Emily Walker
What’s in a name? For a lot of dog owners, picking the perfect name for their furry friend is an important task.
And while there are plenty of popular names to choose from, sometimes the best option is a unique name that reflects your pup’s personality.
If you’re looking for some inspiration, why not consider naming your dog after a famous runner?
Here are ten fun running-inspired names for your four-legged friend.
Male Running Dog Names
| Names | Notes |
| Guerrouj | After Hicham El Garrouj, a record holding Moroccan runner |
| Jurek |
After Scott Jurek, who held significant streaks and records in the sport
|
| Sprint |
A fast-paced short distance run
|
| Trail |
Off-road running not done on a traditional track
|
| Usain |
After Usain Bolt, known as the fastest man in history
|
| Zatopek |
After Czech runner Emil Zatopek, mid-th century legend
|
| Saiid |
After Saiid Aouita, one of the most versatile running record holders in history
|
| Benoit |
After Joan Benoit Samuelson, one of America’s greatest marathon runners
|
| Khalid |
After Khalid Khannouchi, a marathon world record holder
|
| Hicham |
After Hicham El Guerrouj, one of history’s best middle distance runners
|
| Tempo |
The paced rhythm of a runner
|
| Runner | One who runs |
| Salazar |
After Alberto Salazar, who won the New York Marathon three years in a row
|
| Dash |
A fast but short sprint
|
| Radcliffe |
After Paula Radcliffe, an esteemed and record-holding marathoner
|
| Streaker |
A runner who has a streak of consecutive wins
|
| Marathon | A mile foot race |
| Track |
The platform/venue for foot races
|
| Samuelson |
After Joan Benoit Samuelson, James E. Sullivan award-winner
|
| Lewis |
After Carl Lewis, world championship medals and Olympic medals
|
| Rush |
To hurry or do things quickly
|
| Owens |
After Jesse Owens, a record-setting runner and strong equal rights supporter
|
| Dart |
To spring forward swiftly
|
| Bandit |
One who runs without registering for a race
|
| Bannister |
After American Roger Bannister, who ran the first track mile in under minutes
|
| Tyson |
After Tyson Gay, the next fastest short distance runner to Usain Bolt
|
| Linford |
After Linford Christie, the most successful male runner in British history
|
| Jogger | One who jogs |
| Kipsang |
After Wilson Kipsang Kiprotich, world record-holding Kenyan marathoner
|
| Bolt |
After Usain Bolt, Olympic gold medalist and record holder
|
Female Running Dog Names
| Names | Notes |
| Swift |
Smooth, largely effortless movement
|
| Farah |
After Mo Farah, one of only seven to score under : in the meter
|
| Bekele |
After Kenenisa Bekele, one of, if not the, the most decorated cross country runner
|
| Meb |
After Meb Keflezighi, numerous title-holding US marathon runner
|
| Abebe |
After Abebe Bikila, a gold-medalist runner
|
| Haile |
After Haile Gebrselassie, Olympic gold medalist and world record setting runner
|
| Prefontaine |
After Steve Prefontaine, who set American records in events before dying in a car accident
|
| Joyner |
After Florence Griffith-Joyner, known as the fastest woman in history
|
| Karnazes |
After Dean Karnazes, one of the world’s best ultra marathoners
|
| Coe |
After Sebastian Coe, who dominated numerous events in the late s and early s
|
| Switzer |
After Katherine Switzer, the first woman to compete in the Boston Marathon
|
| Florence |
After Florence Griffith-Joyner, AKA “Flo Jo”
|
| Tergat |
After Paul Tergat, a highly-successful Kenyan runner and Olympic medalist
|
| Deena |
After Deena Kastor, national title holder and Olympic medalist
|
| Pacer |
A standard setter
|
| Paavo |
After Paavo Nurmi, who won an insane career races
|
| Kastor |
Deena Kastor, esteemed Olympian
|
| Glide |
To move smoothly with little effort
|
| Ndereba |
After Catherine Ndereba, one of the best and most accomplished female marathoners
|
| Emil |
After Emil Zatopek, widely considered to be the best runner in the world
|
| Nurmi |
After Paavo Nurmi, the most decorated distance runner ever
|
| Rice |
After RICE, rest, ice, compression, elevation, the key to healing running-related injuries
|
| Bikila |
After Ethiopian Abebe Bikila, who is known for winning medals without shoes
|
| Kenenisa |
After Kenenisa Bekele, world record holding runner
|
| Bib |
The sign that displays the runner’s racer number
|
| Kiprotich |
After Kenyan-born Wilson Kipsang Kiprotich and Olympic medalist
|
| Mutai |
After Geoffrey Mutai, the Kenyan who ran the fastest marathon in history
|
| Asafa |
After Asafa Powell, who set numerous records in short distance
|
| Racer | One who races |
| Stride |
The distance between steps
|
So there you have it, a comprehensive list of running dog names to help inspire your next furry friend’s name.
if you need more help for your four legged friends, you can visit our sporty dog names!
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