Elinor "Elle" Purrier St. Pierre (born February 20, 1995) is an American

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

athlete who specializes in

middle-distance running Middle-distance running events are Track and field#Running, track races longer than Sprint (running), sprints, up to 3000 metres. The standard middle distances are the 800 metres, 1500 metres and mile run, although the 3000 metres may also be clas ...

and

long-distance running Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance running comes two d ...

. In 2022, she earned her first global medal, winning silver in the women's

3000 metres The 3000 metres or 3000-metre run is a track running event, also commonly known as the "3K" or "3K run", where 7.5 laps are run around an outdoor 400 m track, or 15 laps around a 200 m indoor track. It is debated whether the 3000m shoul ...

at the 2022 World Indoor Championships in

Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...

. Purrier represented the

United States at the 2019 World Athletics Championships The United States competed at the 2019 World Championships in Athletics in Doha, Qatar, from 27 September–6 October 2019. The selection meet for these championships was the 2019 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Results Men ;Track ...

, competing in the women's 5000 meters. On February 8, 2020, she set the American record for the indoor mile, with a time of 4:16.85 at the

Millrose Games The Millrose Games is an annual indoor athletics meet (track and field) held each February in New York City. They started taking place at the Armory in Washington Heights in 2012, after having taken place in Madison Square Garden from 1914 to 2011 ...

. On February 13, 2021, she ran a time of 9:10.28 to break the American indoor two-mile record. The time was also lower than the outdoor two-mile record.

Early life

Elle Purrier St. Pierre grew up milking thirty dairy cows each morning before school. Purrier attended Richford High School as a sixteen-time

Vermont Principals' Association The Vermont Principals' Association (VPA) is an organization of over 300 schools in the U.S. state of Vermont that sponsor activities in numerous sports and activities. The VPA is a member of the National Federation of State High School Associatio ...

state Division IV champion. She won the 2012

Nike Cross Nationals Nike Cross Nationals (NXN) (formerly known as Nike Team Nationals) is an invitational cross country meet that serves as the unofficial team national championship of United States high school cross country. Sponsored by Nike, It was designed to he ...

(NXN) Northeast Regional championships on the Bowdoin County Park course in

Wappingers Falls, New York Wappingers Falls is a village in Dutchess County, New York, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 5,522. The community was named for the cascade in Wappinger Creek. The Wappingers Falls post office covers areas in the tow ...

NCAA

Purrier attended and graduated from the

University of New Hampshire The University of New Hampshire (UNH) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Durham, New Hampshire. It was founded and incorporated in 1866 as a land grant college in Hanover in connection with Dartmouth College, mo ...

, studying

nutrition Nutrition is the biochemical and physiological process by which an organism uses food to support its life. It provides organisms with nutrients, which can be metabolized to create energy and chemical structures. Failure to obtain sufficient n ...

. Representing the

New Hampshire Wildcats The New Hampshire Wildcats, or 'Cats, are the American intercollegiate athletic teams representing the University of New Hampshire (UNH), located in Durham. The wildcat is the school's official mascot, the colors are UNH Blue and white. The Uni ...

, she was an

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

11-time

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed upon an amateur sports person from the United States who is considered to be one of the best amateurs in their sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an All-Am ...

n. At the

2018 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 2018 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships were held at Drake Stadium on the campus of Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. Organized by USA Track & Field, the four-day competition took place June 21–24 and serves as the national champ ...

, held after she graduated, she finished sixth in the 1500 meters, running a time of 4:09.30. She also won the 2018 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships in the women's mile.

Professional

Purrier signed with

New Balance New Balance Athletics, Inc. (NB), best known as simply New Balance, is one of the world's major sports footwear and apparel manufacturers. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, the multinational corporation was founded in 1906 as the New Balance Arch ...

in July 2018. In 2019, she qualified for the

IAAF World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body for ...

World Athletics Championships in

Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the coun ...

, where she advanced to the 5,000 m final and finished 11th. On February 8, 2020, she set a new

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

indoor mile record at the

. On February 13, 2021, she ran a time of 9:10.28 to break the American indoor two-mile record. On June 21, 2021, she finished first in the 2021 U.S Olympic Trials 1500 meter run with a time of 3:58.03, breaking the meet record and setting a personal best.

National Track and Field

International Track and Field

Personal bests

All sourced from worldathletics.org unless otherwise noted. As of July 24, 2022.

Season bests

All sourced from worldathletics.org unless otherwise noted. As of July 24, 2022.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Purrier St. Pierre, Elle American female track and field athletes American female long-distance runners American female middle-distance runners 1995 births Living people World Athletics Championships athletes for the United States Sportspeople from Vermont Track and field athletes from Vermont People from Franklin County, Vermont University of New Hampshire alumni USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Olympics New Hampshire Wildcats athletes Olympic track and field athletes of the United States World Athletics Indoor Championships medalists 21st-century American women