Joe Klecker

Last updated
Joe Klecker
Klecker 2020OlympicTrials.jpg
Klecker at the 2020 US Olympic Trials
Personal information
Nationality American
Born (1996-11-16) November 16, 1996 (age 27)
Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States
Alma mater University of Colorado
Height6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Sport
Sport Track, cross country
Event(s) 5000 m, 10,000 m
College team Colorado Buffaloes
Club On Athletics Club
Turned pro2020
Coached by Dathan Ritzenhein
Achievements and titles
Personal bests

Joe Klecker (born November 16, 1996) is an American long-distance runner. After a successful collegiate career with the Colorado Buffaloes he turned professional in 2020 joining the On Athletics Club coached by Dathan Ritzenhein. Klecker holds personal bests of 3:37.00 for 1500m, 7:34.14 for 3000m, 12:54.99 for 5000m, and 27:07.57 for 10000m, all set as a part of the On Athletics Club [3]

Contents

Klecker attended Hopkins High School in Minnetonka, Minnesota. He graduated in 2015 and attended the University of Colorado in the Fall. At Colorado, he was a 9-time All-American in all 3 running sports including 2 runner-up finishes. He is currently the school's record holder in the indoor 5000m. [4]

Personal and early life

Joe is the son of Barney and Janis Klecker, both professional marathoners (winners of Grandma's Marathon [5] and Twin Cities Marathon [6] in Minnesota) and both US national record holders, in the 50-mile and 50K run, respectively. [7]

In 2022, Klecker married fellow University of Colorado alum and On Athletics Club teammate Sage Hurta. [8]

Klecker had a successful high school career, leading to two individual state championships his senior year. He was also named the Gatorade Minnesota Boys Track & Field Athlete of the Year during his senior year. Klecker set a 1600m state record of 4:06.54. He considered Minnesota, Furman, Georgetown and Tulsa before choosing Colorado. [4]

Collegiate career

Klecker competes in the NCAA in 2020 for the Colorado Buffaloes. Joe Klecker 2020.jpg
Klecker competes in the NCAA in 2020 for the Colorado Buffaloes.

2015-16

Klecker chose to redshirt his Freshman season of Cross Country but competed in indoor and outdoor track, setting PRs of 3:44.55 for 1500m, 7:59.77 for 3000m, and 13:44.23 for 5000m. The 5000m time was good enough to qualify him for the West Preliminary round, the outdoor qualifier for the NCAA DI Championships.

2016-17

Klecker picked up his first all-american honors at the 2016 NCAA DI XC Championships, placing 28th. He ran track PRs of 7:51.43 for 3000m, 13:42.64 for 5000m, and 3:41.69 for 1500m. Klecker placed 4th at the 2017 NCAA DI Indoor Track and Field Championship in the 3000m, and 7th in the Outdoor Championships for 5000m.

2017-18

Klecker won the NCAA Mountain region championships and placed 2nd at the Pac-12 Championship for Cross country. Klecker did not repeat his All-American status his Junior year of cross country, placing 67th at the championship race. He did not race indoor or outdoor track for Colorado the following winter and spring. Klecker ran a PR in the 5000m in June 2018, with a time of 13:30.09.

2018-19

In 2018, Klecker repeated as the Mountain Region Champion, and placed 8th in the NCAA XC Championships, his first time in the top 10. On February 23, 2019, he ran 3:58.51 in the Mile in Seattle, WA. In doing so, he became the 538th American to break 4 minutes in the Mile. [9] He finished 2nd in the NCAA Indoor 5000m to Morgan McDonald and 3rd in the 3000m to McDonald and Grant Fisher. He did not race in the outdoor championships due to a mid-season injury.

