Margaret Groos

Margaret Groos ran the marathon at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. She won the 1988 US Olympic Trials in Pittsburgh in 2-29:50, her lifetime PR, which made her the fourth fastest American at the time. Groos returned in 1989 and again won the Pittsburgh Marathon, that time in 2-32:39. Groos attended the University of Virginia, graduating in 1982. She started as a track runner, placing sixth in the 1,500 metres at the 1975 AAU Meet, and in the 3,000 metres, she was sixth and fourth at the TAC Meet in 1979 and 1981, respectively. Groos was 1979 TAC Champion in cross-country and was an AIAW All-American while at Virginia. She won two team medals at the World Cross-Country Championships, with a gold in 1983 and a bronze in 1980.

Groos finished fifth in the US Olympic Trials in 1984. She continued to race on the roads professionally through 1994. Her marathon début had been at the 1983 Los Angeles Marathon, where she placed seventh in 2-37:02. She is a member of the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame.

Personal Best: Mar – 2-29:50 (1988).