The John Joseph Magee outdoor track has been refurbished and will be rededicated this Saturday to honor runner Joan Benoit Samuelson '79, the gold-medalist in the inaugural women's marathon of the 1984 Olympic Games. The track was been resurfaced and enhanced with a $300,000 gift from Nike.
The newly improved track now boasts eight lanes for the straight-away instead of six. The steeple-chase and high jump have also been enhanced.
According to Archie Abrams '09, cross-country and indoor/outdoor track runner, "The surface [of the track] is amazing; the super-mondo is extremely fast."
"The steeple-chase pit is much nicer. I don't know if you saw it last year, but [the track] is definitely in a lot better shape," he said.
The track will remain named after Jack Magee, long-time Athletic Director of Bowdoin and talented track and field coach, but it will also acknowledge Joan Benoit Samuelson, "clearly the best athlete Bowdoin has seen," according to Ward.
Samuelson has been accepted into six different halls of fame, including the International Scholar-Athlete Hall of Fame, the International Women's Sports Foundation Hall of Fame, and the USATF National Track and Field Hall of Fame. Today she lives with her family in Freeport.
The new track will also benefit members of the Maine community. Freeport High School will use the track in its after-school practices and whenever Bowdoin's teams are not using it.
"This is a win for all of us...Nike gave us the money, and we made some accommodations for Freeport," Ward said.
The official rededication ceremony will take place at homecoming during the Bowdoin-Hamilton football game.
At halftime, Joan Benoit Samuelson, Nike Brand President Mark Parker, and Bowdoin President Barry Mills will speak. According to Ward, Libby Barney '03, a runner at Bowdoin, will speak about Samuelson and her influence on students as a rolemodel.