Mindaugas Pukštas (born 3 August 1978) is a Lithuanian former marathon runner. He represented his nation

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

at the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

, and later became an All-American in cross-country racing as a member of the track and field team for Oklahoma State University, under head coach Rene Sepulveda, while studying at

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma State University (informally Oklahoma State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States. The university was established in 1890 under the legislation of the Morrill Act. Originally known ...

Stillwater, Oklahoma Stillwater is the tenth-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, and the county seat of Payne County, Oklahoma, Payne County. It is located in north-central Oklahoma at the intersection of U.S. Route 177#Oklahoma, U.S. Route 177 and Oklahoma S ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Before his time at Oklahoma State, Pukštas was an

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n for the

SMU Mustangs track and field The SMU Mustangs track and field team is the track and field program that represents Southern Methodist University. The Mustangs compete in NCAA Division I as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The team is based in University Park, Texa ...

team, finishing 8th in the 5000 m at the

2003 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships The 2003 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships were contested to determine the individual and team national champions of men's and women's NCAA collegiate indoor track and field events in the United States after the 2002–03 season ...

. Before he retired from his athletic career in 2006 to pursue volunteer coaching for his alma mater's track and field squad, Pukstas ran a career best in 2:12:52 to win his first and only title at the

Eurasia Marathon The Istanbul Marathon (, also known as Türkiye İş Bankası Istanbul Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is an international Track and field athletics, athletics event hosted in Istanbul, Turkey, in November, first held in 1979. It is the onl ...

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

. Pukstas qualified for the men's marathon at the

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, by finishing third and registering an A-standard entry time of 2:14.59 from the Motorola Marathon in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

. He finished seventy-fourth in a vast field of a hundred runners with a time of 2:33:02, trailing behind the gold medalist

Stefano Baldini Stefano Baldini (born 25 May 1971 in Castelnovo di Sotto, Emilia-Romagna, Italy) is a retired Italian runner who specialized in the marathon. He was the Olympic champion in Athens in 2004 and was twice European champion (1998 and 2006). Biogr ...

of Italy by nearly twenty-two minutes. Pukstas currently resides in

, along with his wife and fellow assistant coach Živilė Pukštienė, and their children Rokas and Gabija. In May 2011, Pukštas overcame the rains across the city's lengthy course to claim the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon title under the men's senior category in 2:31:33.

References

External links

*
Mindaugas Pukstas
– Oklahoma State University athlete profile at OkState.com * * * 1978 births Living people Lithuanian male marathon runners Olympic athletes for Lithuania Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Kaunas Lithuanian emigrants to the United States Oklahoma State Cowboys track and field athletes Track and field athletes from Oklahoma SMU Mustangs men's track and field athletes {{Lithuania-athletics-bio-stub