2019-2020

During his 2019 XC campaign, Klecker won the Pac-12 Championships. At the NCAA Championships, he finished 2nd to Edwin Kurgat, leading Colorado to a 3rd-place team finish. [10] Klecker went on to run a 3000m personal record of 7:47.57, but the indoor championships were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the entire outdoor season. [9]

Professional career

2020-2021

In August 2020, Klecker became a professional runner for On Athletics Club, a newly formed group mostly composed of recent collegiate runners including Oliver Hoare and Alicia Monson. The group is coached by Dathan Ritzenhein. [11] Under Ritzenhein, Klecker ran personal bests of 3:37.55 for 1500m, 13:28.98 for 5000m and 27:35.57 [12] during the second half of 2020. On February 6, 2021, Klecker opened his season at the Prickly Pear Invitational in Phoenix, AZ. He placed fourth to Bowerman Track Club teammates Marc Scott, Grant Fisher, and Sean McGorty. Klecker's time of 7:39.18 was a personal record and his first time under 7:40. One week later, he competed in the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in New York, NY. He finished 2nd to Justyn Knight in the 2-mile with a time of 8:14.20. His 3000m split en-route was 7:44.91, good for an indoor personal best. [3] On March 6, 2021, he ran a 22-second personal best of 13:06.67 for 5000m at the Sound Running Invite in California. This performance earned him fourth place (again behind Bowerman teammates Fisher, Scott, and McGorty) in the race and made him the 18th fastest American ever over the distance. [13]

10km OlympicTrials2021.jpg
Klecker (left of center) during the race.
Klecker 10000metres 2020OlympicTrials.jpg
Klecker celebrates after finishing third.
Joe Klecker at the 10,000 metres of the 2020 US Olympic Trials.

He ran a 10,000 m personal best of 27:23.44 in Irvine, California on May 14, 2021. Klecker made his first Olympic team on June 18, 2021, at the U.S. Olympic Trials. He finished 3rd in the 10,000m running 27:54.90 with a final lap of 54.54 behind Bowerman athletes Woody Kincaid and Grant Fisher. He became the first U.S. athlete with the "On Athletics Club," coached by Dathan Ritzenhein to make the Olympic team. At the 2020 Olympic Games, Klecker finished 16th in the men's 10,000m final with a time of 28:14.18. After the Olympics, he set a personal best of 8:11.55 in the 2 Mile at the Prefontaine Classic. [3] He finished 11th at the Fifth Avenue Mile. [14]

2022

On May 29, 2022, he won the U.S. championship 10000m. With a final lap of 54.81, Klecker finished in 28.28.71, qualifying for the U.S. Team at the World Athletic Championships and edging new American record holder Grant Fisher. [15] Fisher had set an American Record of 26:33.84 in March. On July 16, 2022, again at Hayward Field in Eugene at the WAC, Klecker ran with the leaders for over 23 laps, a tactical race, finishing 8th in 27:37.73, behind the winner Joshua Cheptegei. In that race, Fisher took fourth in 27:28.14, just a quarter second behind the silver medalist. [16]

2023

On January 27, 2023 Klecker broke the 13 minute barrier in the 5K, running 12:54.99 at the John Thomas Terrier Classic held at Boston University. He finished second in the race to Woody Kincaid, who broke the American record in 12:51.61. [17] Klecker was paced for just over two miles by teammate Ollie Hoare and led after Hoare stepped off the track. He was able to gap Kincaid by over a second heading into the final lap, but Kincaid closed in a fast 26.27 seconds for his final 200m while Klecker could only manage a 31.03. Klecker's time was good for 7th fastest ever in the world indoors and 3rd fastest American indoors. He became the 11th American to break 13 minutes in the 5K. Two weeks later, Klecker finished 3rd place at the Millrose Games in New York City at the Armory. His time of 7:34.14 was a personal record and ranks him 4th on the all-time American indoor list. [18]

