EUGENE — There was no question many of the people in the Hayward Field stands Monday night knew Lauren Fleshman’s story and what she’s going through on a physical level.
Fleshman had plenty of support as she worked her way through her 5,000-meter semifinal. And, despite running about 10 miles a week for the past six or seven months, the two-time U.S. outdoor champion in the event qualified for Thursday’s final.
Fleshman, who lives in Eugene and runs for Oregon Track Club Elite, has been dealing with an injury to her IT band, a stabilizing band that runs up the side of the leg from the hip to the knee. The injury plagues some distance runners, including those like Fleshman who alter their workouts to train for a marathon.
Needless to say, the injury changed her approach to the trials.
“It’s evolved a lot, and part of the time it was about whether to compete at all,” Fleshman said during a press conference last week prior to the trials. “In my heart it was never a question. I decided I was going to do it in my own way and see what I can do.”
As substitutes for running, Fleshman has done swimming and weights workouts, among other cross training.
Fleshman, who turns 31 in September, later joked that whatever she’s able to accomplish will be the best ever by a woman running two days a week.
And she’s probably right. Her time of 15 minutes, 51.53 seconds was about 53 seconds off her personal best but still good enough to advance on time.
“It’s completely nerve-racking going to the starting line of the Olympic trials and having no reference point for my fitness. There’s no training book in the world that would recommend anything that I’ve done,” she said.
But Fleshman will toe the line in today’s final to see what she can accomplish.
“It’s not all about making the team. If it was, I would probably just drop out … because my chances aren’t great,” she said last week. “But there’s always that glimmer of hope every athlete feels that there may be this opportunity. I’ve found there’s still enough value to be gained from participating to see this through. It’s just a personal challenge for me.”