View source for Lee Troop

{{short description|Australian long-distance runner}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
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| name           = Lee Troop
| image          = 
| imagesize      = <!--Only for images narrower than 220 pixels.-->
| caption        = 
| birth_name     = 
| fullname       = Lee Joseph Troop
| nickname       = Troopy
| nationality    = [[Australia]]n
| residence      = East Geelong, Victoria
| birth_date      = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1973|3|22}}
| birth_place     = [[Geelong]], [[Australia]]
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| height         = {{convert|178|cm|in}}
| weight         = {{convert|53|kg}}
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| club           = Athletics Chilwell
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'''Lee Joseph Troop''' (born 22 March 1973) is an [[Olympic Games|Olympic]] [[marathon (sport)|marathon]] [[Running|runner]] from [[Geelong]], [[Victoria, Australia]]. He started out as a [[long-distance running|long-distance track runner]] and he represented Australia in the 5000&nbsp;m at the [[1998 Commonwealth Games]] and attended his first [[World Athletics Championships]] the following year. He broke the [[Australian records in athletics|Australian record]] in the 5000&nbsp;m in 1999 and changed to the marathon distance in 2000.

He made his Olympic debut in the [[Athletics at the 2000 Summer Olympics – Men's marathon|2000 Olympic marathon race]] in Australia but finished in 66th place after an injury. Further injuries interrupted his next two seasons, but he returned and finished 17th in the marathon at the [[2003 World Championships in Athletics|2003 World Championships]] and 27th at the [[2004 Athens Olympics]]. He qualified for the [[2008 Beijing Olympics]] but despite his aim of making the top-ten, he finished in 60th place.

==Early life==
He became involved in [[Athletics (sport)|athletics]] at the age of 11 when he joined his father's weight loss campaign by taking training runs around the Geelong suburb of [[Whittington, Victoria|Whittington]]. He joined [[Athletics Chilwell]] (formerly Chilwell Athletic Club) in 1986 and has competed for the club ever since. During a brief stint in the 1990s Lee competed on a second-claim basis for the [[cross country running|cross country]] team from [[Ballarat Harriers]] in the Athletics Victoria winter competition series. He was mentored by [[Steve Moneghetti]], the [[Athletics at the 1994 Commonwealth Games|1994 Commonwealth champion]] in the [[marathon]].

==World debut==
In 1996, Troop won Victoria's regional [[5000 metres]] championship and first represented Australia at the [[1998 Commonwealth Games]] in [[Kuala Lumpur]]. He finished sixth in the 5000&nbsp;m and seventh in the [[10,000 metres]]. He competed in the 5000&nbsp;m at the [[1999 World Championships in Athletics – Men's 5000 metres|1999 World Championships in Athletics]] but did not progress beyond the heats.

He broke [[Ron Clarke]]'s 33-year-old national record in the 5000&nbsp;m in 1999, but decided to focus on marathon running in the lead-up to the [[2000 Sydney Olympics]].<ref>[http://www.abc.net.au/news/olympics/athletes/troop.htm Sydney 2000 – Lee Troop]. [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] (2000). Retrieved 26 March 2010.</ref> However, after qualifying, he tore a stomach muscle and struggled to finish in 66th place.<ref>Huxley, John (24 August 2008). [http://www.watoday.com.au/news/latest-news/troops-long-race-to-agony/2008/08/24/1219516264731.html The long race to ecstasy - and agony]. ''WA Today''. Retrieved 26 March 2010.</ref>

==2004–2008 Olympics==
For the next two years, Troop was troubled by a series of injuries but bounced back in 2003, enjoying his best ever form. He ran a personal best of 2:09:49 at [[Lake Biwa Marathon]],<ref>Nakamura, Ken (2 March 2003). [http://www.iaaf.org/news/Kind=2/newsId=20503.html Japhet Kosgei just short of course record in Lake Biwa Marathon]. [[IAAF]]. Retrieved 26 March 2010.</ref> and finished 17th at the World Championships in [[Paris]]. He placed 27th at the 2004 [[2004 Summer Olympics|Athens Olympic Games]] in the marathon with a time of 2:18.46. He broke down shortly after with a stress fracture of the pelvis.

In October 2007, Troop ran 2:10:31 at the [[Berlin Marathon]] – an Olympic A-grade qualifying time. In May 2008, Troop was the only nomination for the Australian Men's team in the marathon for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Troop said he wanted to emulate the feats of Australian marathon legends [[Robert de Castella]] and his coach [[Steve Moneghetti]] in achieving a top 10 placing at the Olympic Games.<ref>[http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/article/2008/05/20/14129_geelong_sports.html Troop declares himself top 10 chance at Beijing]</ref> In the [[Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's marathon|2008 Olympic marathon race]] he finished 60th in a time of 2:27:17.

In October 2008, Lee announced that it was likely that he and his family would make a move to the United States no earlier than March 2009 with a desire to run in the [[Boston Marathon|Boston]] and [[New York Marathon]]s. In 2008, he finished fourth in the [[Melbourne Half Marathon]] and took part in the [[Shanghai Marathon]].

In April 2013, Lee finished 15th at Boston Marathon in 2:17:52<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://raceday.baa.org/top-finishers.html |title=Top Finishers - Boston Athletic Association - BAA.org |access-date=20 December 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180918004919/http://raceday.baa.org/top-finishers.html |archive-date=18 September 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref> at 40 years old.

==Boulder Track Club and T.E.A.M. Boulder==
Lee began coaching for Boulder Track Club in 2011 and coached elite runners<ref>{{cite web |url=http://bouldertrackclub.com/teams/elite/athletes/ |title=Athletes - Boulder Track ClubBoulder Track Club |accessdate=2013-12-20 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150428164822/http://bouldertrackclub.com/teams/elite/athletes/ |archivedate=28 April 2015}}</ref> like [[Laura Thweatt]]. Lee now owns and manages T.E.A.M. Boulder with current elite runners Alejandro Ambrosio, Abdulmuhsen Mubarak Alali, Melissa Dock, Samuel Lanternier, [[Jake Riley (runner)|Jacob Riley]], Carrie Verdon, Ericka Waterman, and Chase Weaverling.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Troop Events Athlete Management |url=https://www.teamboco.com/ |access-date=2024-06-15 |website=Troop Events Athlete Management |language=en-US}}</ref>
==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{World Athletics}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071018135923/http://www.athletics.com.au/history/athletes/athlete2382.htm Statistics]
* [http://www.smh.com.au/news/athletics/troop-soldiers-on-for-another-crack/2008/08/23/1219262610555.html Troop soldiers on for another crack]

{{Footer Australia NC 10,000 m Men}}
{{Footer Australia NC Marathon Men}}
{{Footer New Zealand NC 10,000 m men}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Troop, Lee}}
[[Category:1973 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Australian male long-distance runners]]
[[Category:Olympic athletes for Australia]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 1998 Commonwealth Games]]
[[Category:Athletes (track and field) at the 2002 Commonwealth Games]]
[[Category:Athletes from Geelong]]
[[Category:Commonwealth Games athletes for Australia]]
[[Category:Sportsmen from Victoria (state)]]
[[Category:Australian Athletics Championships winners]]
[[Category:New Zealand Athletics Championships winners]]