Silvia Ruegger

Silvia Ruegger (February 23, 1961 – August 23, 2019) was a long-distance runner from Canada who represented her native country at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California, where she finished eighth in the women's marathon.^[1] She came first in the 1985 Houston Marathon in 2:28:36.^[2] She was born in Oshawa, Ontario, and grew up just south of the village of Newtonville, Ontario.^[3] She died in August 2019, at the age of 58.^[4]

Ruegger was born in Oshawa, Ontario in February 1961.^[1] She was inspired to run after watching the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal,^[5] and set herself a goal to compete at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.^[1] However, Canada was one of the many nations to boycott the games.^[6]

At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, Ruegger competed in the women's marathon,^[7] where she finished in eighth place,^[8] setting a new national record in the process.^[1] The following year, she won the 1985 Houston Marathon, setting another national record,^[9] one that would stand for 28 years.^[10] However, two weeks later, Ruegger was involved in a car accident.^[11] Despite this, her career lasted another eleven years, which included winning the 1987 Pittsburgh Marathon.^[1] She retired from long-distance running just before the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta.^[1]

After her running career, Reugger set up a national programme, called Start2Finish, to help at-risk young people.^[1] In 2017, she was diagnosed with esophageal cancer.^[12] She died two years later,^[13] at the age of 58.^[14]

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Notes
Representing  Canada
1984	National Capital Marathon	Ottawa, Ontario, Canada	1st	Marathon	2:30:37
	Olympic Games	Los Angeles, United States	8th	Marathon	2:29:09
1985	Houston Marathon	Houston, United States	1st	Marathon	2:28:36
1987	Pittsburgh Marathon	Pittsburgh, United States	1st	Marathon	2:31:53

• Sylvia Ruegger at World Athletics
• Sylvia Ruegger at Olympedia
• Canadian Olympic Committee