HOUSTON, TX -- BATC athletes Magdalena Boulet, Clara Peterson, and Chris Chavez will be toeing the line on Saturday with 1000s of miles logged in their legs ready to successfully tackle the 26.2 mile distance. With Coach Magda leading the charge of her two athletes Clara and Chris, the BATC distance runners look to gain a lot out of this experience. Each athlete has different goals in mind, but all share the idea of wanting to run the best race possible on that day.
Magda left the Olympic trials 4 years ago with a plane ticket to Beijing and will have London on the mind as she crushes through the 3 loops around Houston. At each of the last marathon Olympic Trials she has competed to her best ability and run PRs. Boulet looks to continue that trend and if she does there is great chance that she will leave with that plane ticket. She will rely on her experience and an unparalleled tenacity to make sure she performs the best she can. There will be no “fooling” the field this time around as she has rightfully made all the analysts’ short list of favorites.
Peterson is in a much different boat from Magda as she is competing in her first marathon. Referring to her first attempt at the distance she says she’s, “trying not to let fear take over my excitement, but there is definitely a combo of those two feelings.” She is going to have rely on her own race savvy to make cool and collected decisions throughout the race. However, she is in great hands with having Magdalena as her coach. Peterson explains, “it’s like having your big sister go with you to the first day of kindergarten.” She has put in some phenomenal preparation for this event and should be more than ready to conquer her first marathon.
Chavez is going into this marathon to “right some wrongs” from his previous attempt at the Chicago Marathon in 2010. He says, “2:15 is a time that I thought was reachable for me at Chicago in 2010, but it didn’t work out. I feel like I am in better shape right now and that goal stays with me.” Chris is an absolute metronome out there on racecourses so will have much success sticking to his plan and his goal of also finishing in the top 25. To this he says that as he passes mile 20 the one word he will remind himself of is, “rhythm.” Not to mention he will also be drawing some power and resilience from his coach, Magda, “It is interesting how much confidence it gives me in my own fitness that I know she is also out there.”
These three BATC athletes should all have successful races out in Houston and are great delegates from the Bay Area. The men’s race goes off at 8:00am and the women’s follows 15 minutes later at 8:15am central time. Good luck to them as they kick off the start to a GREAT year in our sport.
