How Eugene became the running capital of the world

It's been called many things. The running capitol of the world, Tracktown USA, "...a bunch of hype!" So, what's the real scoop on Eugene, Oregon and its unique running culture?

The Heart of Tracktown documentary explores how a community built a legacy of shoes, trails, world records, and a healthy obsession with running. From Nike to jogging, Olympic Trials to road races, sports product innovation to personal fitness revolution—for more than a century, one place has served as the epicenter of a growing sport and competitive spirit. All roads lead back to Hayward Field.

Runners in the community provide personal insight and expert commentary including a brief history of the running program at the University of Oregon, the rise of a running community in the Eugene area, the Pac 12 Championship at Hayward Field, the Eugene Marathon, the UO collegiate Track and Field team, the Butte to Butte road race, and the World Athletics Championship at Hayward Field.

The legacy of Hayward Field: https://hayward.uoregon.edu/
Running Trails in Eugene, Oregon:    • Running Trails in Eugene, Oregon  
Bowerman Sports Science Center: https://bssc.uoregon.edu/
University of Oregon: https://www.uoregon.edu/

Produced by University Communications at the University of Oregon in partnership with UO Libraries and UO Athletics.

Cast:
Tom Heinonen
Kayla Krueger
Emma McEvoy
Rachel Robinson
Lauren Goss
Vince Buford
Ellen Schmidt-Devlin
Lonn Robertson
Jim Hill
Shalane Flanagan
Jerry Schumacher
Maddy Elmore
Elliott Cook
Cathie Twomey Bellamy
Matthew Centrowitz Jr.
Sam Prakel
Vanessa Fraser
Gilbert Grundy
Ben Blankenship
Bill Dellinger
Andrew Kirchharr

Director: Dustin Whitaker
Producer: Charlie Litchfield
Camera: Dustin Whitaker, Charlie Litchfield, Nic Walcott, Chris Larsen
Drone: Chris Larsen
Color: Nic Walcott
Animation/Graphics: Chris Larsen
Additional Camera: Matt Parker, Travis Worrell
UO Track and Field Photographer: Matt Parker
UO Libraries Archivist: Lauren Goss

Historical content courtesy of Special Collections and University Archives and Gary Lineburg.

Special Thanks:
Matt Parker
Johnny Truax
Jenn Lewis
Erin Whitaker
Rick Putnam
Amanda Hvass
Trisha Kluge
Josh Gordon
Pac 12 Network
Nate Mallue
Craig Ashford
Doug Park
Brad Hutchins
Carlyn Schreck
Jesse Abdenour
Mike Hahn
Ian Dobson
Caleb Rexius

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