694. Weini Kelati, American Record Holder in the Half Marathon

Ali on the Run Show

Ali Feller

Fitness, Sports, Running, Health & Fitness

4.9 • 4.2K Ratings

🗓️ 1 February 2024

⏱️ 60 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

"As runners, we all deserve to be at the start line — and at the finish line, winning races."

Last month, Weini Kelati broke the American record in the half marathon, running 1:06:25 in Houston in her debut at the distance. Just a few days later, she ran — and won — the USATF cross-country championships. Weini's plan was never to be a record-breaking runner, though. Growing up in Eritrea, Weini was accustomed to walking — sometimes running — two hours to get to school each day, six days a week. Running on top of that? No thank you, she told her P.E. teacher. But somehow, she ended up on the school's track team, and at 17 years old, she was chosen to represent Eritrea at the Junior World Championships in Eugene, OR. The rest, as they say, is history. Weini intentionally missed her flight back home in favor of seeking asylum to stay in the U.S. and pursue a running career. She attended the University of New Mexico, where she became the most-decorated track and field athlete in the program's history, and she's been breaking records ever since. Weini lives in Flagstaff, AZ, where she is sponsored by Under Armour and trains with the Dark Sky Distance group.

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What you'll get on this episode:

What's next on Weini's racing calendar? (3:40)
All about Weini's childhood (4:30)
When — and why — Weini started running in elementary school (10:00)
The trip to the U.S. that changed Weini's life forever (19:00)
On acclimating to life in the U.S. (25:45)
What it was like for Weini to go eight years without seeing her mother (30:00)
Weini's college experience at the University of New Mexico (41:00)
How Weini became a professional runner (45:00)
Why Weini wanted to move up to the half-marathon distance (49:00)
Weini's advice for first-time half-marathoners (55:35)

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to the Ali on the Run Show. I'm your host Ali Feller and every week I talk with people who are doing exciting things on the run and beyond. From professional
0:13.8	athletes and celebrity runners to the everyday amateur and back of the
0:18.1	pack runner, we are here to celebrate everyone and anyone who enjoys a life on the run.
0:24.0	Whether you are running towards something big or away from something that's been holding you back,
0:28.8	I am here to help you pick up the pace.
0:31.3	My guest today is Wainey Kallotti.
0:34.2	Wainey is an under-armore-sponsored professional runner who lives in Flagstaff Arizona where she
0:38.3	trains with the Dark Sky Distance Group.
0:41.3	Wainey has been absolutely crushing it on the roads over these past few years.
0:46.0	Most recently, she made her half marathon debut at the Houston Half Marathon,
0:50.8	where she also broke the American record in the half marathon, finishing in 10625.
0:56.4	I loved talking to Wainey about that race and about whether her goal was, in fact, to shatter the
1:01.5	record that day.
1:03.0	Then, just a few days later, Wainey ran and won and dominated the USATF cross-country
1:10.2	championships.
1:11.8	Wainey's story, if you don't know it yet, is remarkable.
1:15.0	You'll hear it in this episode, but to get you hooked and psyched for what's to come,
1:19.0	Waini grew up in Eritrea.
1:20.0	She had no interest in being a runner.
1:22.0	She was busy walking two hours each way just to get to school six days a week.
1:27.0	Fast forward to when she was 17 years old and Waney had started running and running really well, really fast.
1:35.0	She was chosen to represent Eritrea at the Junior World Championships, which were in Eugene
	...

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