Education

BS Electrical Engineering from BYU, 1983

Years at BYU

1999-Present

Prior to BYU

Professional athlete, track and field; 12 time national champion and competed in the 1988 Seoul Olympics

Hometown

Orem, Utah. Originally from San Leandro, Calif.

Personal/Family

Married to Lynette with four children, two girls and two boys.

1991 Hall of Fame Inductee

At five feet nine inches, distance runner Doug Padilla stands tall in the world of track.

Six times Doug has been one of the world's top indoor distance runners (1982-86 and 1990). He was Outdoor Mobil Grand Prix champion in 1985 and twice champion of the 5,000-meter race, in 1985 and 1987. In 1990 he was the Indoor USA/Mobil Grand Prix Champion, awarded to the most productive racer of the season - an honor that netted him $12,000. In the eight-week, 11-meet Mobil Grand Prix circuit, he was the best overall male performer in any event. It was a fitting rebound for his career, which seemed in jeopardy for four years becasue of asthma.

Twice Doug has represented the United States in the Olympics: in 1988 at Seoul and in 1984 when he placed seventh in the 5,000-meters at Los Angeles.

From 1983 to 1987 he won five consecutive national indoor championships, four national outdoor championships, and two U.S. Olympic trials.

The San Leandro, California, strider - known for his patented kick - broke seven American records in three distances. Included among those was the outdoor 3,000-meters (7:35.84), the indoor two mile (8:15.02), the indoor 5,000-meters (13:20.55), and the road 5,000 meters (13:30).

Doug transferred to BYU from Chabot Junior College in 1975 and served a Church mission to El Salvador from 1976 to 1978. Upon his return to BYU, he went on to earn eight All-America citations. He won the 1981 NCAA indoor two-mile crown when he out-kicked 1980 Olympic silver medalist Suleiman Nyambui to become the first American since 1972 to win an NCAA indoor distance race.

As a senior in 1981, the electrical engineering major topped the BYU career leader board with a 3:38.37 in the 1,500 meters and a 13:33.50 in the 5,000 meters. As of 1991, he was the only runner to break the four-minute-mile barrier inside the state of Utah.