by Sam Fariss
Molly Seidel, photo courtesy of PUMA-catchup
Molly Seidel is an American distance runner. Molly Seidel is much more than than that. In her first marathon, Ms. Seidel made the Tokyo Olympic team. In her second marathon, in 2020 London, in the rain, Molly ran 2:25.13. And in her third marathon, Molly Seidel takes an Olympic bronze medal in the beastly heat and humidty of Tokyo, which transfixed American fans for nearly two and one half hours.
Last May 28, this editor was fortunate to witness Molly Seidel run 32:02.19 for the 10,000m, a PB done just hours after a five mile tempo run at 5:20 per mile pace.
Sam Fariss is a new weekly columnist for @RunBlogRun, and this is her second weekly column.
Molly the millennial marathon mastermind
By Sam Fariss
When anyone is 27 years old, it would be an impressive feat for them to have finished three marathons in their lifetime. Molly Seidel, Wisconsin native and the University of Notre Dame alumna, has taken that accomplishment one step further.
Seidel finished third at the Tokyo Games in the women’s marathon, which was just her third marathon ever. She clocked in at 2 hours, 27 minutes and 46 seconds – a lightning quick 5:38 per mile average for the long distance racer.
“I had no idea what this was going to be like,” Seidel said after the Olympic Trials race in Atlanta.
She ran two marathons prior to Tokyo in 2021, finishing second in her first ever marathon at the U.S. Marathon Olympic Trials as well as competing in elite-only London Marathon around Buckingham Palace.
“I qualified for the Tokyo Olympics in 2 hours, 27 minutes, 31 seconds. Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve had this dream,” Seidel shared about her finish at the Olympic Trials.
Molly Seidel took second at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials in her first marathon, photo by Kevin Morris
Seidel wants people to know that there’s more to her than just running though. Outside of training for the Olympics and other professional events, she works two day jobs in her current hometown of Boston.
Molly Seidel has a rather colorful (and eccentric) interest in the wild American turkey, photo from Instagram
It has also been noted that Seidel will make an appearance at an annual Thanksgiving Turkey Trot dressed up in a full-blown turkey costume.
Molly Seidel, Notre Dame athlete, photo courtesy of ND Insider.
Seidel first found extreme success in running during her collegiate career as a Fighting Irish runner for Notre Dame. She earned national titles in the 5,000 meter and 3,000 meter outdoor races in 2016 along with many indoor national and Atlantic Coastal Conference (ACC) titles.
There is certainly more to come for her marathon season as she is planning on competing in the New York City Marathon on November 7th of this year.
“Doing a point-to-point is going to be wild for me!” she said in reference to the NYC Marathon course which starts at the top of Staten Island closest to Manhattan and finishes in the middle of Central Park.
