A Memorial at Pre's Rock

Pre’s Rock is a hard-to-find basalt outcropping on a hillside in Eugene, Oregon that was the site of Olympian, Steve “Pre” Prefontaine’s death on May 30, 1975.

After a send-off party for a visiting Finnish track team Pre was winding through the tight turns of Skyline Blvd. when he encountered another car on the road and struck the outcropping, flipping his MG convertible. He could not be freed.

In June 2020, thousands of Olympic hopefuls will return to Pre’s home track, the newly rebuilt Hayward Field in Eugene, for a chance to qualify for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Only a select few will make Team USA but nearly each competitor will make a pilgrimage to Pre’s Rock and honor an athlete who exemplified the go-for-broke ethos of champions.

Design competition participants will imagine a memorial for site of Pre’s fatal car crash that will bring visibility to the location and recognize the legacy and influence of Steve Prefontaine.