Al Buehler passed away on January 5, 2023. The following article is from the The Chronicle.
Apologies, missed this date by one year.
Former Duke track and field, cross country head coach Al Buehler dies at 92
Longtime Duke track and field head and cross country coach Al Buehler died Jan. 5 at 92 years old at The Forest at Duke Retirement Community, his family announced Tuesday. A member of the Duke Athletics Hall of Fame and a larger-than-life figure in Blue Devil history, Buehler spent 45 years at the school from 1955-2000.
After graduating from the University of Maryland, where he enjoyed a successful career as a track runner, Buehler began as head coach of Duke's cross country team in 1955 and became its track and field head coach in 1964. Duke hosted the NCAA Track and Field Championships at Wallace Wade Stadium in 2000, and Buehler retired shortly after, bringing to an end an illustrious career. He was inducted into the Duke Athletics Hall of Fame in 2001 and continued teaching as Duke's faculty chair of the department of physical education until 2015.
Buehler's legacy extends beyond Duke. His career on the international stage featured three appearances as a member of the U.S. Olympic track and field coaching staff in 1972, 1984 and 1988. He is a member of the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame and the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
In addition to serving as chairman of the NCAA Track & Field Committee, Buehler was the meet director at the U.S.A.-Pan Africa-Federal Republic of Germany Meet in 1975, the USA vs. USSR meet in 1974 and the Martin Luther King Jr. Games in 1973.
Among the many ways in which Buehler's legacy is honored at Duke today is the Al Buehler Cross Country Trail, a three-mile loop circling the Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club. He is also the subject of a book and documentary by Amy Unell, both titled "Starting at the Finish Line."
At Commencement in May 2022, President Vincent Price spoke of Buehler, his philosophies and his lasting impact on the Duke community. Standing in Wallace Wade, where Buehler coached before the removal of the track in 2015, Price likened life to a footrace, imploring the school's newest graduates to approach that race with Buehler's teachings in mind.
"You may recognize his name from the cross-country trail on the other side of the road," Price said, "but it was right here that Coach Buehler brought out the best in All-Americans, ACC Champions, and Olympians—a hall-of-fame career that led none other than Mike Krzyzewski to say that Al 'defines the word Coach, and sets an example for all of us.'"
"Throughout his career, Coach Buehler has been a bold and courageous voice for what is right—a champion of integrating college sports during the height of segregation and a vocal advocate for equal scholarships for women. But what the runners he’s coached over the years most appreciate is his quiet wisdom, and a guiding philosophy built around three core principles," Price continued.
Those principles, Price explained, are to set up your own race, stay conscious and teamwork.
Buehler is survived by his wife, Delaina, their children and their grandchildren. A memorial service for Buehler will be held Jan. 28 at 2 p.m. at Duke Memorial United Methodist Church. The online service can be viewed here.
Memorial donations in honor of Buehler may be made to the Al Buehler Athletic Endowment Fund at Duke Athletics, The Salvation Army of Durham or a charity to be decided by the donor.
From Bill Schnier: Al Buehler was a wonderful coach at Duke for many years. Despite the upper crust university he coached at, he was instrumental in a number of very significant cross-racial endeavors. He collaborated with LeRoy Walker, coach at North Carolina Central in Durham, on several notable occasions. As a distance-oriented coach at Duke, he wanted his sprinters to receive more attention so he suggested to his coaching peer across town that both schools' sprinters train at NCCU and both schools' distance runners train at Duke. This was still during Jim Crow days but the two pulled it off successfully. Later they joined together to host three major summer track meets at Duke's Wallace Wade Stadium involving the US team against the Pan-Africans, the USSR, and West Germany. All were extremely well attended with about 40,000-60,000 each time. Finally, Coach Buehler served as an assistant track coach for the US Olympic Team in 1972 in Munich. In 1968 in Mexico City following the men's 200 and the subsequent demonstration by Tommie Smith and John Carlos, the two were dismissed from the team and sent home. Al Buehler took the very shaken pair to the airport and on the way told them he was supportive of their demonstration and that in time their actions would receive general praise from the American public, which proved to be true. He was a friend when those sprinters found few other friends. For the last 20 years of his life he climbed up the stairs and then a ladder to the steeple of his Methodist church and rang the bell to announce the service each Sunday.
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