The 2010 Philadelphia half marathon was perhaps the most nerve-racking race of the year. There was a ton of pressure to do well, because I had a shot at qualifying for the Olympic Trials- and against some incredibly tough competition (and much younger competition!).  Twenty-five elite runners from 10 countries were there to race, including the current world record holder and gold medalist (the 9th place female was the 1992 Olympic Gold Medalist).
I ran the race in 72:15, qualified for Olympic trials, 8th overall, 3rd American, 1st master.

I’m a happy girl

Below are the top results for female finishers:
1. Meseret Defar, 26, Ethiopia              1:07:44
2. Lineth Chepkirui, 22, Kenya              1:07:46
3. Werknesh Kidane, Ethiopia                1:08:30
4. Shalane Flanagan, 29, Portland, OR       1:08:36
5. Kim Smith, 28, New Zealand               1:08:39
6. Caroline Rotich, 26, Kenya               1:10:24
7. Katie McGregor, 33, Minneapolis, MN      1:12:04
8. Stephanie Herbst Lucke, 44, Atlanta, GA  1:12:15
9. Chaofeng Jia, 21, China                  1:12:46
10. Deratu Tulu, 38, Ethiopia                1:13:01

elite runners at the starting line

Mid-race!