Raymond Milton Conger (November 12, 1904 – October 23, 1994) was an American
middle-distance runner. He held the world record for the 1,000 yards and the American record for the
1,500 metres.
In the U.S. national championships, Conger was a three-time winner in both the 1,000 yd and the
mile run
The mile run (1,760 yards or exactly 1,609.344 metres) is a middle-distance foot race.
The history of the mile run event began in England, where it was used as a distance for gambling races. It survived track and field's switch to ...
.
At the
1928 Summer Olympics in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
, he won his qualifying heat for the
1,500 m
The 1500 metres or 1,500-metre run (typically pronounced 'fifteen-hundred metres') is the foremost middle distance track event in athletics (sport), athletics. The distance has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 and the World Champi ...
but did not finish in the final.
In 1929, Conger became the first and only athlete to defeat
Paavo Nurmi
Paavo Johannes Nurmi (; 13 June 1897 – 2 October 1973) was a Finnish middle-distance and long-distance runner. He was called the "Flying Finn" or the "Phantom Finn", as he dominated distance running in the 1920s. Nurmi set 22 official world ...
in the mile, beating the "
Flying Finn
"The Flying Finn" ( fi, Lentävä suomalainen, sv, Flygande finländaren) is a nickname given to several Finnish athletes who were noted for their speed. Originally, it was given to several Finnish middle and long-distance runners. The term w ...
" to the win in the indoor
Wanamaker Mile The Wanamaker Mile is an indoor mile race held annually at the Millrose Games in New York City. It was named in honour of department store owner Rodman Wanamaker. The event was first held in 1926 inside Madison Square Garden, which was the venue ...
of the
Millrose Games The Millrose Games is an annual indoor athletics meet (track and field) held each February in New York City. They started taking place at the Armory in Washington Heights in 2012, after having taken place in Madison Square Garden from 1914 to 2011 ...
. Although Conger was modest about his win, he would be known as "the man who beat Nurmi" for decades.
Conger also scored wins over
Otto Peltzer
Otto Paul Eberhard Peltzer (8 March 1900 – 11 August 1970) was a German middle distance runner who set world records in the 1920s. Over the 800 m Peltzer improved Ted Meredith's long-standing record by 0.3 seconds to 1:51.6 min in London in ...
and
Edvin Wide
Emil Edvin Wide (22 February 1896 – 19 June 1996) was a Swedish middle-distance and long-distance runner.
Biography
Born in Finland as Emil Edvin Hermansson, Wide moved to Sweden in 1918. He competed for Sweden at the 1920 Summer Olympics in ...
, and went on to be undefeated in the mile for two seasons.
He retired from running in 1932.
Conger ran track for
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the ...
in college, later obtained a master's degree in physiology, and then did further graduate work at
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
. From 1931 to 1936 he taught zoology at
Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, where he also coached track.
He then joined the faculty at the
Pennsylvania State University and was a long-time professor of professor of physical education preceding his retirement in 1970. In 1963, he was inducted into the
Iowa Sports Hall of Fame.
He was born and raised in Riceville, Iowa.
See also
*
List of Pennsylvania State University Olympians
The List of Pennsylvania State University Olympians is a list of former or current Penn State students (129) and coaches/faculty members (12) that have made an appearance as athletes or medaled at the Olympic Games, plus one athlete for the boycott ...
*
Riceville, Iowa
Riceville is a city in Howard and Mitchell counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 806 at the time of the 2020 census.
History
Riceville was platted in 1855 by three of the Rice brothers, Leonard, Dennis, and Gilbert. Riceville wa ...
References
1904 births
1994 deaths
American male middle-distance runners
Athletes (track and field) at the 1928 Summer Olympics
Olympic track and field athletes of the United States
Iowa State Cyclones men's track and field athletes
Columbia University alumni
Carleton College faculty
Pennsylvania State University faculty
People from Riceville, Iowa
Track and field athletes from Iowa
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