Paul Cummings

Paul Richard Cummings (5 September 1953 – 17 September 2001) was a world-class middle and long distance runner who ran competitively from the 1,500 meters to the marathon, breaking several American records and one world record.

His ability to have a middle distance runner's kick and also have the stamina to compete in distances up to the marathon place him as one of the most versatile American track and road racers of his era.

Paul Cummings was born in Tempe, Arizona but his family moved to Santa Maria, California when he was 11 years old.

Cummings was the third of thirteen children and had ten sisters.

Cummings did not always see running as his strength.

He played basketball in junior high, and wanted to continue in high school, but failed to make the team.

However, when he came in first in his Physical Education class in the mile run, a new opportunity opened up for him; he was asked to join the track team at Ernest Righetti High School, and by his senior year was running the mile in 4:10, the second best time in California, seventh best in the country.

Cummings was recruited by several top universities and chose to attend Brigham Young University.

Cummings was named All-American five years in a row while running on the Brigham Young University Track and Cross Country teams.

However, after his Freshman year, he was diagnosed with an extra bone in his foot and in order to run again, would have to undergo surgery to remove the bone.

Cummings recovered, and by his junior year became the NCAA champion in the mile run.

A video of the race can be seen here.

Cummings was the first runner from the Intermountain West to break the Four-minute mile barrier.

Cummings was invited to several of the most prestigious track and field meets during the 1970s.

He won events at the Millrose Games, the Sunkist Invitational, the LA Times Indoor Games, the Jack in the Box Indoor Games, the Modesto Relays, and other events.

He competed against Steve Prefontaine, Frank Shorter, Tony Waldrop, Marty Liquori, Filbert Bayi, Wilson Waigwa, John Walker, Steve Scott, Eamonn Coghlan, Dick Buerkle, and several other top tier runners of the era, besting everyone on this list at least once.

His personal best for the mile, 3:56.4, was run at his birthplace, Tempe, Arizona on March 16, 1974.

Cummings was a Latter-day Saint.

He wanted to serve a two-year LDS mission, but since LDS Missions are served voluntarily and missionaries serve without compensation, he was unable to raise the required funds.

After meeting with LDS Church President Spencer W. Kimball, Paul was encouraged to stay in school on an athletic scholarship, earn his degree, and continue to run and compete, sharing his beliefs with those he met through running.

Paul did this well and shared his beliefs with many athletes and friends.

BYU Track Coach Clarence Robison said Cummings was "a great performer and has great courage. He's a tenacious, fierce competitor."

He ran in the Millrose Games Wanamaker Mile in 1974, 1975, 1976, and 1977, winning the event in 1976 in a Millrose Games record time of 3:57.6.

On April 25, 1976, Cummings won the Penn Relays 1500 Meter event at Franklin Field in Philadelphia in 3:38.9.

In 1976 he won the 3,000 meter event at Los Angeles's Sunkist Invitational Track Meet in 8:29.6, just five seconds off Steve Prefontaine's American Record set at the same meet the year before.

In 1977 he won the Sunkist Invitational indoor mile in 3:57.2.

Also in 1977, Cummings, representing the US, won the mile at Canada's Tri-Country indoor track and field meet, competing against Canada and the Soviet Union.

In January 1978 at the Muhammad Ali Track and Field Invitational at the Long Beach Arena in California, Cummings broke the indoor American record for the 1500 meters by .4 with a time of 3:39.8.

A year later, in January 1979 at the same Muhammad Ali Track and Field Invitational at the Long Beach Arena in California, both John Walker and Cummings finished under the indoor world record for the 1500 meters by .4 and .2 seconds respectively.

Walker set a world record with a time of 3:37.4.

Cummings set an American Record with a time of 3:37.6.

Cummings ran at a time when there was very little financial support for athletes after college.

When attending track meets, several athletes would share the same hotel room, sleeping on floors, and carpool together to save costs.

He worked at a steel mill rebuilding open hearth furnaces to support his family and ran for the Tobias Striders, Beverly Hills Striders and Pacific Coast track clubs to maintain his amateur status.

Hoping to earn a spot on the 1980 US Olympic Team, working out over five hours per day, and working full-time six days a week at a steel mill, Cummings was one of many athletes disappointed by the U.S.'s boycott of the 1980 Moscow Summer Games.

Due to work demands and disappointment at the 1980 boycott, Cummings came close to retiring altogether from running.

When he was laid off from the mill in late 1980, he began running full-time.

In 1984, Cummings won the US Olympic Trials in the 10,000 Meter run in Los Angeles, CA and finally became a member of the US Olympic Team.

A video of the race can be seen here.

He was able to compete in the 10,000 meter run at the Olympics held in Los Angeles, but did not make the finals.