Mark Curp (born January 5, 1959 in Chillicothe, Missouri) held the world record for the half marathon from 1985 until 1990. He continued holding the American record in the half marathon until a new record was set by Ryan Hall in 2007. Curp attended Central Missouri State University, receiving a bachelor's degree in 1981 and a master's degree in 1982. Curp's world record in the half marathon stood for five years, until September 16, 1990, when Dionicio Ceron broke Curp's time by nine seconds on the same Philadelphia course.