College: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Event: 3,000 Steeplechase – 8:19.10
Coach: Mark Rowland
One of OTC Elite’s most versatile runners in both cross country and track, steeplechaser Ben Bruce, a native Californian, joined the club in January of 2009.
2010: Most recently, in January of 2011, Bruce defeated Max King and teammate Kevin Chelimo among many others to win the Bay Area Cross Country Challenge. … In the Spring of 2010, Bruce represented the United States at the World Cross Country Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland. Bruce earned the honor of representing the U.S. by finishing fourth at the U.S. Nationals in February with a 12k time of 35:16. In the fall of 2010 Bruce took part in the World Half-Marathon Championships in Nanning, China. … On the track, Bruce’s summer season in Europe was highlighted by a third-place finish in the 3,000 Steeplechase at the Gateshead Diamond League meet. Bruce clocked an 8:22.88, which not only knocked over 3 seconds off his PB, but also set an OTC Elite record. … Bruce opened his track season on April 30 at the Cardinal Invite, running 8:28.76 in the steeple. In May, he won the 5,000 meters at the Oregon Twilight meet in a personal-best time of 13:31.87, which was a 5-second PB. … Also in 2010, Bruce placed 10th in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Daegu Pre-Championship Meeting on May 15th with a time of 8:29.81. In June, Bruce placed sixth at the New York Diamond League competition in 8:26.23 and then took second (in 8:30.87) at the USATF Outdoor Championships. He then went to Europe, racing in four meets, and finishing in the top 3 three times. … Bruce finished off the summer with two USA road championship races: a sixth-place showing at the USA 20k Championships on September 6 and a second-place finish at the USA 5k Championships on September 19. His 20k time of 59:59 (4:50 mile pace) was a personal best at that distance.
2009: In his first race in an OTC Elite jersey, Bruce broke his PB in the steeplechase at the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational in early May, with an 8:26.08 winning effort. Bruce’s time proved good enough to rank him 3rd nationally and inside the top 50 in the world for 2009.
Previous professional highlights: In 2008, Bruce qualified for the steeplechase final at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials, clocking a then career-best of 8:32.57 to win his preliminary heat. He finished 12th in the finals. In 2007, Bruce ran a season-best of 8:32.74 at the Prefontaine Classic.
College: Bruce starred at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo in the early 2000s, setting the school record in the 5,000 meters with a time of 13:40.9 and running a best time of 8:33.70 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase—which ranks second in Mustangs’ history. As a senior, in the spring of 2005, Bruce earned All-America honors with a sixth-place showing in the steeplechase at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships. He also won Big West Conference titles in both the steeple and the 5k that year. … His college career began at San Diego Mesa in the fall of 2000. During his two years there, Bruce led Mesa to two California State titles and won an individual state championship in the steeplechase in 2002. He still holds the Mesa school record in the steeplechase (8:58.40).
High School: Bruce was a three-sport star at Mt. Carmel High in San Diego, though track and field was not one of the three. Cross country, soccer and golf were his sports of choice. In the former, Bruce aided his Mt. Carmel team to a CIF San Diego Section title and a fifth-place finish in the California State Cross Country meet in the fall of 1999.
Personal: Bruce graduated from Cal Poly SLO in the spring of 2005 with a degree in Kinesiology. In 2006, he added a teaching degree in Physical Education. He can often be found traveling to Flagstaff, Ariz. to visit longtime girlfriend and elite runner Stephanie Rothstein. Bruce was born on September 10, 1982 and is the second of four children (Jenny, Tyler and Abby) born to Paul and Becky Bruce.
PERSONAL BESTS
3,000m Steeplechase – 8:19.10 – Ciutat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain - July 22, 2011
5,000 Meters – 13:31.87 – Oregon Twilight, Eugene, Ore. – May, 8, 2010
20K (road) – 59:59 – New Haven, Conn. – September 6, 2010
