Emily Sisson still learning about the marathon, even as the American record holder

For most athletics events in the Olympics, the athlete will practice the event again and again in training. A long jumper will jump. A sprinter will sprint. A discus thrower will throw and throw and throw until they know how to throw better than they know their name.

But for a marathoner, the training is different. While they do rack up the miles every week, it’s rare for them to run a full marathon in preparation for the event. Marathoner Emily Sisson has only finished the marathon three times, though she is the American record holder. She’s finding that she is still learning about the ins and outs of the 26.2 mile (42.195km) race.

“I remember my first marathon. That was what was a little daunting to me. When I got to mile 23 in the marathon, I thought, this is the furthest I've ever run. That's really cool. So the more marathons I do, I think the more confidence I gain,” Sisson said.

Emily Sisson on her goals for the marathon: 'I really want to learn and focus on racing and competing'

In October, Sisson ran the Chicago Marathon and finished in seventh place, first among American women with a time of 2:22.09. It’s the same race where set the American record a year earlier. The main thing she wanted out of that race? To get to know the marathon a bit better.

“We're heading into an Olympic year. So I want to learn a bit more about the marathon. I've only completed two of them. I feel like it's not the flashiest goal to announce before a race that I just want to learn. But I really want to learn I want another experience racing the marathon and I want to really focus on racing it and competing."

The one other marathon Sission ran was the London Marathon in 2019. Sisson finished sixth with a time of 2:23:08. In Chicago in 2022, Sisson knocked nearly five minutes off that time, breaking the American record with a time of 2:18.29.

Sisson previously ran the 10,000m, and placed 10th in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in that race. On Saturday (3 February), Sisson will try to make the U.S. Olympic marathon team. She will race some of the top American women, including marathon veterans Keira D’Amato and Betsy Saina, hoping for a top-three finish to make it back to the Olympics.

USA's top 10 women marathon runners

1. Emily Sisson (2:18:29)

2. Keira D'Amato (2:19:12)

3. Deena Kastor (2:19:36)

4. Sara Hall (2:20:32)

5. Jordan Hasay (2:20:57)

6. Shalane Flanagan (2:21:14)

7. Joan Benoit-Samuelson (2:21:21)

8. Betsy Saina (2:21:40)

9. Amy Cragg (2:21:42)

10. Molly Seidel (2:23:07)