Villanova University, Class of 1972
Track & Field/Cross Country (Honorary Inductee)
Liquori was a five-time NCAA individual champion while competing in track and field and cross country at Villanova from 1968-71. Four of his five titles were in the mile and he was only the fourth person to win three consecutive NCAA national outdoor mile titles. He also was a member of Villanova’s 1971 NCAA champion cross country team.
Liquori held world records during his collegiate career, was ranked No. 1 in the world in the 1,500 meters in 1969 and 1971, and ran a sub-four-minute mile 26 times. He held five Villanova records when he graduated. In 1968, Liquori was the youngest person to advance to the finals of the 1,500 meters at the Summer Olympic Games.
He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. Liquori was a co-founder of the Athletic Attic chain of running stores. He provided color commentary for ABC during the Olympic Games in 1972, 1976 and 1984. Liquori wrote Marty Liquori’s Guide for the Elite Runner and an autobiography, On the Run: In Search of the Perfect Race. He has been a spokesperson for the Leukemia Society of America’s Team in Training initiative and has served as the vice president for the Gainesville Friends of Jazz and executive director of the Gainesville Jazz Festival.
Gallery: (4-6-2022) Marty Liquori, 2022 AAA Hall of Fame
Updated April 2022