An American Legend He could lounge around Boulder everyday, sipping lattes and talking about the glory days. Instead, he’s trying to save American distance runners from the fakes. by Jessica Griffiths
Frank Shorter won the 1972 Olympic marathon in Munich and finished second in the 1976 Games in Montreal. He helped pull America into a running boom in the 1970s and helped Boulder become the running mecca that it is today. So, what’s Boulder’s most famous runner up to these days? Local trail runners know you can often find him lounging on his deck, watching runners travel around the trail in his backyard. But Frank Shorter is far from bored, dividing time between family, public appearances, a new book project and his fight against performance-enhancing drugs.
On Training
Currently, Shorter is working on writing a 160-page training book for introductory-level runners. He admits it’s becoming difficult to find that much to write about. “I can truly reduce my training theory to one typed page,” Shorter says and adds that he’ll be adding a lot of photographs to the book! His basic training philosophy is simple. To become a better runner, combine a lot of aerobic training at a conversational pace with one long run a week to build endurance and at least one interval workout to develop leg speed and turnover. Shorter says he has never had a coach, except during college, and he developed his own workouts for his Olympic marathon victory. Now he hopes his book will help other runners develop their own running plan since most can’t afford a running coach. Getting motivated to run in Colorado is easy. When Shorter moved to Boulder in 1975, he fell in love with the weather. “So much sunshine makes training easier, especially interval training.” He
: September/October 2003
also picked Boulder to take advantage of the training benefits from living at a high elevation. “It was the only city above 5,000 feet with an indoor track.”
Catching Cheaters
Now that Shorter’s elite days are done, he still likes to stay connected in running circles so he can continue the battle against performance-enhancing drugs. After serving a three-year term, he recently resigned as chairman of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. Now that he’s not affiliated with the USADA, Shorter feels he can be more outspoken and opinionated. “I’ve gone back to being a loose cannon,” he says. Shorter believes there needs to be out-of-competition drug testing for athletes from underdeveloped nations to help level the playing field for the athletes living in countries that require regular testing. To help the push for regular drug testing, Shorter is working with major marathons in cities like Chicago, New York and London. “They are willing, I think, to come up with their own system that says if you want to run in our race, show you have been tested for these drugs within this time frame or you don’t get to run for the money.” Shorter won’t name the names of specific elite runners he believes are using performance enhancing drugs, but says it’s obvious to him, especially in some of the current women’s events. American distance runners have had trouble matching the marathon times that Shorter and many others were able to achieve in the 1970’s. He feels that American runners are making a comeback now that illegal doping is becoming much more difficult for foreign athletes to use. “EPO is a two percent advantage. Who truly believes they can make up two percent? That’s four minutes in a marathon.” He says when you know your competitors have that much of an advantage, it’s difficult to be motivated to train.
The Olympics
Shorter’s passion for fighting performance-enhancing drugs stems from his defeat at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal when East German marathoner Waldemar Cierpinski won by just 50 seconds. It’s a moment he’ll never forget. “I was in Montreal and ran the Olympic marathon course earlier this summer and I came upon the exact spot where he pulled away from me.” A few years ago, Shorter received previously classified documents, detailing Germany’s sports drug program from the 1970’s. In one letter, athletes who were involved with the drug program were listed. Cierpinski was number 62. Now, Shorter is still chasing cheaters. He has the influence to change national and international policies and he feels the need to use that power. Although it won’t help him overcome the disappointment from 1976, it could help future American runners. He feels that if everyone is routinely tested, it will be a strong deterrent and many athletes will no longer take the risk.
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