Erik Heinonen

Position:
Distance
Height:
5-7
Weight:
null
Class:
Junior
Hometown:
Eugene, Ore.
High School:
South Eugene/U. of Oregon

PERSONAL BESTS

Outdoor:

1,500-Meter: 3:57.12 (2004)

3,000-Meter: 8:27.40 (2004)

5,000-Meter: 14:36.41 (2005)

10,000-Meter: 31:26.05 (2001)

BIG 12 SCORING

2004 (O) 10,000-Meter, 8th (31:27.72)

2006 OUTLOOK: I'm (Wetmore) very excited about Erik's present training and fitness. I think he is in the best shape of his life. He and I hope for a big 10k this spring.

2005: Heinonen competed in the 5,000-meter race during the outdoor season and finished in ninth-place at the Oregon Invitational while notching a personal best time of 14:36.41. He also ran in the Big 12 Championships, finishing in 20^th place with a time of 14:49.56.

2004: Heinonen transferred to Colorado at the semester break, and competed in the 1,500, 3,000, 5,000 and 10,000-meter distances. He earned Big 12 scoring points in the 10k for CU with his eighth-place finish at the conference championships in a time of 31:27.73. At the Arizona State Invitational he posted a 3:57.12 (fifth place) in the 1,500, while his best mark in the 3k occurred at the Pepsi Invitational when he clocked an 8:27.40 to end fifth. His top 5k effort (14:46.77) was a 12^th place finish at the Big 12 Championships.

CROSS COUNTRY: Heinonen ran in just a pair of races in his first season at CU. He was the Tiger Invitational runner-up, and garnered Big 12 Runner of the Week accolades after his finish and a week later finished 13^th overall in the open race of the Pre-National Invitational. In 2005 he ran three races and was an alternate for the NCAA Championship race. He was the Buffs’ first runner to finish in both the Tiger Invitational and the Pre-National Invitational Open race, taking third and ninth overall, respectively.

AT OREGON: He took a redshirt the 2001-02 cross country and track seasons and missed the 2002-03 cross country and track seasons due to injuries.

HIGH SCHOOL: As a senior in 2001, he ranked first nationally on the track in the 10,000-meter with his debut effort (31:26.05). He missed part of the season due to an injury stemming from a race on March 30. He still finished sixth in 1,500 at state 4A finale (4:00.95) and fourth in the 3,200 (8:37.16). As a junior he placed 12^th in the 4A state 1,500 (4:01.66) and third in the 3,000 (8:35.51), while as a sophomore, he finished sixth in the 1,500 (PR 4:01.29) and third in the 3,000-meter (PR 8:32.61). Also made appearances at national class meets such as the 2000 U.S. Junior Championships (5,000-meter, fourth, 15:15) and 2000 Golden West Invite (3,200-meter, eighth, 9:11). Garnered national attention on track as a junior with his 14:35.8 effort at the Cardinal Invitational. In cross country, he capped his senior season with a fifth-place finish in the Foot Locker Championships. At state harrier finale, finished third (15:50) as a senior, 21^st as a junior (16:41), third as a sophomore (16:24) and 30^th as a freshman (16:57) in his first high school race. Took second at the Oregon-Washington Nike Border Clash as a junior and senior, and also 21^st as a sophomore in the USA Cross Country Championships Jr. 8k in Tacoma (25:00).

ACADEMICS: He enrolled at CU prior to the spring ?04 semester and had a Dean’s List 3.925 semester and followed it up in the fall of ?04 with a President’s List 4.00. Heinonen earned another 4.00 during the fall of ’05. He has been named to the Commissioner’s Honor Roll all four semesters and owns a 3.965 GPA. A journalism major, he has penned articles for www.runnersworld.com and the Prefontaine Classic souvenir program. Once in Boulder he interned for the Boulder Daily Camera during the 2003 and ?04 summers. He is one of eight recipients of the 2004-05 NCAA Freedom Forum Sports Journalism Scholarship.

PERSONAL: Erik Douglas Heinonen was born Sept. 21, 1982 in Eugene, Ore. He is the son of former Minnesota All-American and Duck women’s track and field head coach (1977-03) Tom (NCAA Coach of the Year following the 1983 and ?87 cross country and ?85 outdoor track national titles) and national track and field columnist Janet. He has a younger sister, Liisa, who runs for the Oregon club team. Tom was an All-America distance runner at Minnesota and a post-collegiate AAU marathon champion. Janet is also a marathon veteran and former sports information publicist at Oregon. His hobbies include writing, cooking and hiking.