Katie McGregor

In addition, Jenelle Deatherage has volunteered to be in the Life Time/Institute for Athletic Medicine tent; Kristen Nicolini will be a course marshall and Katie McGregor, co-director of the Life Time Fitness Running Club, will be working the event.

On August 6, Katie McGregor will step to the starting line of the 10,000-meter run at the World Championships of Athletics in Helsinki, Finland, facing an extremely difficult task.When she looks to her left and to her right, she will find herself standing among quite literally the best runners in the world.

Twenty-five laps long, the 10K holds the distinction of being the longest race on the track.Accordingly, it requires both uncompromising toughness and zen-like patience.McGregor, 27, found the tenuous balance between patience and bravado necessary to run a great 10K in the June 24 race that earned her a trip to Helsinki.

She won the U.S. Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Carson, Calif., with equal parts composure and guts, sitting back behind the leaders for the first 15 laps, then taking the lead for several laps, and sticking with Blake Russell and Jen Rhines as they passed her back late in the race.McGregor held on, a half step behind Russell, and flew by her at the end to capture the title.
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McGregor works as the running club coordinator for Lifetime Fitness, and while her athletic prowess is known, her humility and sociable nature allow her to live in most respects a normal life.Likewise, her easy stride across the track belies the blistering five minutes per mile pace that she maintains for the 6.2-mile race.

While it may look easy, McGregor, who lives in St. Louis Park, won the national championship only after four years of hard work under Team USA Minnesota coach Dennis Barker.
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At last year's Olympic Trials, McGregor just missed qualifying for the games, placing fourth in the 10K, one spot and a few seconds from earning a trip to Athens."Last year was very stressful," she says.
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McGregor entered the spring season somewhat uncertain of her fitness.She honed her skills on the cross-country course and road-running circuit before returning to the track on May 1 at the Cardinal Invitational at Stanford University.Her 31:25 personal best demonstrated renewed strength and determination.

Earlier in the spring, McGregor saw a DVD of herself racing.Right away, it was apparent to her what she needed to do."I looked like I was out for a tempo run," she says."I said to myself, ‘What are you doing out there?You've just got to go hard the whole way.' Since then, I've been working on staying focused for the whole race- not letting myself zone out."That's exactly what she did at nationals, and what she intends to do at the World Championships.

Despite her success, McGregor she sees her work as having just begun."I'm still learning how to race the longer distances," she says.
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If you can't make it to Finland to watch McGregor compete, look for her a little closer to home at the Guidant Hearts of Summer 10K on Saturday, August 20, where a national class field will be assembled for two turns around Lake Nokomis.

Minnesota-native Chris Lundstrom ran track and cross-country at Stanford University, and he continues to compete at distances from 5K to the marathon.Most recently, he placed 20th in the Boston Marathon.He lives in south Minneapolis with his wife, Taj.

One of the coordinators is Team USA Minnesota elite runner and U.S. Olympic Trials 10,000-meter runner Katie McGregor, who is the national running club coordinator and has been with Life Time Fitness for three years.