Mindaugas Pukštas

Mindaugas Pukštas (born 3 August 1978 in Kaunas) is a retired Lithuanian marathon runner.[2] He represented his nation Lithuania at the 2004 Summer Olympics, and later became an All-American in cross-country racing as a member of the track and field team for Oklahoma State University, under head coach Rene Sepulveda, while studying at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States.[3][4][1] Before he retired from his athletic career in 2006 to pursue volunteer coaching for his alma mater's track and field squad, Pukstas ran a career best in 2:12:52 to notch his first and only title at the Eurasia Marathon in Istanbul.[5][6]

Mindaugas Pukštas
Personal information
Nickname(s)Mindi [1]
Nationality Lithuania
Born (1978-08-03) 3 August 1978
Kaunas, Lithuanian SSR,
Soviet Union
ResidenceStillwater, Oklahoma, U.S.
Height1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Weight70 kg (154 lb)
Sport
SportAthletics
Event(s)Marathon
College teamOklahoma State Cowboys [1]
Coached byRene Sepulveda [1]
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)Marathon: 2:12:52

Pukstas qualified for the men's marathon at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, by finishing third and registering an A-standard entry time of 2:14.59 from the Motorola Marathon in Austin, Texas.[3][7] He finished seventy-fourth in a vast field of a hundred runners with a time of 2:33:02, trailing behind the gold medalist Stefano Baldini of Italy by nearly twenty-two minutes.[1][8][9]

Pukstas currently resides in Stillwater, Oklahoma, along with his wife and fellow assistant coach Živilė Pukštienė, and their children Rokas and Gabija. In May 2011, Pukštas overcame the rains across the city's lengthy course to claim the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon title under the men's senior category in 2:31:33.[10]

References
  1. "Former Cowboy ran Olympics thinking of new son". Daily O'Collegian. 15 September 2004. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  2. Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Mindaugas Pukštas". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  3. "Lietuvių startai Atėnų olimpinėse žaidynėse" [Lithuanians have started the Athens Olympics] (in Lithuanian). Vakarų ekspresas. 10 August 2004. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  4. McMullen, Paul (13 October 2005). "Pukstas looks to make misstep a lapse of past". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  5. "Course records fall in Istanbul, as Europeans sweep marathon honours". IAAF. 6 November 2006. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  6. "Lithuanian Pukstas Wins 28th Eurasia Marathon". Today's Zaman. 5 November 2006. Archived from the original on 4 November 2014. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  7. "Pukštas qualifies for the 2004 Summer Olympics". Oklahoma Sooners. 23 February 2004. Archived from the original on 4 November 2014. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  8. "IAAF Athens 2004: Men's Marathon". Athens 2004. IAAF. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
  9. Auruškevičius, Algirdas (31 August 2004). "Atėnai perdavė olimpinę estafetę Pekinui" [Athens hands over the Olympic flag to Beijing] (in Lithuanian). Vakarų ekspresas. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
  10. "Ex-Cowboy Mindi Pukstas wins Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon men's event". Tulsa World. 2 May 2011. Retrieved 4 November 2014.


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