Katie McGregor

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Katie McGregor (born September 2, 1977 in Cleveland, Ohio) is an American track and cross country athlete.

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[edit] High school

McGregor attended Willoughby South High School in Willoughby, Ohio. She was the state champion of Ohio in the 3200-meter run with a time of 10:49.74 as a freshman (1992), and a state champion in the 1600-meter run with a time of 4:56.32 as a senior (1995).

[edit] College

McGregor continued running as a student-athlete at the University of Michigan in the fall of 1995, majoring in English and competing in both cross country and track. During her first season of cross country as a Wolverine, she was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year. During her junior (1997) cross country season, she was named Big Ten Athlete of the Year after winning the individual title with a time of 17:14. During the indoor track season the following winter (1998), she won the two NCAA titles, one individually in the 3000-meter run with a time of 9:24.68, and another running the 1600-meter anchor leg in the distance medley relay, clocking a 4:38 split. McGregor’s running success continued during her senior cross country season, when she won seven out of eight meets, including the Big Ten title in a time of 17:16, the Great Lakes Regional title in a time of 17:02.39, and the NCAA championship in a time of 16:47.21.[1] For her efforts, McGregor was honored with the Honda Award, given to the nation’s top female cross country runner.[2] During the 1999 outdoor track season, she won her final collegiate championship, winning the Big Ten title in the 5000-meter run with a time of 16:32.83. She later bested this time at the NCAA meet, taking third place with a time of 16:15.75. During her time at Michigan, she was a three-time NCAA champion, eight-time NCAA All-American, and three-time Big Ten Conference champion.

[edit] Post-collegiate/professional

Following college, McGregor remained in Ann Arbor and continued training and competing under sponsorship from Adidas, transitioning from the shorter distance races to the 10000-meter run. In the spring of 2000, she achieved her first major post-collegiate victory, winning the 10000-meter run at the Stanford Invitational, setting a meet record with a time of 32:33.62. She competed in the event at the Olympic trials later that summer, but did not qualify to represent the U.S. team in Sydney, Australia. The following year, she moved to Minneapolis, and began training with Team Minnesota under sponsorhip from Reebok.

Over the next few years, McGregor competed in variety of distance races, performing well, and continuing to improve upon her personal best times in several running events. Highlights during 2004 included a second-place finish at the U.S. Cross Country Championships (8000-meter distance),[3] as well as personal bests in both the 5000-meter and 10000-meter runs prior to the Olympic Trials. At the Olympic Trials, she narrowly missed qualifying for the games in Athens, taking fourth place in the 10000-meter run. 2005 saw her personal best times in all races continue to improve, culminating in a come-from-behind victory in the 10000-meter run at the U.S. Outdoor Championships in May.[4] She competed in the event for the U.S. team at the IAAF World Championships in Athletics in Helsinki, Finland in August of 2005, taking fourteenth place overall as the top U.S. finisher, with a personal best time of 31:21.20.[5]

In the autumn of 2006, McGregor began exploring longer distance races, competing in the New York City Marathon and achieving a ninth-place finish with a time of 2:32:36 in her debut at this distance.[6] In the spring of 2007, McGregor won the USATF 25 km championship, completing the River Bank Run in a time of 1:25:53 nearly three minutes ahead of the rest of the field.[7] As part of the U.S. team in the summer of 2007, McGregor once again competed in the 10000-meter run at the IAAF Championships in Osaka, Japan, finishing in thirteenth place overall as the third U.S. finisher. During the autumn, she was named to the U.S. team running in the IAAF World Road Running Championships in Udine, Italy. She set a personal best in this competition, taking twenty-seventh place in the half marathon with a time of 1:12:01.[8] Success continued for McGregor in early 2008, with a fourth-place finish at the U.S. Cross Country Championships in San Diego.[9] This marked her sixth consecutive year as a member of the national cross country team, with whom she will compete at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Edinburgh in late March.

[edit] Achievements

  • 2007 USATF 25 km Champion
  • 2006 USATF 10 km Champion
  • 2005 USATF 10 km Champion
  • 2005 USATF Outdoor Champion (10000-meter run)
  • 2003-2008 U.S. World Cross Country team (8 km)
  • 1999 Big Ten Conference Outdoor Track & Field Champion (5000-meter run)
  • 1998 NCAA Cross Country Champion
  • 1998 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Champion (3000-meter run, Distance Medley Relay)
  • 1998 Big Ten Conference Cross Country Champion
  • 1997 Big Ten Conference Cross Country Champion

[edit] References

  1. ^ University of Michigan Athletic Department (1998). MGoBlue: 1998 Michigan Women's Cross Country Results. MGoBlue.com (University of Michigan Athletic Website). Retrieved on November 3, 2007.
  2. ^ American Honda Motor Company (2001). The 1998-1999 Collegiate Women Sports Awards - Cross Country - Katie McGregor - University of Michigan. Honda.com. Retrieved on November 3, 2007.
  3. ^ Nick Karas (2004). Gruber wins first title at USA Cross Country Championships. USATF. Retrieved on November 3, 2007.
  4. ^ Jill Geer (2005). USATF - News: Johnson wins sizzling men’s hurdles; Clay, Broe set records. USATF. Retrieved on November 3, 2007.
  5. ^ Tom Surber (2005). USATF - News: Nelson wins gold medal at World Outdoor Championships. USATF. Retrieved on November 3, 2007.
  6. ^ New York Road Runners (2006). The ING New York City Marathon: Katie McGregor's Story. ING NYC Marathon Website. Retrieved on November 3, 2007.
  7. ^ Jim Estes (2007). USATF - News: Sell, McGregor win USA 25 km titles. USATF. Retrieved on November 3, 2007.
  8. ^ IAAF Athletics - Official Results - Half Marathon Women. IAAF (2007). Retrieved on December 31, 2007.
  9. ^ USATF News - Flanagan, Ritzenhein dominate at USA Cross Country Championships. USATF (2008). Retrieved on February 23, 2008.

[edit] External links