STEPHEN PIFER

By Steve Porter

Stephen Pifer was born to run. His grandfather, John was an All-America runner at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Grandpa John started the SIUE cross country program in 1969.  Pifer’s uncle, Tim Flamer, was an All-America long-distance competitor at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. So, they stressed to Pifer the importance of running and taught him their feelings of fondness for it. “My uncle was also my coach,” Pifer said of Tim Flamer.

So, Pifer picked up the baton and ran with it. He did it so well that he earned All-State status at Edwardsville High School, All-America recognition at Colorado and competed in three Olympic Trials.

His lengthy resume tells the story of his running feats and why he is being enshrined in the St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame for 2024. “That’s pretty incredible,” said Pifer, 38, of the honor. “I feel good about my running career and I’m honored others think that highly of me.”

Take it from Lebanon native Craig Virgin, a St. Louis Sports Hall of Fame in 2011 and one of the nation’s finest long-distance runners. He said of Pifer: “I have followed and supported Stephen since his breakout track season of his sophomore year at Edwardsville High. And I have known his family since long before that. I’m very proud of what he accomplished is high school, college and pro running.”

Pifer noted, “Winning the Triple Crown of IHSA running was special for me because Craig Virgin (1972) was the last one south of Peoria to accomplish the feat and he was a mentor for me.” The “Triple Crown” consists of winning the Illinois High School Association cross country championship and the 1,600-meters and the 3,200-meters track titles. Only six Illinois runners, at that time, completed the trifecta.

He won the IHSA cross country in the fall of 2002 with a time of 14 minutes, 33 seconds at Detweiller Park in Peoria. Then in the spring of 2003, he finished first in the 1,600-meters in 4:14.29 and the 3,200-meters at 9:06.93. Pifer’s effort led the Tigers to a third-place team finish at O’Brien Stadium in Charleston.

“It was tough to get all three because you have to be healthy, lucky and everything has to go your way,” Pifer said. “The cross country championship was the hardest part of it because any number of things can happen at Detweiller Park.” Overall, he recorded four IHSA titles, counting his 1,600-meter championship during his junior season.

Pifer’s run to fame continued. Next came a memorable career at the University of Colorado. He was an eight-time All-America runner – four in track and four in cross country — for the Buffaloes. Two of his most cherished achievements were running a 3:59.55 in the indoor mile and setting the Big 12 record of 3:40.70 in the outdoor 1,500-meters. Both came in 2006, when he was also NCAA runner-up in the 5,000-meters.

In addition, he was part of a NCAA championship cross country teams in 2004 and 2006. The 2006 team met then President George W. Bush at the White House. He was a seventh-place finisher in the 5,000-meters at the U.S. Olympic Trials two years later. He also competed in the 2012 and 2016 Trials.

“It’s hard to pick which moment was my favorite one. There were so many good ones along the way,” said Pifer, now director of marketing at Currax Pharma in Atlanta. “There wasn’t one defining moment.”