LINDA SOMERS SMITH

LINDA SOMERS SMITH
Event: Marathon
Born: May 7, 1961 at Bitburg AFB, Germany
Height: 5-4
Weight: 107
PR: 10,000: 34:36.3 (1983); Half-Marathon: 1:11:01 (1997);
Marathon: 2:30:06 (1996)
Current Residence: San Luis Obispo, Calif.
High School: Indio (Calif.) '79
College: UC Davis '83
Coach: Joe Rubio
Club: Reebok Aggies


Career Highlights: 7th 1995 World Championships Marathon, 1996 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials runner-up (2:30:06) and 1993-94 USA Marathon champion


Now a top masters runner, Somers Smith is the rare Olympic runner who never ran track in high schoolher first love was tennis, and she went out for the UC Davis tennis team as a frosh"I was frustrated because it rained all the time, so I started jogging to stay in shape"eventually a PE teacher told her to consider going out for cross country, which she did as a juniora year later, she ran a 34:36.3 on the track for 10,000mearned a degree in economics at Davis, and followed with a J.D. in 1986married in 1997 to Scott Smith, a former triathlete who sometimes trains with herin 1998 she adopted her then 13-year-old niece, Monicaworks full-time as a lawyer, specializing in general business law and real estateis gearing up for the 2004 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, a challenge still inspired by her Olympic race in 1996, when she tore her Achilles in the Olympic Marathon and still finished 31st.


2002: 5th Twin Cities Marathon (2:39:26), USA Championship (3rd American)World Half-Marathon Championships team.
1998: 3rd at Houston (2:38:52)9th at Chicago (2:34:21)ranked #4 U.S. by T&FN.
1997: 14th in London (2:31:49)ranked #3 U.S. by T&FN.
1996: 2nd in U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials (2:30:06 PR)31st in Olympic Games (2:36:58); Achilles tear in race ranked #3 U.S. by T&FN.
1995: 11th in Boston (2:34:30)knee surgery7th in World Champs (2:32:12, short course)ranked #1 U.S. by T&FN.
1994: Defended national title at Grandmas Marathon (2:33:42)ranked #3 U.S. by T&FN.
1993: Won Long Beach2nd in Chicago (2:34:25)won California Intl (2:34:11), national championranked #3 U.S. by T&FN.
1992: 16th in Olympic Trials (2:39:50)won Chicago (2:37:41).
1991: 8th in Twin Cities (2:38:45).
1989: 2nd in California International Marathon (2:33:37)ranked #10 U.S. by T&FN.

8/14/03
Courtesy USATF