2024

Klecker opened his 2024 season on January 26 running a 5000 m at the Boston University John Thomas Terrier Classic with the goal of hitting the Olympic standard of 13:05.00. [19] Disappointingly, he finished just shy of that mark, running a time of 13:06.02, 11.03 seconds slower that he had at the same meet a year prior. A similarly unfortunate outcome awaited Klecker at the Millrose Games 2-mile, his second race of the year. He finished in 9th, over 20 seconds back of 1st place finisher Josh Kerr and almost 10 seconds back of his personal best. On March 16, Joe competed at the TEN in San Juan Capistrano running 27:09.29 over 10,000 m, missing the Olympic standard of 27:00.00. Despite not achieving the mark, he stated he was happy with the result saying he had only been running 30 miles in recent weeks due to adductor strain and a stress reaction in his pelvis. [20]

Competition record

Representing the Flag of the United States.svg  United States
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventTime
2021 Olympic Games Tokyo, Japan 16th10,000 m 28:14.18
2022 World Championships Eugene, Oregon 9th10,000 m 27:38.73
2023 World Championships Budapest, Hungary 20th10,000 m 29:03.41
Representing the Colorado Buffaloes (2018) and the On-cloud-logo-white-background.svg OAC (2021–present)
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventTime
2018 USATF Championships Des Moines, Iowa 9th5000 m13:41.65
2021 US Olympic Trials Eugene, Oregon 3rd10,000 m27:54.90
2022 USATF Championships Eugene, Oregon 1st10,000 m28:28.71
2023 USATF Championships Eugene, Oregon 4th5000 m13:26.94
2nd10,000 m28:24.50

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dathan Ritzenhein</span> American long-distance runner

Dathan James Ritzenhein is a retired American long-distance runner, and current head coach of the On Athletics Club (OAC). He held the American record in the 5,000 metres (12:56.27) from 2009 to 2010, until it was broken by Bernard Lagat. He is a three-time national cross country champion with wins at the USA Cross Country Championships in 2005, 2008 and 2010. Formerly a Nike athlete for the majority of his professional career, Dathan joined the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project team in 2017. In early May 2020, he announced his retirement from competition. He signed with the Swiss shoe brand On shortly thereafter in June 2020 and currently acts as the coach for the OAC in Boulder, Colorado.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ryan Hall (runner)</span> American long-distance runner

Ryan Hall is a retired American long-distance runner who holds the U.S. record in the half marathon. With his half marathon record time (59:43), he became the first U.S. runner to break the one-hour barrier in the event. He is also the only American to run a sub-2:05 marathon. However, this time is not eligible to be a record due to the course being point-to-point and a net-downhill course. Hall won the marathon at the 2008 United States Olympic trials and placed tenth in the Olympic marathon in Beijing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jordan Hasay</span> American long-distance runner

Jordan Melissa Hasay is an American distance runner. She grew up in Arroyo Grande, California, and attended Mission College Preparatory High School in San Luis Obispo. She was unanimously selected 2008 Girls High School Athlete of the Year by the voting panel at Track and Field News. In March 2009, she became the ninth high school athlete and third woman on the cover of Track and Field News magazine. She attended the University of Oregon, where she studied business administration and competed on the cross country and track and field teams earning 18 All-American honors, 2011 Mile and 3,000 meters NCAA titles. Her father was a high school basketball star in Pennsylvania, and her mother was a national level swimmer in her native England. Jordan Hasay is no longer coached by Alberto Salazar due to his suspension.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Galen Rupp</span> American long-distance runner

Galen Rupp is an American long-distance runner. He competed in the Summer Olympics in 2008 in Beijing, 2012 in London, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro and 2021 in Tokyo. He won the silver medal in the men's 10,000 meters in London and the bronze medal in the men's marathon in Rio de Janeiro. Rupp competed for the University of Oregon and trained under Alberto Salazar as a member of the Nike Oregon Project. He won the 2017 Chicago Marathon, becoming the first American to do so since Khalid Khannouchi in 2002. Rupp won the marathon at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials in Atlanta with a time of 2:09:20, and qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, where he finished eighth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Tegenkamp</span>

