When 41-year-old Konstantin Matchev finished a half marathon Sunday, he hoped to see a familiar face at the finish line.
His friend, UF physics professor Steven Detweiler, was always faster — even at the age of 68.
Detweiler was found dead the morning of Feb. 8 after his final run, a two-and-a-half-mile jog from Gale Lemerand Drive to Radio Road.
He suffered a cardiac arrest.
As Matchev finished the Five Points of Life Half Marathon on Sunday, Detweiler was not there.
“We still can’t believe it,” he said.
• • •
UF physics professor Steven Detweiler runs during the Shorter Mile race in Gainesville on New Year's Day.
Detweiler ran nearly every Saturday for six years.
By 6:30 a.m., he joined fellow members of the Florida Track Club to run a dozen miles through Gainesville.
Sometimes, Detweiler would show up three hours early, especially if he was training for a marathon, club member Mark Ou said.
“He was very dedicated,” he said.
Detweiler ran the Boston Marathon last year and would often tell stories of his past races.
Detweiler once recounted the time he passed a running legend during a 15-kilometer race in Jacksonville, Florida.
As Detweiler approached Bill Rodgers, a man who won the Boston Marathon and the New York Marathon four times each, he struggled to find the right words.
“I’m older than you,” Detweiler said as he passed Rodgers.
On Sunday, friends wore shirts adorned with Detweiler’s picture, taking him across the finish line once more.
“It was kind of like something missing, but he was there in spirit,” Ou said.
• • •
Matchev owes his love for running to Detweiler.
About four years ago, Matchev’s two sons began to run before school, and he wondered whether they could compete in races.
Matchev, a UF physics professor, asked for his colleague’s opinion.
“I mentioned it to Steve that my kids were becoming good runners, and he said, ‘Well, why don’t you try them on one of these weekend 5Ks?’” Matchev said.
His eldest son, 12-year-old Anton, finished second in a 5K on Saturday.
“This is all thanks to Steve,” Matchev said.
• • •
In middle school, Anton learned about black holes.
Whenever Anton pestered his father with questions, his father sent him to Detweiler, who researched black holes and gravitational fields.
Days after his death, scientists announced the existence of gravitational waves after they recorded the sound of two black holes colliding a billion light years away.
Detweiler, who hoped to make the same discovery, learned about the finding before his death.
For his friends, it’s a small yet significant consolation.
“I hope you are running loops around the black holes up in the heavens now, Steve,” Ou said.
Contact Martin Vassolo at mvassolo@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @martindvassolo.
An accomplished runner who often dominated the competition in his age group, UF physics professor Steven Detweiler poses for a picture on New Year's Day after the Shorter Mile race in Gainesville,. Detweiler was 68 when he passed away.
