Rod Dixon
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's Athletics | ||
Representing  New Zealand
|
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| Olympic Games | ||
 |
1972 Munich | 1500 metres |
Rodney Phillip "Rod" Dixon (born 13 July 1950) is a former New Zealand middle- to long-distance runner. He won the bronze medal in the 1500 metres at the 1972 Olympics in Munich, and in 1983 won the New York City Marathon.
Dixon was born on 13 July 1950 in Nelson, New Zealand.
He first represented New Zealand at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich , finishing third in the 1500 metres. At the 1974 British Commonwealth Games in Christchurch he finished fourth in the 1500 metres. His time of 3:33.89 (officially 3:33.9) was the fifth fastest ever at the time and remained Dixon's lifetime best for the distance. He then moved up to the 5000 metres and was ranked first in the world for the event in 1975 by Track & Field News magazine.
In the 5000 metres at the 1976 Montreal Olympics Dixon finished fourth behind four-time Olympic Champion Lasse Virén, teammate Dick Quax and Klaus-Peter Hildenbrand whose last second dive/fall denied Dixon a second Olympic bronze medal.
After missing the 1980 Summer Olympics due to the boycott Dixon turned to road-running and was one of the more successful athletes on the US road racing circuit in the early '80s, including wins at the Falmouth Road Race (1980), Bay to Breakers (1982 & 1983), the Lynchburg, Virginia 10 miler (1981 & 1983), and the Philadelphia Half-Marathon (1980, 1981). His gradual move to longer distances culminated in his 1983 marathon victory in New York City. He finished 10th in the marathon at the 1984 Summer Olympics.
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