Sara Elizabeth Slattery (née Gorton; born October 2, 1981) is an American middle- and

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

who mainly competes in track races. Slattery has represented the United States at the

IAAF World Cross Country Championships World Athletics Cross Country Championships is the most important competition in international cross country running. Formerly held annually and organised by World Athletics (formerly the IAAF), it was inaugurated in 1973, when it replaced the Int ...

at both junior and senior level. She was a two-time

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

champion while competing for the

Colorado Buffaloes The Colorado Buffaloes are the athletic teams that represent the University of Colorado. The university sponsors 17 varsity sports teams. Both the men's and women's teams are called the Buffaloes (Buffs for short) or, rarely, the Golden Buffalo ...

, first taking the indoor title over

5000 meters The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a stand ...

in 2003 then the

10,000 meters The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship level events. The race ...

outdoor title in 2005. In 2007, she won the 10,000 m at the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is held ...

, setting a Games record time. The following year she was the USA champion over 8 km and just missed an Olympic spot in the 5000 m after a fourth-place finish at the

Olympic Trials Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

in 2008. In 2013, Sara began racing on the

ElliptiGO ElliptiGO, Inc. is a manufacturer of stand-up and elliptical bicycles headquartered in Solana Beach, California. Elliptical bikes combine the motion of an indoor elliptical trainer with the outdoor mobility of a traditional bicycle. History Co ...

elliptical bicycle, winning the 2013 ElliptiGO World Championships race up

Palomar Mountain Palomar Mountain ( ; es, Monte Palomar ) is a mountain ridge in the Peninsular Ranges in northern San Diego County. It is famous as the location of the Palomar Observatory and Hale Telescope, and known for the Palomar Mountain State Park. Hist ...

San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the fi ...

. She is married to

Steve Slattery Steve Slattery (born August 14, 1980) is an American track and field athlete who is a steeplechase specialist. He has a personal record 8:15.69 minutes for the event and was the 2003 American outdoor champion. He has represented the United States ...

, a

steeplechase Steeplechase may refer to: * Steeplechase (horse racing), a type of horse race in which participants are required to jump over obstacles * Steeplechase (athletics), an event in athletics that derives its name from the steeplechase in horse racing ...

runner and currently works at the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University of Co ...

, where she earned her

Master's degree in education The Master of Education (MEd or M.Ed. or Ed.M.; Latin ''Magister Educationis'' or ''Educationis Magister'') is a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. This degree in education often includes the following majors: curriculum a ...

Career

High school

Born in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

, she took up running as a high school athlete at

Mountain Pointe High School Mountain Pointe High School is a secondary school located in Ahwatukee, Arizona one of eight public high schools serving the Tempe Union High School District. History The Ahwatukee area of Phoenix experienced explosive growth in the 1990s. The K ...

and had her first successes at the

Foot Locker Cross Country Championships The Eastbay-Foot Locker Cross Country Championships are a series of annual cross country running races held in various regions of the United States to determine the premier cross country runner in various age groups, but mainly serves to find the ...

, where she was the runner-up at the state-level event in 1997 and 1998 before going on to win the title in 1999.Sara Slattery - Cross Country team

. Retrieved on 2011-11-13. She was chosen for the United States junior team at the

1999 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 1999 IAAF World Cross Country Championships took place on 27 and 28 March 1999. The races were held at the Barnett Demesne/ Queen's University Playing Fields in Belfast, United Kingdom. Reports of the event were given in ''The New York Tim ...

and in her first international outing she placed 73rd overall.Slattery, Sara

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 ...

. Retrieved on 2011-11-13. Later that year she ran in the

3000 meters 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

1999 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships The 10th Pan American Junior Athletics Championships were held in Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and ...

and beat

Madai Pérez Madai (, ; el, Μηδος, ) is a son of Japheth and one of the 16 grandsons of Noah in the ''Book of Genesis'' of the Hebrew Bible. Associated nations Medes and related Iranian nations Biblical scholars have generally identified Madai wit ...

to win the title.

