Notable running statistician Ken Young dies

Very sorry to hear of the passing of Ken Young, founder of the ARRS and someone whose ideas and work influenced road racing and athletics worldwide even if he remained largely unrecognized. RIP. https://t.co/Fu1EISOLx4https://t.co/eMMfTD1TQD

— Japan Running News (@JRNHeadlines) February 6, 2018

Notable running statistician Ken Young died recently, Japan Running News reports. He was 76.

Young co-founded the volunteer-run Association of Road Racing Statisticians, and, according to the website’s bio of Young, maintained the online database (arrs.net) of more than 400,000 runners. The database includes more than 1.2 million performances. The ARRS database is free to access.

Japan Running News reports that Young went off the grid in December 2017 “as it [he] turned out to have what ultimately proved a fatal brain tumor removed.”

Ken Young will be missed greatlty; a fine gentleman full of kindness & brillant ideas! #ARRS #Athletics #History https://t.co/DEZy7fi1xR pic.twitter.com/GqPZPDD5Oh

— Kip Evans (@Kip3vans) February 6, 2018

The Association of Road Racing Statisticians database was particularly relevant for tracking the world records of Ed Whitlock, who passed away in March 2017 at 86. A search of Whitlock’s name on the ARRS website shows multiple pages of results (many performances of which are age-group world records) dating back to 1977.

In 2016, Amby Burfoot wrote in Runner’s World that “you have likely never heard of Ken Young. But if you are a (really) fast runner, he’s certainly heard of you.” Burfoot wrote that Young, a native of Rochester, N.Y., put in 55-60 hours per week for more than 40 years in developing the database, used by publications, individuals and races around the world.