Matthew "Teg" Tegenkamp is a retired professional runner from Lee's Summit, Missouri who specialized in various long-distance events. Tegenkamp represented the United States at two Summer Olympics, in 2008 and 2012. He trained with other members of the KIMbia Athletics group and was sponsored by Nike during his professional career. Tegenkamp set an American record in the outdoor two mile[PRs] and also achieved other performances that were near record breaking during his career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shannon Rowbury</span> American middle-distance runner

Shannon Solares-Rowbury is an American middle-distance runner from San Francisco, California. After competing collegiately for Duke University, she turned professional in 2007. Rowbury has represented the United States at the 2008, 2012, and 2016 Summer Olympics. She also represented the United States at the World Championships in 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017, winning the bronze medal in the 1500 meters in 2009. In 2015, Rowbury helped set the world record with the U.S. team for the distance medley relay event, and set a then-American record for 1500 meters on July 17, 2015, breaking Mary Slaney's 32 year-old mark with a time of 3:56.29.

Chris Derrick is an American distance runner who won 3 consecutive US Cross Country Championships in 2013–15. He attended Stanford University, where he earned 14 All-American honors and holds an American junior record in the 5000 meters.

Angela BizzarriPflugrath is a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) and a former American distance runner. She competed for the University of Illinois (2006–2010) and won three NCAA national championships: in Cross Country, as well as in the 5000 meters (outdoor) and 3000 meters (indoor). As an Illini she earned nine All-American honours and five Big Ten Conference titles. She also holds Illini records in the 1500 meters, 3000 meters, 5000 meters (outdoor), 5000 meters (indoor), the mile, and, in Cross Country, the 6000 meters.

Michael Power is an Australian former long-distance runner who competed in the 2000 Summer Olympics in the 5000m.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cameron Levins</span> Canadian long-distance runner

Cameron Levins is a Canadian long-distance runner. He won the bronze medal in the 10,000 meters at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Levins had the best-Canadian finish ever of fourth in the marathon at the 2022 World Championships, setting a new Canadian record. He is the North American record holder for the marathon and the Canadian record holder for the half marathon.

Jorge Torres is an American long-distance and cross-country runner. He is a three-time runner-up at the U.S. Cross-Country Championships, a 2002 NCAA Cross Country Champion, and a 2006 U.S. Outdoor Champion for the 10,000 meters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grant Fisher</span> Canadian-born American distance runner

Grant Fisher is a Canadian-born American professional middle- and long-distance runner. He holds the American national records for the 5,000 (12:46.96) and 10,000 meters (26:33.84), both set in a 2022 breakthrough season outdoors, and the 3,000 meters (7:25.47) after a post-injury return late in the 2023 outdoor season. He placed fifth in the 10,000 meters at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and fourth at the 2022 World Athletics Championships. Fisher holds North American records in the 3000 meters, 5000 m and 10,000 m.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craig Engels</span> American middle-distance runner

Craig Engels is an American middle-distance runner. He competed for the United States at the 2013 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships, where he won the men's 1500 meters. In the 2016 USA Olympic Trials Engels was focused on making the semi-finals of the 800m and was listed as an alternate for the 1500m. He finished 4th in the 800m final and 5th in the 1500m final, missing out on the Olympics in both events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woody Kincaid</span> American long-distance runner

William "Woody" Kincaid is an American long-distance runner. He is a two-time national champion in the 10000 metres, with victories at the USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in 2021 and 2023. He has held the North American indoor record in the 5000 metres (12:51.61) since 2023. Kincaid represented the United States at the 2020 Summer Games, the 2022 World Champions, and the 2023 World Championships. He won a gold medal in the 5000 metres at the 2022 NACAC Championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karissa Schweizer</span> American runner

Karissa Schweizer is an American middle- and long-distance runner, Olympian and World Record holder in the women's 4x1500 meters relay. She competed in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the 5000 meters and 10,000 meters events finishing 11th and 12th, respectively. In 2020, she set the indoor 3000 meters American Record with a time of 8:25.70.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alicia Monson</span> American long-distance runner