Colorado Buffaloes

She graduated in 2000 and began studying economics at the

. In her first year of collegiate competition, she came second at the Rocky Mountain Shootout cross country race, third at Big 12 Championships, then placed eighth at the 2000

NCAA Women's Cross Country Championship The NCAA Women's Division I Cross Country Championship is the cross country championship held by the National Collegiate Athletic Association each autumn for individual runners and cross country teams from universities in Division I. Teams and ...

to become the first

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. Ara ...

to win

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 honours at Colorado. Her performance as helped Colorado take the women's team title. She competed at the

USA Cross Country Championships The USA Cross Country Championships is the annual national championships for cross country running in the United States. The championships is generally held in mid-February and it serves as a way of designating the country's national champion, as ...

and was ninth in the short race. In her first indoor track season for Colorado, she ran a university record for the indoor

mile run The mile run (1,760 yards or exactly 1,609.344 metres) is a middle-distance foot race. The history of the mile run event began in England, where it was used as a distance for gambling races. It survived track and field's switch to ...

at the Nebraska Quadrangular meet. At the Big 12 indoor track and field championships she won the mile title and was runner-up over the

. A sixth-place finish in the mile at the

NCAA Women's Indoor Track and Field Championship The NCAA Women's Indoor Track and Field Championship refers to one of three annual collegiate indoor track and field competitions for women organised by the National Collegiate Athletic Association for athletes from institutions that make up its th ...

brought her further All-America honours. A bout of

mononucleosis Infectious mononucleosis (IM, mono), also known as glandular fever, is an infection usually caused by the Epstein–Barr virus (EBV). Most people are infected by the virus as children, when the disease produces few or no symptoms. In young adult ...

ruled her out of competition for the rest of the year.Sara Slattery - Track and Field team

. Retrieved on 2011-11-13. In 2002, she came tenth in the NCAA Cross Country meet then was eighth in the 4 km race at the USA event. At the Big 12 Indoor event she broke the championship record with her winning run of 4:40.35 minutes in the mile and managed second in the 3000 m. At the NCAA indoors she came seventh in the mile run. Turning to the outdoor track season, she broke the meet record at the Big 12 Championships, taking the

title in a time of 16:11.83 minutes. Following a personal record run of 15:51.55 minutes at the Cardinal Invitational, she competed at the NCAA Outdoor Championships and came fourth in the 5000 m. Slattery did not compete in the 2003 cross country season, choosing to focus on the track instead. She doubled in the 3000 m and 5000 m events at the Big 12 indoor championship and won both titles. At the 2003 NCAA Indoors she came third in the 3000 m then ran a championship record time of 15:39.25 minutes in the 5000 m, winning her first NCAA title in the process. The outdoor Big 12 meet saw her win the 5000 m title and finish runner-up over

1500 meters The 1500 metres or 1,500-metre run (typically pronounced 'fifteen-hundred metres') is the foremost middle distance track event in athletics. The distance has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 and the World Championships in Athletic ...

. She competed over the longer distance at the NCAA Outdoors and reached the podium with a third-place finish. She finished her economics degree that year, being named in the Academic All-Big 12 Conference list, and carried on into

post-graduate Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate ( bachelor's) degree. The organization and stru ...

study at Colorado on its

Masters of Education The Master of Education (MEd or M.Ed. or Ed.M.; Latin ''Magister Educationis'' or ''Educationis Magister'') is a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. This degree in education often includes the following majors: curriculum a ...

course. She helped Colorado to the NCAA Cross Country team title, but did not compete for the rest of that year. She married fellow Colorado athlete

, a

specialist, in January 2004.Sara Slattery - Buff Club

. Retrieved on 2011-11-13. Slattery's second NCAA title came outdoors in 2005, where she took first place in the

with a time of 33:02.21 minutes (which ranked 8th nationally that year).Sara Slattery

USATF USA Track & Field (USATF) is the United States national governing body for the sports of track and field, cross country running, road running and racewalking (known as the sport of athletics outside the US). The USATF was known between 1979 and ...

(2007). Retrieved on 2011-11-13. She graduated later that year and ended her collegiate career having won 10 All-America honours, two individual NCAA titles. She set school records for the 1500 m, mile run, and 3000 m indoors and the 5000 m outdoors.

Professional career

The 2006 season was Slattery's first as a professional athlete. She came third in the 3000 m at the

USA Indoor Track and Field Championships The USA Indoor Track and Field Championships is an annual indoor track and field competition organized by USA Track & Field, which serves as the American national championships for the sport. In years which feature a World Indoor Championships in ...

. That year she improved three personal bests, running 8:58.09 minutes for the 3000 m, 15:08.32 minutes for the 5000 m and 31:57.94 minutes for the 10,000 m. She was fourth in the long race at the National Cross Country event and was then selected for the

2006 IAAF World Cross Country Championships The 2006 IAAF World Cross Country Championships took place on April 1/2, 2006. The races were held at the Umi-no-nakamichi Seaside Park in Fukuoka, Japan, Japan's National Cross Country Course which is the permanent residence of the annual Fukuo ...

