The USATF Indoor is being held at Ocean Breeze on Staten Island. Jeff Benjamin, the Mayor of Staten Island running, is reaching out to several athletes about the Indoor Champs and checking on their fitness and focus.
Emily MacKay is the third fastest Women in U.S. EVER over 1,500 meters (3:55.90). Emily has PBs of 1:57.87 at 800m, 3:55.90 for 1,500 meters, 4:22.43 for the mile, 8:35.35 for the 3,000m and 14:45.81 for the 5,000 meters.
Emily is also the World Indoor bronze medalist for the 1,500 meters from Glasgow 2024. Jeff Benjamin reached out and asked her 4 questions. Emily is sponsored by New Balance and is coached by Pete Julian of Union Athletic Club.
1) How’s your training coming along?
Emily MacKay: “Training has been going great, I feel the fittest I’ve ever been this time of year and also the healthiest and happiest! So that being said, I’m very excited to see what that means for this coming year.”
Emily Mackay in center, USATF Outdoor Track & Field Championships Eugene, Oregon, USA July 31 – August 3, 2025, photo by Kevin Morris
2) I’d think after indoor season, this is an outdoor track year to pursue records and personal bests – do you agree?
Emily MacKay: “The goals for this year are to race as much as possible and run personal bests in every event.”
Emily Mackay, New Balance Indoor Grand Prix Track & Field meet February 2, 2025 Boston,MA USA, photo by Kevin Morris
ay: “I always enjoy competing at Ocean Breeze; it’s definitely nostalgic because I raced there a bit in college. I’ve had some pretty bad races there in the past, so it’s fun to be back there as a pro chasing new goals.”
New Balance Indoor Grand Prix Track & Field meet February 2, 2025 Boston, MA, USA
4) With all the changes in the sport throughout more than a decade of you competing – super shoes, nutrition, bi-carb – how do you still stay sharp & motivated?
Emily MacKay: “I just focus on myself and being the best version of myself that I can be every day. That mindset keeps me grounded and preserves my love for the sport.”
Nikki Hiltz, US, silver, Freywanyi Halu, gold, Emily MacKay, bronze, W1500m, WIC Glasgow, photo by Dan Vernon Photo for World Athletics
Senior Writer Jeff Benjamin has written for almost 40 years for RunBlogRun! The Former President of the Staten Island AC & was the 5th man scorer for his 1982 Susan Wagner High School NYC XC City Championship team. Also a member of the College of Staten Island Sports Hall of Fame for XC, Jeff is also a retired NYC DOE history teacher. Some of Jeff's subjects have included Sebastian Coe, Eamonn Coghlan, Matt Centrowitz, Billy Mills, Joe Newton, Tom Fleming, Bill Rodgers, Abel Kiviat, Frank Shorter, Rod Dixon and Carl Lewis as well as Book Reviews and articles covering track meets and races primarily in the Northeast U.S. and beyond.
Jeff has also covered Track & Field events at the 1996, 2016 & 2024 Olympic Games as well as the 2022 World T&F Championships in Eugene, Oregon. A noted T&F historian and chronicler of the athletic achievements of Jim Thorpe, Jeff helped with the restoration of Thorpe to the official IOC 1912 Record Books.
In 2023 Jeff was honored with the awarded the prestigious James Dunaway memorial award for excellence in Track and Field journalism by the Track and Field Writers Association.
