Ron Hill facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Ron Hill
MBE

Hill at the Enschede Marathon in 1975
Personal information
Born	(1938-09-25)25 September 1938 Accrington, Lancashire, England
Died	23 May 2021(2021-05-23) (aged 82) Hyde, Cheshire, England
Height	1.67 m
Weight	61 kg
Sport
Sport	Long-distance running
Club	Clayton-Le-Moors Harriers, Lancashire
Achievements and titles
Olympic finals	1964, 1968, 1972
Medal record Men's athletics Representing  Great Britain European Championships Gold 1969 Athens Marathon Bronze 1971 Helsinki Marathon Representing  England Commonwealth Games Gold 1970 Edinburgh Marathon

Ron Hill (born September 25, 1938 – died May 23, 2021) was a famous British runner. He was also a successful businessman who created running clothes. Ron Hill was amazing because he was only the second person ever to run a marathon in under 2 hours and 10 minutes! He even held world records in four other running distances.

Ron competed in two Olympic Marathons. These were in Tokyo in 1964 and Munich in 1972. His best marathon time was 2 hours, 9 minutes, and 28 seconds. In 1970, Ron won the Boston Marathon, setting a new record for that race. He also won gold medals in the marathon at the European Championships in 1969 and the Commonwealth Games in 1970. Ron Hill is also famous for running every single day for over 52 years!

Ron Hill's Running Career

Ron Hill was a record-breaker! He set world records in several long-distance races. These included the 10-mile (16 km) race, which he ran in 47 minutes and 2 seconds in 1968. He also set records for the 15-mile (24 km) race and the 25-kilometer (15.5 miles) race.

Early Wins and Olympic Races

In 1963, Ron won the 6-mile (10 km) race at the British Amateur Athletic Association (AAA) championships. He matched the UK record for that event. The next year, he almost won the same race again, finishing very close behind the winner.

Ron competed in the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. He finished 18th in the 10,000 meters race. He also placed 19th in the marathon. In 1964, Ron set his first world record for 25 km. He beat the old record by more than a minute! He also set a world record for 15 miles during that race.

Ron was the first person to win the Freckleton Half Marathon in 1964. He still holds the course record for that race today. In 1966, he ran in the European Championships Marathon and finished twelfth.

More Records and Major Victories

In 1968, Ron set a new world record for the 10-mile race in Leicester, England. He won the AAA 10-mile championship every year from 1965 to 1969. Later in 1968, he broke his own 10-mile world record again! At the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, he finished seventh in the 10,000 meters race.

In 1969, Ron won the European Championships Marathon. This race was run on the famous course from Marathon to Athens.

The year 1970 was a huge year for Ron Hill. He became the first British runner to win the Boston Marathon. He won by a lot and broke the course record by three minutes! Later that year, at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, he became only the second person ever to run a marathon in under 2 hours and 10 minutes. He set a new world record with a time of 2:09:28.

Because of his amazing wins in 1970, Ron Hill was named the top marathon runner of the year. In 1972, he was honored with the MBE award for his contributions to athletics. His last Olympic Games was the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich. He finished sixth in the marathon at 33 years old.

Ron also won the first China Coast Marathon in Hong Kong in 1981. He said it was the "toughest marathon he'd run."

Running Every Single Day

Ron Hill is famous for his incredible running streak. He ran every single day for 52 years and 39 days! This streak lasted from December 20, 1964, until January 30, 2017. To count as a "run," he had to complete at least one mile (1.6 km) at any speed.

His streak continued even after a car crash in 1993, when he broke his chest bone. He also kept running after surgery on his foot. The day after that surgery, he used a crutch to finish his mile! In December 2014, he completed his goal of running at least a mile a day for 50 years. He did this by finishing a 5 km race in Manchester.

Sadly, Ron's streak ended on January 30, 2017. He announced on his Facebook page that he had to take a day off due to feeling unwell. He felt chest pains while running and decided to stop for his health. He said, "After 400m my heart started to hurt... I was in such pain... I need to stop this."

Achievements

• All results regarding marathon, unless stated otherwise

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Notes
Representing  Great Britain
1970	Boston Marathon	Boston, United States	1st	2:10:30
	Commonwealth Games	Edinburgh, Scotland	1st	2:09:28 PR
1973	Enschede Marathon	Enschede, Netherlands	1st	2:18:06
1975	Enschede Marathon	Enschede, Netherlands	1st	2:15:59

Later Life and Business

After college, Ron Hill earned a special degree in textile chemistry. He believed that new synthetic materials would be great for running clothes. So, in 1970, he started his own company called Ron Hill Sports.

His company was a pioneer, meaning they were among the first to create many new running products. These included special shorts, lightweight vests, waterproof running jackets, and reflective strips for safety. Ron said he started the company because he wanted to be safe while running in the dark. At one point, his company made over £6 million in sales! Later, he started another company called Hilly Clothing, which focused on technical socks and other gear.

Ron Hill had a goal to race in 100 different countries before his 70th birthday. He achieved this by racing in places like Panama and the Faroe Islands. His very last marathon was the 100th Boston Marathon in 1996. He completed 115 marathons in total. He won 21 marathons, came in second 13 times, and third 8 times.

Ron Hill passed away on May 23, 2021, at the age of 82.

See also

In Spanish: Ron Hill para niños

• Bill Smith (fell runner)