The Association of Road Racing Statisticians is an independent,

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

that collects, analyzes, and publishes

statistics Statistics (from German language, German: ', "description of a State (polity), state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data. In applying statistics to a s ...

regarding

road running Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road. This differs from track and field on a regular track and cross country running over natural terrain. These events are usually classified as long-distance ru ...

races. The primary purpose of the ARRS is to maintain a valid list of world road records for standard race distances and to establish valid criteria for road record-keeping. The official publication of the ARRS is the '' Analytical Distance Runner''. This newsletter contains recent race results and analysis and is distributed to subscribers via e-mail. The ARRS is the only organized group that maintains records on indoor

marathons The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

History

Ken Young (November 9, 1941 - February 3, 2018) of

Petrolia, California Petrolia is an unincorporated community in Humboldt County, California, southeast of Cape Mendocino. The site of the first oil well drilled in California, it lies at an elevation of above sea level, within ZIP Code 95558, and area code 707 ...

was a retired professor of

atmospheric physics Within the atmospheric sciences, atmospheric physics is the application of physics to the study of the atmosphere. Atmospheric physicists attempt to model Earth's atmosphere and the atmospheres of the other planets using fluid flow equations, rad ...

and former American record-holder in the indoor marathon who currently holds two of the top 10 marks in the event. Ted Haydon, a former track coach for the University of Chicago Track Club and the United States in the 1968 Olympic Games, reportedly staged an indoor marathon for Young so that he could make an attempt at a world record in the indoor marathon. Young also earned a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

geophysical science Earth science or geoscience includes all fields of natural science related to the planet Earth. This is a branch of science dealing with the physical, chemical, and biological complex constitutions and synergistic linkages of Earth's four spheres ...

s with a minor in

, and taught at the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...

. Young was the founder and director of the National Running Data Center (NRDC), self-described as "an independent, non-profit organization devoted to the collection, analysis, publication and dissemination of long-distance running information." This group pioneered and developed road racing records in the United States. After the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

passed the

Amateur Sports Act of 1978 The Amateur Sports Act of 1978, signed by President Jimmy Carter, established the United States Olympic Committee (now United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee) and provides for national governing bodies for each Olympic sport. The Act provid ...

The Athletics Congress USA Track & Field (USATF) is a United States national governing body for the sports of track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jum ...

(TAC), now known as USA Track & Field, replaced the

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

as the national

governing body A governing body is a group of people that has the authority to exercise governance over an organization or political entity. The most formal is a government, a body whose sole responsibility and authority is to make binding decisions in a taken ...

for the

sport of athletics Athletics is a group of sporting events that involves competitive running, jumping and throwing. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross country running, cross-country running, and racewalking. ...

. Although the records maintained by Young and the NRDC were initially "unofficial", The Athletics Congress recognized them as its official records at their annual meeting in late 1979. In 1986, the official record-keeping for TAC was assumed by TACStats, later known as the Road Information Center.

References

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External links

Association of Road Racing Statisticians - Official websiteAssociation of Road Racing Statisticians - Facebook

History

References

External links

See also