Joseph John Erxleben (September 15, 1889 – August 29, 1973) was an American

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely Aerobic exercise, aerobic in nature and requires endurance, stamina as well as mental strength. Within e ...

who competed in the marathon at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm.

Pre-Olympic accomplishments

Erxleben was from

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...

and competed for the

Missouri Athletic Club The Missouri Athletic Club (often referred to as the MAC), founded in 1903, is a private city and athletic club with two locations. The Downtown Clubhouse is in Downtown St. Louis, Missouri, USA and the West Clubhouse is located in the St. L ...

. He had a younger brother, Hermann, who was reported to have won a five-mile "junior marathon" at the age of 16. Erxleben won a 15-mile race at a meet in the

St. Louis Coliseum The St. Louis Coliseum was a venue in St. Louis, Missouri. The closing of the 1904 World’s Fair left the city without a convention center for three years. A group of businessmen led by attorney Guy Golterman assembled $450,000 in private fun ...

hosted by

Saint Louis University Saint Louis University (SLU) is a private Jesuit research university with campuses in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, and Madrid, Spain. Founded in 1818 by Louis William Valentine DuBourg, it is the oldest university west of the Mississip ...

on February 13, 1909. On May 1, 1909 running "against a cold head wind", he finished over six minutes ahead of

Alexander Thibeau Alexander Thibeau was an American long-distance runner who, along with Albert Corey and Sidney Hatch, was one of Chicago's most prominent marathoners in the early 1900s. Thibeau was one of twelve athletes selected to represent the United States ...

to win the Missouri Athletic Club's All-Western Marathon in a time of 2:49:10.4. Erxleben finished five seconds behind L. J. Pillivant as the runner-up in the sixth edition of the same race on May 14 of the following year, but beat

Joseph Forshaw Joseph Michael Forshaw is an Australian ornithologist, and expert on parrots. He was the former head of wildlife conservation for the Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service. Dreifus, Claudia.A Conversation With Joseph M. Forshaw: A Passi ...

to win the Missouri AC event for a second time in 1911. In March, 1912, Erxleben was one of "twenty of the best distance runners in the middle west" scheduled to participate in a 20-mile indoor marathon at Riverview Rink in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

1912 Summer Olympics

For the third time in four years, Erxleben again won the 25-mile Missouri Athletic Club marathon in St. Louis on May 4, 1912 to earn a spot on the United States Olympic Team. Posting a time of 2:36:30, he finished ahead of runner-up Forshaw with

Sidney Hatch Sidney Herbert Hatch (August 18, 1883 – October 17, 1966) was an American athlete who competed for the United States in the 1904 Summer Olympics held in St. Louis, United States, in the 4 mile team where he won the silver medal with hi ...

in third. According to The Washington Times, Erxleben was also selected by the

United States Olympic Committee The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) is the National Olympic Committee and the National Paralympic Committee for the United States. It was founded in 1895 as the United States Olympic Committee, and is headquartered in Col ...

to represent the team in the 10,000 meters flat, but there is no record in the official report of the 1912 games that he participated in the event. Conditions for the marathon at the 1912 Summer Olympics run on July 14, 1912 have been described as "very hot" and even "horrific", with only half of the 68 starters finishing the race. Late in the race, seven Americans ran in the top twelve positions, including Erxleben in ninth, resulting in one report to suggest that they may have acclimatized better to the heat than the Northern European competitors. Erxleben went on to finish in eighth place, the fourth American, with a time of 2:45:47.2. He was one of 42 American Olympians who returned to New York aboard the

Red Star Line The Red Star Line was a shipping line founded in 1871 as a joint venture between the International Navigation Company of Philadelphia, which also ran the American Line, and the Société Anonyme de Navigation Belgo-Américaine of Antwerp, Belgiu ...

ocean liner An ocean liner is a passenger ship primarily used as a form of transportation across seas or oceans. Ocean liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes (such as for pleasure cruises or as hospital ships). Ca ...

'' Vaderland'' on July 31, 1912.

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References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Erxleben, Joseph 1889 births 1973 deaths Athletes (track and field) at the 1912 Summer Olympics American male marathon runners Olympic track and field athletes for the United States