About Marianne Dickerson
Lived 1960 – 2015 (aged 54). Marianne Dickerson was an American athletics competitor and marathon runner.
Marianne Dickerson (November 14, 1960 – October 14, 2015) was an American long-distance runner.
Personal life Dickerson was born in St. Joseph, Illinois.
NCAA She was a star runner first at St. Joseph-Ogden High School, then at the University of Illinois after a stint on a track scholarship to the University of Michigan. (She earned a bachelor's in general engineering from the University of Illinois and a master's in industrial engineering from the University of Michigan). November, 1980: UI cross country's Marianne Dickerson placed first at the AIAW state meet.November 1982: In the first-ever Big Ten women's cross country championship meet, Marianne Dickerson earned first-team All-Big Ten honors with a sixth-place finish. in 1983 after also earning All-American status in the 10,000m, placing third, at NCAA Division I Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
Professional Against the advice of her coach, she entered a Missouri race, a portion of the inaugural Avon Marathon series. Winning the race qualified her for the series championship in Los Angeles, where she placed second behind Julie Brown.
That race served as the qualifier to the World Championships. She was a surprise to take the silver medal at the 1983 World Championships in Helsinki, Finland. While Grete Waitz was a clear winner, Dickerson was in fourth place behind Rosa Mota and Raisa Smekhnova, that group having already dispatched stars Joyce Smith, Laura Fogli and Christa Vahlensieck. Dickerson passed Mota outside the stadium then surged to dramatically beat Smekhnova (a sub-4 minute 1500m runner) on the track inside the stadium.
Injuries prevented her from competing in the 1984 Olympic Trials. She qualified for the 1988 trials by winning the Baltimore Marathon, but faded in the middle of those trials.
After getting her degree in engineering, she went to the Harvard Business School. In 2015, she returned to her alma-mater high school as an assistant coach before her death.
Achievements All results regarding marathon, unless stated otherwise
Don’t just read it —
keep it.
Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.
- E-book
- Audio
- Video
Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free
Important facts
People in Marianne Dickerson's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Related people
Same field, nearest in time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Marianne Dickerson's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Marianne Dickerson?
American distance runner (1960–2015)
When was Marianne Dickerson born?
Marianne Dickerson was born on 14 November 1960 in St. Joseph.
When did Marianne Dickerson die?
Marianne Dickerson died on 14 October 2015.
What was Marianne Dickerson's occupation?
Marianne Dickerson was an athletics competitor and marathon runner.
What nationality was Marianne Dickerson?
Marianne Dickerson was American.
Sources & further reading
· Wikipedia: Marianne Dickerson
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Marianne Dickerson. https://biography.guide/marianne-dickerson/
MLA: "Marianne Dickerson." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/marianne-dickerson/.
Chicago: "Marianne Dickerson." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/marianne-dickerson/.
Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.
Page generated 2026-09-27 05:28 UTC