Álvaro Mejía Florez (15 May 1940 – 12 January 2021) was a

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 stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

from

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

, who became a national hero after competing in the 5,000 meter race at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. Mejía competed in the

1968 Mexico City Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Mexico 1968 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 12 to 27 October 1968, in Mexico City, Mexico. These were the first Ol ...

in the

10,000 meters The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship-level events. The r ...

, where he placed tenth, and in the

1972 Munich Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. It was the ...

, where he ran the

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

. Mejía won the

Saint Silvester Road Race The Saint Silvester Road Race () is a long-distance running event, the oldest and most prestigious street race in Brazil. Regarded as the main international event in Latin American athletics, the Brazilian competition is held yearly in the cit ...

in 1966, the 1971 Boston Marathon, and a bronze medal at the

1971 Pan American Games The 1971 Pan American Games, officially known as the VI Pan American Games () and commonly known as Cali 1971, were held in Cali, Colombia, from 30 July to 13 August 1971. (One source dates the Games from July 25 to August 8.) A total of 2,935 ...

in the 10,000 meter race.

1971 Boston Marathon winner

The 1971 Boston Marathon, the 75th edition of the event, had one of the closest finishes ever, as Mejía dueled almost the entire way with Pat McMahon, a native of

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and local

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

resident. Mejía finally pulled away from McMahon less than 150 yards from the finish, clocking 2:18:45, just five seconds ahead of McMahon. Mejía was the first Boston Marathon winner from South America.

Coming to America

Mejía was married to Terri Stickles, the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

bronze medalist in the 400 meter freestyle swim in the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. Stickles brought Mejía to the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

in 1969. They met in

Cali, Colombia Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,280,522 residents estimate by National Administrative Department of Statistics, DANE in 2023. The city span ...

, where Terri was a

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an Independent agency of the U.S. government, independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to communities in partner countries around the world. It was established in Marc ...

volunteer. From 1969 until 1985, Mejía dispensed running advice along with running shoes and apparel at a sporting goods store ("Olympic Sports") he owned with Stickles in

San Mateo, California San Mateo ( ) is the most populous city in San Mateo County, California, United States, on the San Francisco Peninsula. It is part of the San Francisco Bay Area metropolitan region, and is located about south of San Francisco. San Mateo border ...

. During the 1970s, he competed as a member of the local West Valley Track Club (WVTC), at a time when the club often dominated team competition in

Northern California Northern California (commonly shortened to NorCal) is a geocultural region that comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California, spanning the northernmost 48 of the state's List of counties in California, 58 counties. Northern Ca ...

. Several Colombian runners followed Mejía to train in

and compete alongside Mejia for WVTC, including Víctor Mora, who placed second in the 1972 Boston Marathon.

Achievements

Coaching

Mejía coached Colombian athletes including Alirio Carrasco, of

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

, who ran 2:12:09 at the

Chicago Marathon The Chicago Marathon is a road marathon held in October in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the seven World Marathon Majors. Thus, it is also a World Athletics Label Road Race. The Chicago Marathon is one of the largest races by number of fini ...

in 2003, and Olympian William Roldán.

Death

Mejía died in Bogotá on 12 January 2021 at the age of 80.Murió Álvaro Mejía Flórez, exponente del atletismo colombiano

References

External links

* *
BostonMarathon.org
- 'Race Summaries',

Boston Athletic Association The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) is a non-profit dedicated to organized sports, with a focus on running, in the Greater Boston area. The B.A.A. hosts such events as the Boston Marathon, the B.A.A. 5K, the B.A.A. 10K, the B.A.A. Half Mar ...

* - "A Confluence of Champions: Mejia, Laris, Anderson, Dare, Clarke, Leydig Highlight WVTC Reunion", Chuck Schneekloth, West Valley Track Club {{DEFAULTSORT:Mejia, Alvaro 1940 births 2021 deaths Colombian male long-distance runners Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1968 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1971 Pan American Games Olympic athletes for Colombia Pan American Games bronze medalists for Colombia Pan American Games bronze medalists in athletics (track and field) Sportspeople from Medellín Athletes from Antioquia Department Boston Marathon male winners Central American and Caribbean Games gold medalists for Colombia Competitors at the 1962 Central American and Caribbean Games Competitors at the 1966 Central American and Caribbean Games Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in athletics Medalists at the 1971 Pan American Games 20th-century Colombian sportsmen Bolivarian Games gold medalists for Colombia Bolivarian Games medalists in athletics Bolivarian Games silver medalists for Colombia