Ernie Cunliffe,  Stanford USA 800 Meters, Rome 1960 World Record 1000 Yards Yesterday, Saturday June 6, 2026, my friend Ernie Cunliffe passed away.  He died peacefully after a long race with cancer.  He was a middle distance runner by trade, but he proved his ability to go long distance as well.   I'd been communicating with Ernie by phone for the past few months knowing that this last race he was in would soon have an ending, but he kept kicking the finish line out a bit further each day.  He knew he was in his last race, but a lifetime of competitiveness kept a spark of intensity ignited right down to the last steps.   If you got to know Ernie, you would find out that running was not his only passion.  He spent a lot of time in the mountains of Colorado on multiple expeditions, and I believe he summited all of the 14,000 foot peaks in that state.  I got to know Ernie by passing on my knowledge of going up Mt. Kilimanjaro, ...