Alicia Monson is an American long-distance runner who primarily competes in the 5000 meters and 10,000 meters. She holds the North American record over the 5000 m, 10,000 m, and two mile distances, all set as part of the On Athletics Club under coach Dathan Ritzenhein.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yared Nuguse</span> American middle-distance runner (born 1999)

Yared Nuguse is an American middle-distance runner who specializes in the 1500 meters. He was the 2019 NCAA Division I champion in the event. Nuguse is the North American outdoor record holder over 1500 meters and one mile, and the North American indoor record holder for the 1500 meters, one mile and 3000 meters. Since June 2022, Nuguse has competed for the On Athletics Club under coach Dathan Ritzenhein.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nico Young</span> American distance runner

Nicolas Young is an American Long-distance runner who competes for Northern Arizona University. He is a two-time NCAA champion having won both the 3000 m and 5000 m at the 2024 NCAA Indoor Championships. He also holds the collegiate records in the 5000 m (12:57.14) and 10,000 m (26:52.72), both set in 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geordie Beamish</span> New Zealand long-distance runner (born 1996)

George Beamish is a New Zealand middle- and long-distance runner, who won the 1500 metres at the 2024 World Indoor Championships. He holds the Oceania area record in the 3000 m steeplechase of 8:13.26 and the New Zealand record in the indoor 3000 m and 5000 m. He finished fifth at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in the 3000 m steeplechase.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mario García (runner)</span> Spanish middle-distance runner

Mario García Romo is a Spanish middle-distance runner, who specializes in the 1500 metres. He was the national champion in the event in 2022, and he represented Spain in the 1500 m at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships, finishing fourth and sixth.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 IAAF. "IAAF: Joe KLECKER - Athlete Profile" . Retrieved September 21, 2018.
  2. "Woody Kincaid (12:51) & Yared Nuguse (7:28) Break American Records on Historic Night in Boston". LetsRun.com. January 27, 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 "Joe KLECKER | Profile". worldathletics.org.
  4. 1 2 "Joe Klecker - Track and Field". University of Colorado Athletics.
  5. Grandma's Marathon 2019 Media Guide (PDF). Duluth, Minnesota: Grandma's Marathon. June 22, 2019. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  6. Ken Young; Andy Milroy, eds. (March 1, 2021). "Twin Cities Marathon". Mattole Valley, California: Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Archived from the original on May 9, 2019. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  7. "American Open Road Records". Indianapolis, Indiana: United States of America Track and Field. July 30, 2019. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  8. Smith, Dominique (2023-01-25). "A confident, excited Sage Hurta-Klecker is ready for upcoming season". Track & Field Fan Hub. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  9. 1 2 "The U.S. Sub-4:00 Miler's Club (Chronologically)". May 6, 2019.
  10. "TFRRS | NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships Track & Field Meet Results". www.tfrrs.org.
  11. "On Gets Into Pro Running In Big Way - Forms Group Featuring Joe Klecker, Dathan Ritzenhein To Coach". LetsRun.com. August 3, 2020.
  12. "Track Scoreboard". finishedresults.trackscoreboard.com. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
  13. "5000 Metres - men - senior - outdoor". www.worldathletics.org. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
  14. "New York Road Runners Official Race Results". results.nyrr.org. Retrieved 2021-10-19.
  15. "USA Track & Field | Schweizer, Klecker victorious at USATF 10,000m Championships". usatf.org. Retrieved 2022-05-31.
  16. Track and Field World Championships Updates: Grant Fisher Falls Just Short of a Medal, New York Times , Scott Cacciola, Matthew Futterman, Kris Rhim, Kevin Draper and Talya Minsberg, July 16, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  17. "Track Scoreboard".
  18. "3000 Metres - men - senior - indoor".
  19. "Why The Best Don't Always Race The Best In Track". CITIUS MAG. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
  20. Joe Klecker On Overcoming Training Setback To Run 27:09.29 10k At The TEN 2024 , retrieved 2024-03-19