By Brooklynn Loiselle
While many of the competitors immediately collapsed following the finish of the women’s 5,000 meters Sunday at the Portland Track Festival, Shannon Rowbury stood with her hand on her hip, sipped on a water and talked with an official with her trademark lipstick still intact.
It didn’t look like her first track race back following four days of labor and the birth of her daughter last June. But it was.
Rowbury separated from the field along with Stephanie Garcia of New Balance and Brenda Eunice Flores of Nike around the 1,800-meter mark, then went on to win the race in 15 minutes, 38.75 seconds. Flores finished in second in 15:40.33 while Garcia came in third in 15:42.66.
Rowbury, who said she’d been doing more strength training than speedwork as she has recovered from an injury and nursed her daughter, wanted to hold 5-minute pace for the race, and she generally did just that.
“I am so used to going into races really prepared, and even still, I’ll have bad ones,” she said. “So I was really nervous heading into this feeling very unprepared. I am really grateful. It was the perfect race for me, where I’m at.”
Garcia and Flores took turns alternating the lead while Rowbury sat between second and third place until the last 200 meters of the race, when she decided to make a definitive move before the final curve and never looked back.
“I think it was actually, probably perfect,” said her coach with the Nike Oregon Project, Pete Julian. “It’s been a pretty tough road back, but I think today is a good little platform. She’s got a month now to get that world standard and make the team, and I think she can do it after watching tonight.”
The three-time Olympian suffered a sacral stress fracture after the 2019 USATF Cross Country Championships and spent two and a half months recovering. In addition, Rowbury has had to find the middle ground between fulfilling the responsibilities of being a mother and being a professional athlete.
“I love my daughter, but oh my gosh, I always say the life of a professional athlete, you’re encouraged to be very self-centered,” Rowbury said. “And with a baby, I am not priority number one anymore.”
Rowbury knows the dedication necessary to compete at a world level. She is the existing American record holder for the 1,500 meters at 3:56.29 and held the American record for 5,000 at 14:38.92 meters before Shelby Houlihan beat it in 14:34.45 in mid-2018.
The Olympian plans to continue to focus on the 5,000 meters for this season with the hopes of attending the IAAF World Championships. However, her main goal is the 2020 Olympics.
Today’s race was a step in this direction. Rowbury’s time was just 16 seconds behind the world qualifying time.
“I saw old Shannon out there, and she looked like she had a little spring in her step and running with confidence,” Julian said. “It’s been a year since I’ve seen that.”
