It’s been a big year for the University’s track and field program.
A ceremony marking the completion of the long-anticipated and much-celebrated Hayward Field renovation took place Friday, less than two months after University graduate, three-time New York Marathon winner and Olympic
runner Alberto Salazar joined the Oregon
track and field program as freshman phenom Galen Rupp’s personal coach.
A new entryway on the corner of East 15th Avenue and Agate Street provides Hayward Field with what University officials and donors call a new “front door” for the facility. The entryway was financed by donations from the Powell and Bowerman families, long-time supporters of the University and of the track and field program.
Lloyd Powell, a 1955 University graduate, and his wife, Sharon, donated $500,000 toward the project; their son, Peter, and his wife, Molly, who both graduated from the University in 1978, also donated $500,000. The family of the late Bill Bowerman, Nike co-founder and Oregon head track coach from 1948 to 1972, also donated $250,000.

University President Dave Frohnmayer led the ceremony, thanking the families for their contributions to what he called “one of the best-known and most beloved track and field facilities in the nation, and I can confidently say, actually, the world.”
Dubbed Powell Plaza, the new entrance includes a lawn and paved open space, a board that outlines Hayward Field’s history and brief biographies of track coaches Bill Hayward, Bowerman and Bill Dellinger, as well as track legend Steve Prefontaine.
“The coaches, the fans, the officials, the media representatives who’ve experienced
Hayward Field know that it still beats with the heart of Steve Prefontaine and echoes with the memories of Bill Hayward, Bill Bowerman, Bill Dellinger,” Frohnmayer said. “But many of those who come here in the future will have no such immediate memory, whether it goes back to the Olympic trials or as recently as two weeks ago, and that’s why these
historical plaques are so important.”
Dellinger, who was head coach from 1973 to 1998, attended the ceremony and spent a few minutes beforehand admiring the timeline and reflecting on the future of the track and field program.
“I like it,” Dellinger said. “It’s going to be real good.”
Peter Powell said he passed by Hayward Field every day when he lived in the residence halls during his undergraduate years and that although world-class athletes such as Prefontaine and Salazar were competing there, the view from East 15th Avenue and Agate Street “was sort of sad and actually run-down affair.”
“We’re hoping with the donation from the Powell family in conjunction with the Bowerman family that this front door will bring the University and this venue into a league of its own,” he said.

Peter and Molly Powell also donated $500,000 to the University’s Lundquist College of Business for the sole purpose of faculty support, citing their disappointment when their favorite University professor took a job at another school after he was made an offer the University could not match.
“As the University becomes more renowned on a national level, how can we compete against other institutions, many of whom have financial endowments?” Molly Powell asked. “Peter and I realize this will only be done through private support.”
Molly Powell said the family is hopeful the donation to the business school “will provide the financial muscle power that the business school needs to compete for those teachers on a national level.”
The donations bring the total amount raised in Campaign Oregon up to $324 million. Campaign Oregon vice chair Tim Boyle thanked the Powell and Bowerman families and praised the contributions to both academics and athletics.
“A U of O education, as these donors demonstrate so well, is about what we learn in class and what we learn outside of class,” Boyle said. “It’s about professors who inspire us and coaches who encourage us. It’s about learning to think and how to lead.”
College of Business Dean Jim Bean thanked the Powells for establishing what he called “The Peter and Molly Powell Faculty Excellence Fund” and contributing to the college’s goal of being among the best business schools in the country.
University Vice President for Administration Dan Williams spoke on behalf of the Athletics Department, sharing memories of Hayward Field and reflecting on its outlook for the future.
“The Powell Plaza will revitalize and solidify the University of Oregon’s position as a premier track and field university in the country and, importantly as well, Eugene city’s position as Track Town USA,” Williams said. “It’s because of privately funded facilities like this that we are able to host such events that create the atmosphere that results in the kind of performances that we saw in the Oregon Twilight Meet right here last Saturday.”
Rupp, a prized recruit from Portland, was named USA Track & Field’s Athlete of the Week because he ran to a record-breaking win in the 10,000-meters at the Twilight meet. Rupp trained with Salazar at Nike’s
Oregon Project in Portland, a live-in training facility for young athletes with championship prospects.
Salazar joined the University after the Athletics Department struck a deal with then-coach Martin Smith that he would resign but still receive his entire salary plus the value of his personnel expenses through 2008, the final year of his contract.
“I don’t really want to dredge over stuff in the past,” Salazar, who attended the ceremony, said in an interview. “I think this event sort of shows today that there’s a bright new future for Oregon Track and Field and that’s what I think all of us should focus on. I truly believe that Oregon, for a variety of reasons, is really going to get back to where it was 25-30 years ago.”
“There’s a DNA working here; a DNA replication,” Frohnmayer said after the ceremony, referring to the program’s rich history.

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