Betty Jo Geiger (née Springs; born June 12, 1961) is an American former

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely Aerobic exercise, aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

who competed in events ranging from 3000-meter run to the

marathon 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 ...

. Her greatest individual success was at the inaugural

IAAF World Women's Road Race Championships The IAAF World Women's Road Race Championships was an annual international athletics championship in road running organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations (then known as the International Amateur Athletics Federation). It ...

in 1983, where she was runner-up to Britain's

Wendy Sly Wendy Sly MBE (née Smith, born 5 November 1959) is a British former athlete, who competed mainly in the 3000 metres. She won a silver medal in the event at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. She won the 1983 10km World Road Race Championships in ...

and led the Americans to the team gold medal. Geiger was a key member of the national team at the

IAAF World Cross Country Championships World Athletics Cross Country Championships is the most important competition in international cross country running. Formerly held annually and organised by World Athletics (formerly the IAAF), it was inaugurated in 1973, when it replaced the In ...

in the 1980s. Her first team medal – a silver – came at the 1981 championships and following that she helped the United States to three consecutive team titles in 1983, 1984 and 1985. She finished in the top ten on each occasion, being the number one American in 1983 and number two American athlete to

Jan Merrill Janice "Jan" Melbourne Merrill (born June 18, 1956) is a retired American runner. She was the dominant long-distance runner of the middle 1970s, a notable front runner, her uniform with the large "M" on her chest would usually break away to an in ...

Joan Benoit Joan Benoit Samuelson (born May 16, 1957) is an American marathon runner who was the first women's Olympic Games marathon champion, winning the gold medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. She held the fastest time for an American wo ...

and

Cathy Branta Cathy Easker (née Branta; born January 6, 1963) is a retired middle-distance and long-distance runner from Slinger, Wisconsin, USA. After achieving Wisconsin state championship high school record times (for division 2 girls) in cross country in b ...

in the other years. She made one more appearance at the competition in 1986, and also represented her country at the

Goodwill Games The Goodwill Games were an international sports competition created by Ted Turner in reaction to the political troubles surrounding the Olympic Games of the 1980s. In 1979, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan caused the United States and other ...

that year. She was a four-time national champion, having won the 5000-meter run at the 1986 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships (in a championship record time), the national

10K run The 10K run is a long-distance road running competition over a distance of . Also referred to as the 10K road race, 10 km, or simply 10K, it is one of the most common types of road running event, alongside the shorter 5K and longer half ...

three times (1984, 1985, and 1986) and the individual title at the

USA Cross Country Championships The USA Cross Country Championships is the annual national championships for cross country running in the United States. The championships is generally held in mid-February and it serves as a way of designating the country's national champion, as ...

. She attended

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State, North Carolina State, NC State University, or NCSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1887 and p ...

and won four NCAA Championships for the

NC State Wolfpack The NC State Wolfpack is the nickname of the athletic teams representing North Carolina State University. The Wolfpack competes at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I (NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subd ...

team: a 5000/ 10,000 m double at the 1983

NCAA Women's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships The NCAA Division I Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships are the annual collegiate track and field competitions for women athletes representing Division I institutions organised by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). I ...

and victories at the

NCAA Women's Division I Cross Country Championship The NCAA Division I women's cross country championships are contested at an annual meet hosted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association to determine the individual and team national champions of women's collegiate cross country running amo ...

in 1981 and 1983. She won the Broderick Award (now the

Honda Sports Award The Honda Sports Award is an annual award in the United States, given to the best collegiate female athlete in each of twelve sports. There are four nominees for each sport, and the twelve winners of the Honda Sports Award are automatically in t ...

) as the nation's best female collegiate cross country runner in 1984. She was inducted into the

NC State Athletic Hall of Fame The NC State Athletic Hall of Fame is a sports history museum located in Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S. The museum pays tribute to the most legendary and influential NC State Wolfpack sports heroes. Although the inaugural cla ...

in 2013. Geiger competed extensively at professional road races and had wins at the

Peachtree Road Race The Peachtree Road Race (branded AJC Peachtree Road Race for sponsorship reasons) is a series of two 10-kilometer runs held annually in Atlanta, once during the first weekend of January and the other on Independence Day. They are held on the sa ...

