Podcasts Sports Running Ali on the Run Show 356. Just Missed with Julia Lucas

356. Just Missed with Julia Lucas

Published: April 7, 2021, 9 a.m.

\u201cThere are so many times you start on a journey and somewhere along the way you realize, this isn\u2019t where I wanted to go. The beginning of this was right, and then somewhere I took a turn or didn\u2019t take a turn, and I ended up somewhere entirely different. And it caused a meltdown. Do I love running? What in running do I love? Can I get back to what I love?\u201d

What happens when you set big, dreamy, lofty goals \u2014 but when it counts the most, you fall short? That\u2019s what this series, \u201cJust Missed,\u201d is about. For the next three weeks, these conversations are about dealing with disappointment. They are reminders that progress is never linear, and that it\u2019s not always the big wins or the losses that define us, but the moments in between.

First up: a conversation with former professional runner Julia Lucas. Today, Julia is a writer and a run coach in New York City. But in 2012, she was running professionally with the Oregon Track Club, and her goal was to make her first Olympic team in the 5K. She lined up at the start line at the Olympic Track & Field Trials in Eugene, OR, as the hometown hero. She wanted the win. She knew she could win. She made her move early and she held it \u2014 for a while. Ultimately, though, it was the fourth-place finish seen around the world. That day at Hayward Field, Julia missed becoming an Olympian by one one-hundredth of a second. On this episode, she recounts that day and the emotions surrounding it \u2014 the buildup, the pressure, the expectations, and the aftermath. She talks about the role running plays today, and answers the question of how \u2014 or whether \u2014 that day at the 2012 Trials defined her.

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What we mention on this episode:

"A Race is a Race," by Julia Lucas for Freeplay

"The Inspiring Endurance of Coffey, The Leader of New York City\u2019s Protest Runs," via GQ

Running to Protest

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