, where she came 26th. A few months later she came second in the 10,000 m at the USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships and won Colorado's

Bolder Boulder The Bolder Boulder (styled as BOLDERBoulder and previously BolderBOULDER) is an annual 10-kilometer run in Boulder, Colorado. The most recent race featured over 54,000 runners, walkers, and wheelchair racers, making it the second largest 10k race ...

10K road race.Sara Slattery
PACE Sports Management. Retrieved on 2011-11-13. The winter of 2006 Slattery was injured with a stress fracture from falling on the ice while training in Boulder. She claims that the injury allowed her to be fitter later in the season, which helped her performance at the

2007 Pan American Games The 2007 Pan American Games, officially known as the XV Pan American Games, were a major continental multi-sport event that took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from July 13 to 29, 2007. A total of 5,633 athletes from 42 National Olympic Com ...

.A Workout with... Sara SlatteryLevel Renner Magazine
2012, p. 6. Retrieved on 2012-10-10. Although she only placed eighth in the 10,000 m at the 2007 USA Outdoors, she was chosen for the event at the

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

. She won her first international

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...

at the competition and her time of 32:54.11 minutes was a Pan American Games record. Her 2008 season was a mix of track and road competitions. She won the national road title over 8 km, was third at the

Great Yorkshire Run The Great Yorkshire Run is an annual 10K run road race previously held in September in Sheffield City Centre, England, and now held in July in Harrogate, North Yorkshire. It is a part of the Great Run series of events, and as such is linked with ...

10K, and placed fourth at the

Carlsbad 5000 The Carlsbad 5000 is an annual five kilometer (3.1 mile) road running event that takes place each spring in the city of Carlsbad, California along the north coast of San Diego County. Organization The event is organized by Groundwork Endurance, a ...

. At the

United States Olympic Trials The United States Olympic Trials are competitions held in certain sports to select the United States' participants in those sports at the Olympic Games. These events include: * United States Olympic Trials (curling) * United States Olympic Trials (d ...

she ran in both the 5000 m and 10,000 m events. However, she did not make the Olympic team, coming fourth and seventh respectively. She had a 3000 m season's best run of 9:00.25 minutes at the

London Grand Prix The London Diamond League, formerly known as the London Grand Prix and subsequently as the Anniversary Games, is an annual athletics event held in London, England. Previously one of the five IAAF Super Grand Prix events, it is now part of the Dia ...

and was eleventh in that event at the

2008 IAAF World Athletics Final The 6th IAAF World Athletics Final was held at the Mercedes-Benz Arena in Stuttgart, Germany on September 13 and September 14, 2008. A number of road races also took place on the second day of competition. There were seven different starting po ...

. Slattery did not compete in 2009 and took on an assistant position for the

at her alma mater in January 2010. She continued to race occasionally, including a 10K win at the Bermuda Race Weekend, where her husband was also runner-up in the men's section. A few weeks before the Olympic Trials in the summer of 2012, Slattery tore her hamstring and was not able to compete in the trials, summer track, or the summer and fall road races. It took her most of the summer to recover and rehab from this injury. As of the fall of 2012, she has been focusing on building up her mileage. In June 2015, Sara gave birth and has been working to get back into shape for Olympic trials. She participated in a New York Times profile in July 2015 describing how she was hired to race against a competitive runner in NYC as a birthday gift.

Personal bests

*All information taken from IAAF profile.

International competition record

Coaching

Rob Brink hired Sara in summer 2015. "I am thrilled to be the new cross country and distance coach at GCU," said Slattery. "With the move to Division I athletics, it is a very exciting time to be a part of

Grand Canyon University Grand Canyon University (GCU) is a private for-profit Christian university in Phoenix, Arizona. Based on student enrollment, Grand Canyon University was the largest Christian university in the world in 2018, with 20,000 attending students on ...

athletics. With great weather and amazing trails to train on, Phoenix is an optimal place to train for distance runners. I look forward to building a competitive program." "I am thrilled to announce the hiring of Sara Slattery as our new head cross country coach at Grand Canyon University!" said head track and field coach Tom Flood. "I had a very short list of coaching candidates and Sara was right at the top. She is a true champion in her own right and has competed for one of the top distance programs in the country. I feel she has the perfect background to make an immediate impact on our programs and will lead our GCU distance programs to national success." (8/18/2015)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Slattery, Sara Living people 1981 births American female long-distance runners Track and field athletes from Phoenix, Arizona Colorado Buffaloes women's track and field athletes Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Colorado Buffaloes women's cross country runners Athletes (track and field) at the 2007 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2007 Pan American Games 21st-century American women