The Front Runner - by Brendan O'Meara (Hardcover)

About the Book

"In the fifty years since his tragic death in a car crash, Steve Prefontaine has towered over American distance running. One of the most recognizable and charismatic figures to ever run competitively in the United States, Prefontaine has endured as a source of inspiration and fascination-a talent who presaged the American running boom of the late 1970s and helped put Nike on the map as the brand's first celebrity-athlete face. Now on the anniversary of his untimely death, author Brendan O'Meara, host of the Creative Nonfiction podcast, offers a fresh, definitive retelling of Prefontaine's life, revisiting one of the most enigmatic figures in American sports with a twenty-first-century lens. Through dozens of original interviews with family, friends, teammates, and competitors, this long-overdue reappraisal of Prefontaine-the first such exhaustive treatment in almost thirty years-provides never-before-told stories about the unique talent, innovative mental strength, and personal struggles that shaped Prefontaine on and off the track. Bringing new depth to an athlete long eclipsed by his brash, aggressive running style and the heartbreak of his death at twenty-four, O'Meara finds the man inside the myth, scrutinizing a legacy that has shaped American sports culture for decades. What emerges is a singular portrait of a distinctly American talent, a story written in the pines and firs of the Pacific Northwest back when running was more blue-collar love than corporate pursuit-the story of a runner whose short life casts a long, fast shadow"--

Book Synopsis

On the 50th anniversary of American Track and Field icon Steve Prefontaine's tragic death comes an essential reappraisal of his life and legacy, a powerful work of narrative history exploring the forces and psychology that made Prefontaine great and separating the man from the myths.

In the fifty years since his tragic death in a car crash, Steve Prefontaine has towered over American distance running. One of the most recognizable and charismatic figures to ever run competitively in the United States, Prefontaine has endured as a source of inspiration and fascination--a talent who presaged the American running boom of the late 1970s and helped put Nike on the map as the brand's first celebrity-athlete face.

Now on the anniversary of his untimely death, author Brendan O'Meara, host of the Creative Nonfiction podcast, offers a fresh, definitive retelling of Prefontaine's life, revisiting one of the most enigmatic figures in American sports with a twenty-first-century lens. Through over a hundred and fifty original interviews with family, friends, teammates, and competitors, this long-overdue reappraisal of Prefontaine--the first such exhaustive treatment in almost thirty years--provides never-before-told stories about the unique talent, innovative mental strength, and personal struggles that shaped Prefontaine on and off the track. Bringing new depth to an athlete long eclipsed by his brash, aggressive running style and the heartbreak of his death at twenty-four, O'Meara finds the man inside the myth, scrutinizing a legacy that has shaped American sports culture for decades.

What emerges is a singular portrait of a distinctly American talent, a story written in the pines and firs of the Pacific Northwest back when running was more blue-collar love than corporate pursuit--the story of a runner whose short life casts a long, fast shadow.

Review Quotes

"[An] elegant biography... O'Meara's loving portrait also celebrates Prefontaine's legacy off the field, most notably his campaign against the Amateur Athletic Union's rules disqualifying athletes who attempted to monetize their success. Nimble and comprehensive, this is a stirring tribute to a generational runner gone too soon." -- Publishers Weekly

"In this electric, superbly drawn portrait, Brendan O'Meara strips away the mythology surrounding Steve Prefontaine through over a hundred interviews with those who knew him best. Charting Prefontaine's fierce ascendence to the pantheon of American sport, O'Meara reveals the complex soul behind the brash facade--a rough-and-tumble kid from Oregon who revolutionized distance running and left an indelible mark on athletic history." -- NEAL BASCOMB, New York Times bestselling author of The Perfect Mile and The Winter Fortress

"Pre to me was always an overhyped pretty boy who would have been forgotten if he hadn't died young--or he was, until I read The Front Runner, Brendan O'Meara's astonishingly detailed and humanizing account of a legend hidden by his own star power. It's sports journalism at its finest, a book so well-researched that everyone who thinks they know Pre is in for a big surprise." -- CHRISTOPHER McDOUGALL, bestselling author of Born to Run

"O'Meara delivers all the goods on a legend who chased far more than medals on the track. More fighter than runner, Steve Prefontaine was a seventies heavyweight who deserved this brilliant account of a life cut tragically short. A masterclass in the relentless pursuit of perfection." -- IAN O'CONNOR, five-time New York Times bestselling author

"The Front Runner is not just a biography of Steve Prefontaine. It's a primer for anyone who wants to understand singular greatness, taken all too soon." -- SETH WICKERSHAM, ESPN senior writer and New York Times bestselling author

"Steve Prefontaine may have been impossible to catch up with in person, but Brendan O'Meara manages to do so on the page, capturing the fragility and ferocity of the world-class runner in all his contradictory record-breaking glory. Sports fans will appreciate how the special culture of the state of Oregon as a breeding ground for championship runners comes in for more than a cameo. The Front Runner is a deeply researched, painstakingly crafted elegy worthy of its legendary subject." -- MADELEINE BLAIS, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of Queen of the Court