything. He's coached at WSUsince 1968, rvhen he became the assistantto Jack Moobemy. Since 1973, Chaplinha-. been the head track-and-field coach

THE RUNNER: APRIL 1979