A Guide to Team USA's Marathon Runners
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The men's Olympic marathon is today, August 10, and the women's marathon takes place tomorrow, August 11, on the final day of the Paris Olympic Games.
"Holding the women’s marathon after the men’s event, bringing the Games to a close, is hugely symbolic," Florence Carpentier sports historian told Olympics.com. "Especially with the marathon, because women struggled for a long time to be able to take part, to get officials and public opinion to accept that they could run races like this. The history of the first modern Olympic Games, in 1896 in Athens, was marked by this as well. A woman tried to take part in the marathon. She was rejected and prevented from signing up. And this continued throughout the 20th century: large numbers of women fought to have the right to run, and for a very long time it was believed that their physique meant they were unable to run races like the marathon. So, Paris 2024 showcasing the women’s marathon in this way really is very important."
The route begins at the Hôtel de Ville, or city hall, in Paris, goes to Versailles, and ends back at the Esplanade des Invalides in Paris. Per Runner's World, the Olympic marathon passes landmarks including the Palais Garnier opera house, Place Vendôme, the Louvre museum, and the Trocadéro.
Here, meet the three American women and three American men who will be running in the Paris Olympics marathon this weekend:
Fiona O'Keeffe
Hometown: Davis, California
Best marathon: 2:22:10 (at the Olympic Trials in Orlando 2024)
O'Keeffe's first-ever marathon was at the Olympic Trials, and she finished first in 2 hours, 22 minutes. "It was just overwhelming in the best way," she said after her victory. "It was an outcome I couldn’t have dreamed of, honestly. So, yeah, it was just like disbelief, joy and just a lot of gratitude for the moment."
Emily Sisson
Hometown: Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Best marathon: 2:18:29 (Chicago, 2022)
Sisson is the current American record holder in the women's marathon. "I’ve always dreamed of going to the Olympics in the marathon," she said. "I feel like the further I go in distance, the stronger I am — and I hope the more competitive I can be." (At the Tokyo Olympics, she competed in the 10k.)
Dakotah Lindwurm
Hometown: Francis, Minnesota
Best marathon: 2:24:40 (Chicago, 2023)
Lindwrum was a hockey player in high school. "When I was in high school, I was still playing hockey and for sure had Olympic dreams there," she shared. "But that obviously didn't pan out. But by no means did I think I was going to be an Olympian in running during high school. I ended up walking onto my Division II team because like, I wanted to keep running and I enjoy the community behind it. I was getting better through high school, but I knew that I wasn't the best in the country or even close to the best in my state."
Conner Mantz
Hometown: Smithfield, Utah
Best marathon: 2:07:47 (Chicago, 2023)
Mantz finished first in the Olympic Trials, right alongside Clayton Young, his Brigham Young University teammate and current training partner. "The last few moments of the Olympic trials kind of felt like a dream. And I kept thinking, 'Maybe something's going to go wrong, maybe we're going to have a nightmare scenario,'" he said. "And it probably wasn't a healthy thing to be thinking about, but it was just really cool to be, running down that stretch and Clayton and I are really like, 'Are we really qualifying for the Olympics? Are we really going to go one two at the Olympic trials?'"
Clayton Young
Hometown: American Fork, Utah
Best marathon: 2:08:00 (Chicago, 2023)
Young is enjoying the Olympic experience alongside his friend Mantz, he told NPR: "Having Connor there every step of the way, not only to the trials finish line, but from now training all the way to the start line of the Paris Olympic Marathon is where like, that's really where the strength comes from. I know that Connor is going to keep me accountable. He's going to keep me fit. He's going to keep me fast and focused as we approach Paris. And that's our best team moving forward for the United States as we get ready for the Paris Summer Olympics."
Leonard Korir
Hometown: Iten, Kenya
Best marathon: 2:07:56 (Amsterdam, 2019)
Paris is Korir's second Olympics; in Rio 2016, he placed 14th in the 10,000m. He missed qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics in the marathon by just three seconds.
On going to Paris, Korir said, "It means a lot to me. Especially to all my teammates and my leadership in the army. If you make the Olympics while you are in the army, it's a huge accomplishment. Making these Olympics is not only for me. It's about people serving in the army."
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