As Fiona O'Keeffe toed the line for her marathon debut, she wasn't exactly sure what to expect.
"It was definitely a bit of feeling like 'OK, I'm going into unknown territory now,' but it was also really exciting," said O'Keeffe, a former cross country and track and field student-athlete at Stanford. "I woke up that morning actually feeling fairly strong because I felt like there was nothing to lose. I wasn't coming in with a target on my back or anything. It was an opportunity to see what all the training I put in would translate to."
It was an opportunity to test out her training — and to qualify for the 2024 Olympic Games.
O'Keeffe ran her very first marathon at the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in March in Orlando, Florida. O'Keeffe qualified for the trials by hitting a time qualifying mark in a half marathon in December, but her road racing breakthrough came nearly two years prior to that race.
In January 2022, O'Keeffe made history. Finishing fourth at the Houston Half Marathon in 1:07:42, she ran the fastest debut half marathon by an American woman at that time. With that performance, she also became the fifth-fastest U.S. woman at that distance.
Prior to dominating road races, O'Keeffe dominated the collegiate circuit as a 5000-meter specialist at Stanford. She was a four-time All-America honoree in cross country and added three first-team All-America honors on the track. Her best finish came when she placed third at the 2019 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships in the 5000-meter race.
As evidenced by her college success, O'Keeffe always has loved to train hard and pursue big dreams. She thinks her experience at Stanford allowed her to embrace her burning desire to compete at a high level and fully commit to her sport.
"Being at Stanford showed me what it's like to be surrounded by people who are pursuing their passions and not afraid to admit it," she said. "People are all in on what they're doing, whatever it is … being at that institution made me feel like it was a cool thing to care about something and go all in on it."
Being around like-minded individuals also allowed O'Keeffe to form meaningful relationships that she is confident will last a lifetime.
"I made some of my best friends there," she said. "On the team, we all lived together and made each other better people, both as athletes and personally."
Enjoying the team camaraderie and competition at the collegiate level, O'Keeffe planned to finish her NCAA eligibility while pursuing a master's degree at New Mexico and enrolled in fall 2020. However, that December, O'Keeffe qualified to compete in the U.S. Olympic Track and Field trials in the 10,000-meter race.
Just as she had at Stanford, O'Keeffe embraced the opportunity to go all in and decided to fully commit to her running career by signing a professional contract with Puma.
It's safe to say she has been in good hands since that moment. O'Keeffe is coached by Olympic long-distance runners Amy and Alistair Cragg, who created the Puma Elite Running Team in 2021. Both Amy and Alistair bring a full resume of experience to their coaching. Amy is a two-time Olympian and was an NCAA Division I national champion and 10-time All-American while competing at Arizona State, while Alistair is a three-time Olympian and was a seven-time NCAA Division I champion while competing at Arkansas.
O'Keeffe said she has been especially inspired by Amy, who has extensive experience competing in the marathon, having won the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials in the event.
When it came time for race day, Amy was not the only veteran and experienced competitor on whom O'Keeffe was able to rely. Labeled by many as having one of the deepest fields to ever line up for the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, the race featured the fastest American woman ever in the event in Emily Sisson, seven-time U.S. Olympic Trials competitor Sara Hall and the second- fastest American marathon and half marathon runner, Keira D'Amato.
O'Keeffe didn't let this level of competition faze her. Instead, she let it guide her through the early stages of the race before eventually deciding to make a move to the front of the pack.
"It was kind of reassuring to be in there with so many women who are so experienced at such a high level," she said. "I felt like I was in good hands through the early stages of the race."
Once O'Keeffe made her move around mile 14, she never looked back. Crossing the line in first place, O'Keeffe solidified her roster spot on Team USA in her first marathon. While this much was clear to her as she finished the race, what she didn't know was that she had once again made history.
Her finishing time of 2:22:10 had set a U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials record.
"I really just came in with the goal of making the team," she said. "I knew that it was going to take my best on the day to get to Paris, and I was really just focused on competing and getting everything out of myself out there. The result just came with it."
As O'Keeffe looks forward to representing Team USA at the Paris Games, she reflects on her journey with gratitude and excitement for what's to come. She didn't pick too bad of a year to make it happen — the 2024 Olympic Marathon will be run on an incredibly scenic route featuring historic monuments such as The Louvre and Eiffel Tower. While the course will be hilly and difficult, O'Keeffe is up for the challenge.
"I felt like this was a dream for as long as I can remember," she said. "But it didn't feel like something that was more like a goal until probably a couple years ago."
"I'm really excited to just experience that new level of competition," she added. "And I'm really excited about the team that we're sending in the marathon. I'm excited for us to take on that course, too."
