Steve Roland Prefontaine was an American long distance runner. Prefontaine is considered to be among the greatest and most inspirational runners of the modern era by many of his fans. Prefontaine helped inspire a running boom in the 1970s along with contemporaries Frank Shorter and Bill Rodgers. Born and raised in Coos Bay, Oregon, Prefontaine was primarily a long distance runner who once held the American record in the five distance track events from the 2000 meters to the 10,000 meters. He is known for his extremely aggressive "front-running" racing style and for always believing in giving a full effort. Prefontaine died at the age of 24 in a car accident.