San Romani was born inFrontenac,Kansas, on 17 September 1912.[1][2] He was run over by a truck at age 8, and his right leg was mangled so badly that doctors considered amputating it;[2][3][4] he took up running as a form of rehabilitation.[2] His childhood paralleled that of his future friend and rivalGlenn Cunningham, who was also from Kansas and also nearly had a leg amputated at age 8.[3][5][6]
He repeated as NCAA champion in1936, winning the 1500 m title in a meet record 3:53.0.[10] At the national championships inPrinceton he finished second to Cunningham[11] but beat Venzke and world record holderBill Bonthron for the first time.[4] At theOlympic Trials the next week San Romani took the lead on the third lap and held it until Cunningham made his move with 300 meters to go. The two then fought a close battle with Cunningham prevailing by inches.[3][13] Both were timed in 3:49.9, barely a second outside Bonthron's world record.[3][14] Venzke was third, and these three were selected for theOlympics in Berlin.[3][15]
At the Olympics San Romani placed second in his heat to qualify for the final.[1][16] In thefinal he finished fourth in 3:50.0, missing out toNew Zealand'sJack Lovelock (who set a new world record), Cunningham andItaly's defending championLuigi Beccali.[15]
A week later, he was part of a United States relay team (withChuck Hornbostel, Venzke and Cunningham) that set a new world record of 17:17.2 in the 4 x Mile relay.[1][17] Finally, in October he scored an upset victory in Princeton, defeating both Lovelock and Cunningham.[7][18][19]
San Romani never won a national outdoor title,[1][11] but he did become Americanindoor champion in 1937, beating an international field including Beccali and Venzke.[1][20][21] He ran his personal mile best of 4:07.2 in winning the 1937 Princeton Invitational Mile[1][22][23] and stayed in good shape for the rest of the year. InStockholm on 5 August he ran the mile in 4:08.4 - less than two seconds outside Cunningham's world record - despite halting after 1500 meters under the impression that had been the end of the race.[24][25][26] Three weeks later inHelsinki he ran2000 meters in a world record time of 5:16.8, breakingHenry Jonsson's previous mark of 5:18.4.[1][14][27] San Romani's world record lasted for almost five years untilSweden'sGunder Hägg ran 5:16.4 in July 1942.[14][27]
In the winter of 1938 San Romani suffered from health problems and lost some conditioning.[23] While he managed to return as a leading contender and only narrowly lost to Cunningham in the 1938 Princeton mile,[28][29] he never improved his personal bests again.[1] He placed third at the national championships that year[11] and remained one of America's leading milers until his retirement in 1940.[30]
After retiring from Track & Field he lived inPortland,Maine for several years, working first as a musical instructor and then at thelocal shipyard.[31] In 1945 he moved back to Kansas[31] and opened a jewelry store inWichita.[32][33] He eventually moved toCalifornia to teach music again he taught at Dale Jr High School, and Sycamore Jr. High School, in Anaheim California ;[2][33] he died inAuberry,California on 7 November 1994.[1][2] He was posthumously inducted into theKansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2004.[34]
San Romani married Lena Plumley in 1937.[35] They had five children.[2] Their only son, Archie San Romani Jr., also became a quality miler.[36] A standout already in high school,[37][38] the younger San Romani placed fifth at theNCAAchampionships in 1963 and second in 1964.[10] At the 1964Olympic Trials he finished fifth as the top three again made the Olympic team.[39]Track & Field News ranked him #6 in the United States that year.[40] He ran his best mile of 3:56.6 in 1964.[41]
^The national championships and the Olympic Trials were held separately for the first time since 1924. In 1992 they were merged into a single meet again.[12]
^abcButler, Mark; IAAF Media & Public Relations Department (2011),IAAF Statistics Handbook Daegu 2011, International Association of Athletics Federations
*Distances have varied as follows: Mile (1940–2002) and 1932, 2007 and odd numbered years since 2011, 1500 meters (1933–1939), (2003–6, 2008–2010) and even numbered years since 2010
