An elite marathoner and mom has set a world record for the fastest mile run while pushing a stroller.
Neeley Gracey is a four-time Olympic marathon trials qualifier, as well as a mom to two kids. According to The Denver Post, Gracey became a standout runner at a young age. She attended Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania, where she won eight national titles. After graduation, she became a professional athlete.
“Once I checked off all the boxes and I got to be the most successful that I could in (each) phase, I tried the next thing, and it was the same,” she said. “I had checked off all my goals, I then became a pro right out of college… and I’m racing the best athletes in the world.”
Despite her success, she said she didn’t feel balanced and complete until the birth of her children.
“I didn’t really do anything socially … it made me hyper-focus on my running to the extent that I felt like it became unhealthy,” she explained. “I’ve thrived a lot more in having a much more balanced lifestyle – having friends, having the kids, having my job.”
It was on a lark that she discovered the idea of breaking a world record. “Last summer, I saw someone had broken the men’s stroller mile record, and out of curiosity… I looked up (the women’s),” she said. “I was like, ‘I’m pretty sure I’ve already done that, just running around my neighborhood with my kids.’”
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She completed the mile run in five minutes, 24.17 seconds while pushing two-year-old Rome in the stroller. And she had plenty of practice to get ready beforehand.
“If I couldn’t find a babysitter for Rome during the day, he would come along on my runs with me in the stroller,” she told Women’s Running. “I also run the one-mile route to Athens’ school with him every day… knowing how much I want to include my kids in my big goals and how frequently I run with them in the stroller, attempting the world record stroller mile felt very authentic to me.”
Neeley also told Runner’s World that she hopes to set a positive example for other moms. “Being a mother runner has opened up a whole new community for me, and it felt so authentic to have this goal and felt bigger than me to achieve it for other mother runners to know that, yes, they can still run down their goals after kids,” she said.
She’s now in the process of officially filing the run with the Guinness Book of World Records and preparing for the 2024 Olympic trials. And her kids will be with her each step of the way.
“I grew up going to the track with my dad, who is an Olympian, and ended up loving running because of it. My parents ran every day. I grew up knowing that athletics was part of our family’s norm, and I want the same for my kids,” she said. “I want my running to be inclusive for my kids. I want my kids to be part of my goals and see the benefits of [an active lifestyle] from a young age… and I also want parents out there to know that it is entirely possible to find a way to include your kids in your athletic goals.”
