Who is Paul Short? A History of the Man and Those Behind the Annual Meet
9/25/2017 1:16:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Women's Cross Country, Paul Short Run
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – For five decades, the Paul Short Run has attracted thousands of runners to Lehigh University's Goodman Campus each fall. From humble beginnings, the annual cross country meet has grown into one of the largest annual cross country meets in the entire nation. With the 50th edition of the annual meet taking place over two days on Oct. 4th & 5th, many often ask, "Who is Paul Short and what is his significance?"
A native of Belleville, N.J., Paul E. Short '34 played four sports during his time on South Mountain, competing on the school's football, wrestling, baseball, and lacrosse teams. A two-way player on the football team, he earned three varsity letters as the starting quarterback and served as team captain in 1932 and 1933. He was chosen as the outstanding football player of the 1930's and 1940's during the celebration of the 100 years of football at Lehigh. He was a member of the university's ROTC program, as well as the Beta Theta Pi fraternity and the Omicron Delta Kappa national leadership honor society.
After graduating with a degree in business administration, Short made stops at Dravo Corporation and Bethlehem Steel before returning to the University in 1938. Over the next 29 years, he would serve as an assistant coach in football, baseball, wrestling and lacrosse, as well as a Business Manager and Assistant Director of Athletics. The only disruption to his service at Lehigh came while serving as a Major in the U.S. Army in World War II. Short passed away on November 17, 1967 at the age of 57 and was inducted into the Roger S. Penske/Lehigh Athletics Hall of Fame in 2000.
Throughout his time as an administrator Short was an avid fan of Lehigh track and cross country and was a frequent spectator at their meets both near and far. Not long after Short's death, Lehigh's track/cross country coach, John Covert (HOF '05) began organizing a cross country meet for Lehigh's brand new course. After some thought, Covert and athletic department administrator John Steckbeck (HOF '92) decided to name the new meet after the program's longtime fan.
The first Paul Short Run took place in 1969 when seven men's teams competed. Women competed for the first time in 1981, when six teams participated. In the early 2000's, head women's cross country coach Debbie Utesch, and track and field coach Matt Utesch helped grow the event even more by adding high school races. Today, the meet features 16 races with eight college races, six high school races and two open races over two days for men and women. High school and colleges teams, recreational runners, alumni and fans from around the U.S., and even Canada, make their way to Lehigh's Goodman Campus Course for the day-long festivities.
In 2024, the Paul Short Run will feature approximately 7,500 athletes representing nearly 600 colleges and high schools. The competitive balance in the Paul Short collegiate championship race has been significant over the years, with only five men's teams (Villanova, Penn State, Michigan State, Georgetown, and Utah State) and seven women's teams (Penn State, Georgetown, Villanova, Providence, Princeton, West Virginia, Guelph-Canada) having won consecutive championships.
The 2024 Paul Short Run will take place over two days on Friday and Saturday beginning Oct. 4th with the High School boys Gold race kicking off the event on Friday at 1:30 p.m. For a complete schedule and more information, visit www.paulshortxcrun.com.
A native of Belleville, N.J., Paul E. Short '34 played four sports during his time on South Mountain, competing on the school's football, wrestling, baseball, and lacrosse teams. A two-way player on the football team, he earned three varsity letters as the starting quarterback and served as team captain in 1932 and 1933. He was chosen as the outstanding football player of the 1930's and 1940's during the celebration of the 100 years of football at Lehigh. He was a member of the university's ROTC program, as well as the Beta Theta Pi fraternity and the Omicron Delta Kappa national leadership honor society.
After graduating with a degree in business administration, Short made stops at Dravo Corporation and Bethlehem Steel before returning to the University in 1938. Over the next 29 years, he would serve as an assistant coach in football, baseball, wrestling and lacrosse, as well as a Business Manager and Assistant Director of Athletics. The only disruption to his service at Lehigh came while serving as a Major in the U.S. Army in World War II. Short passed away on November 17, 1967 at the age of 57 and was inducted into the Roger S. Penske/Lehigh Athletics Hall of Fame in 2000.
Throughout his time as an administrator Short was an avid fan of Lehigh track and cross country and was a frequent spectator at their meets both near and far. Not long after Short's death, Lehigh's track/cross country coach, John Covert (HOF '05) began organizing a cross country meet for Lehigh's brand new course. After some thought, Covert and athletic department administrator John Steckbeck (HOF '92) decided to name the new meet after the program's longtime fan.
The first Paul Short Run took place in 1969 when seven men's teams competed. Women competed for the first time in 1981, when six teams participated. In the early 2000's, head women's cross country coach Debbie Utesch, and track and field coach Matt Utesch helped grow the event even more by adding high school races. Today, the meet features 16 races with eight college races, six high school races and two open races over two days for men and women. High school and colleges teams, recreational runners, alumni and fans from around the U.S., and even Canada, make their way to Lehigh's Goodman Campus Course for the day-long festivities.
In 2024, the Paul Short Run will feature approximately 7,500 athletes representing nearly 600 colleges and high schools. The competitive balance in the Paul Short collegiate championship race has been significant over the years, with only five men's teams (Villanova, Penn State, Michigan State, Georgetown, and Utah State) and seven women's teams (Penn State, Georgetown, Villanova, Providence, Princeton, West Virginia, Guelph-Canada) having won consecutive championships.
The 2024 Paul Short Run will take place over two days on Friday and Saturday beginning Oct. 4th with the High School boys Gold race kicking off the event on Friday at 1:30 p.m. For a complete schedule and more information, visit www.paulshortxcrun.com.
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