Jan Merrill, Date of Birth, Place of Birth

Jan Merrill

American distance runner

Date of Birth: 18-Jun-1956

Place of Birth: New London, Connecticut, United States

Profession: athletics competitor

Nationality: United States

Zodiac Sign: Gemini

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 insurmountable lead in domestic meets.
She was equally untouchable in self-promotion or dealing with the media, often deferring to her coach, Norm Higgins.
At various points in time she held the American record in the 1500 meters (4:02.61 set on July 29, 1976) during the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, the 3,000 meters and 5,000 meters.
She lost other record opportunities because the only times she could get a decent race in the United States was against men.She won the U.S.
title at 1500 meters twice outdoors, 3000 meters 4 times, twice in the indoor mile, twice in the indoor 2 mile and twice in Cross Country.
After retiring from competitions she became a high school and college track coach.