Freihofer's Run for Women The Delightful® Run for Women (formerly Freihofer's Run for Women) is an annual five-kilometer road running competition for women that is usually held in late May or early June in Albany, New York, United States. First held in 1979, the race has ...

(three times), and

Gate River Run The Gate River Run (GRR), formerly known as the Jacksonville River Run, is an annual road running event in Jacksonville, Florida, United States, that attracts both competitive and recreational runners. It has functioned as the US National Champi ...

, as well as runner-up finishes at the

Falmouth Road Race The Falmouth Road Race is an annual road race on Cape Cod from Woods Hole, a village in the town of Falmouth, Massachusetts, to Falmouth Heights. The race organizer is Falmouth Road Race, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization that puts on the race ea ...

and

Gasparilla Distance Classic The Gasparilla Distance Classic is a road race which is held in late February or early March on Bayshore Boulevard in Tampa, Florida. Over 30,000 competitors participate each year. It is named after the Gasparilla Pirate Festival, which takes plac ...

. She married her former college coach Rollie Geiger. In her youth she won the national junior title over 3000 m and was undefeated in

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

high school competitions, with 15 state titles for Bayshore High School in her native

Bradenton Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698, up from 49,546 at the 2010 census. It is a principal city in the Sarasota metropolitan area. Dow ...

. Run Titles Won By Athletics West
''New York Times'' (1983-11-27). Retrieved 2018-02-13.

International competitions

National titles

USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The USA Track & Field Outdoor Championships is an annual track and field competition organized by USA Track & Field, which serves as the American national championships for the sport. Since the year 1992, in the years which feature a Summer Oly ...

**5000 m:

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

*USA Road Running Championships **10K run: 1984, 1985, 1986 *

**Long course: 1983 *

5000 m The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a sta ...

: 1983 **

10,000 m The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship-level events. The ...

: 1983 *

**Individual:

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...

* USA Junior Outdoor Track and Field Championships **3000 m: 1979

Circuit wins

Cinque Mulini The Cinque Mulini is an annual cross country running race in San Vittore Olona, Italy. First held in 1933, the course is unusual in that it revolves around a number of water mills along Olona river, which lend the competition its name – meaning ...

: 1985 *

Bislett Games The Bislett Games is an annual track and field meeting at the Bislett Stadium in Oslo, Norway. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamond League. History The first international athletics meeting at Bislett ...

**5000 m: 1983 *

Penn Relays The Penn Relays (officially The Penn Relay Carnival) is the oldest and largest track and field competition in the United States, hosted annually since April 21, 1895 by the University of Pennsylvania at Franklin Field in Philadelphia. In 2012 ...

**3000 m: 1981 **5000 m: 1983 * Bonne Bell Mini Marathon: 1984 *

: 1984 *

: 1984, 1985, 1986 *

: 1985 * Pittsburgh Great Race: 1988 * Capital City Marathon: 1983

Personal bests

* 3000-meter run – 8:59.79 min (1983) * 5000-meter run – 15:25.24 min (1985) * 10,000-meter run – 32:33.04 min (1988) *

– 32:13 min (1986) *

15K run The 15K run (15 kilometers, or approximately 9.32 miles) is a long-distance foot race. It is a rarely held race that is not recognized as an Olympic Games, Olympic event. The overall world best time for men was set by Jacob Kiplimo in 2025, en ro ...

– 49:25 min (1985) *

10-mile run The 10-mile run is a long-distance running event over a distance of . It can be held on a road course or on a running track. Also referred to as a 10-miler or 10 miles run, it is a relatively common distance in countries that use the mile as a u ...

– 54:45 min (1988) *

Marathon 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 ...

– 2:37:14 hours (1983)

References

External links