From NewsRegister.com (OR):
After retiring in 2007 only to return this season, McMinnville High School Hall of Famer and five-time state champion Grant Robison is set to compete in the U.S. Olympic Trials at Eugene’s Hayward Field. At 29, he will join former Stanford teammate Gabe Jennings in today’s third preliminary heat of the 1,500 meters. The top three finishers in Sunday’s final will earn a trip to the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The first heat of the 1,500 is scheduled for 8:25 p.m.
Robison competed in cross country and track at MHS. In addition to winning the 1,500 at state in 1996 and ‘97, he was a three-time champ in the 3,000 between 1995-97. Robison’s brilliance, however, was evident much earlier.
“The coaches knew Grant was special right away,” said Mac distance coach Vic Downs. “He established himself as one of the top guys in the league his freshman year, finishing fourth at state in the 3,000 meters. After that, he didn’t lose a single race in the 3,000.”
Robison was clocked at eight minutes, 46 seconds in the 3,000 during his freshman year at Mac. It was the fastest time by a ninth grader in the nation that year.
From then on, Robison was untouchable on the track.
“He had some gutsy performances as a prep,” Downs said. “It was the same every race. One of his fastest races in 3,000 meters came in a dual meet at Newberg. He just took off. His time for the first half of the race would have won the 1,500 by 10 seconds.
“When it came to racing, Grant really went for it. He never ran through the motions. Races were sacred and there was always some magic there. You always knew you’d get your admission money right back when you saw Grant race. It was pretty cool.”
Downs and the Grizzly coaching staff often struggled to find new challenges for such a dominant talent.
“It was hard not to take it for granted that Grant was going to win everything,” Downs said. “The coaches had to come up with creative training strategies to keep him on top. He created such a big separation between himself and the next best guy in the state. Yet, he never saw it that way.”
Robison’s effort and determination set quite an example for his teammates. As a result, the Griz qualified for state three of his four years at MHS.
“He was a great team guy,” Downs said. “If the coaches wanted him to run two races and then come back later in the relay, he was all for it. Grant put the team first and himself second at every single meet. You can’t say that about many athletes.
“Grant had high expectations and made everyone better. He really inspired a group of runners to challenge themselves and run at a different level. It was a great ride.”
After being awarded the Gatorade Athlete of the Year in1997, Robison established himself as one of the greatest high school runners in Oregon history.
“Oregon is the greatest state for distance running, bar none,” Downs said. “It’s hard to live up to that. You don’t want to mention Grant’s name with Prefontaine because it’s just not the same; or even Bill McChesney, Kenny Moore or Alberto Salazar.
“Grant had his own niche. He was a phenomenal middle distance runner and an even better team leader. He was a winner. He won more state titles than McChesney and Prefontaine. Grant just made things happen. He set a new standard.”
Returning from a two-year Mormon mission, Robison accepted a track and field scholarship to Stanford University and soon thrived under distance running guru Vin Lananna, who now coaches at the University of Oregon.
Robison was a Pac-10 Conference cross country champion in 2001 and ‘02, earning All-American honors from 2001-03. He was the NCAA cross country champ in 2002 and 2003, as well as the NCAA 1,500 meter champion in 2003. (cont.)