Former Loyola Marymount University Lions Tara Welling (class of 2012) and Jack Polerecky (class of 2018) re-wrote the record books during their time at LMU and on February 29th, they will take on the best in the nation in Atlanta, Georgia, racing for the opportunity to represent the United States of America in Tokyo later this year at the marathon distance.
 
Both former Lions hit the Olympic Trials qualifying marks with their first attempts at the marathon distance. Polerecky finished 4th at the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon with a time of 2:18:25 and Welling finished 15th at the California International Marathon in 2:41:18.
 
"CIM was a great first experience for the marathon and I was happy to have a few Bowerman Track Club teammates join me," said Welling. "The plan was to stick with the pace group of three men at 2:45 along with a massive group of girls all going after the same goal. Once the race started, I was around 6:08-6:10 mile pace and felt very comfortable, so I decided to stick with that knowing I would give myself a bit of a cushion." 
 
Welling (formerly Erdmann), a three-time West Coast Conference Cross Country Champion and six-time All-American, set six school records during her time as a Lion, two of which still stand. She also holds National titles in both the 15k and half-marathon.
 
"Around 14 miles I decided I felt good enough to pick it up to around 5:50's and maintained that pace through around 20 miles. Once I hit 23 miles I definitely felt the marathon legs and fatigue, so I wanted to stay under control and just make it to the finish line at that point. Mile 25-26.2 was by far the longest mile of my life, but when I crossed the finish line I was so happy to see my husband, baby girl and family."
 
This will be her third U.S. Olympic Trials appearance. In 2012, she represented LMU at the Olympic Trials on the Track in both the 10,000 and 5,000 meter finals and in 2016 she again competed in the same two events as a professional. Welling was inducted into the LMU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2017 and the West Coast Conference Hall of Fame in 2019. She currently trains in Portland with the Bowerman Elite Track Club.
 
Polerecky holds the LMU 10k school record (29:18), and recorded the 2nd fastest 5k time in LMU history (14:03) behind Weston Strum (13:47). After graduating in 2018, Polerecky moved to running mecca, Flagstaff, Arizona, where he set his sights on his next goal of qualifying for the Olympic Trials marathon. 
 
"After graduating LMU, I wanted qualify for the trials, but I knew moving up from 6.2 to 26.2 in less than a year wouldn't be easy. I moved out to Flagstaff and began training with a new group under Coach James McKirdy," said Polerecky. 
 
"I ran a 10 mile, 20k and a half marathon and based on workouts I knew I was in shape to run the OTQ at Indianapolis. There are so many things that can go wrong during a marathon and I only had one shot to qualify, so I was extremely nervous/excited." 
 
"I ran with the 2:19 group for the first half of the marathon, feeling strong, confident, and relaxed. At mile 17, the group started to slow, so I broke off from the pack and decided to run my own race. I picked off people for the next eight miles and by mile 24 I was closing in on the leader, but my hamstring started to tighten up," said Polerecky. 
 
"At 25.5, I had caught up and was right on his tail about to pass him, when my hamstring completely seized up. I could barely move it. At that point, I was more concerned about getting across the line, and limp-jogged the last kilometer, giving everything I had left. I was overjoyed to cross the line in sub-2:19 and a wave of emotion passed as I collapsed into my coach and teammates arms. It has been a struggle to get fully back into running after doing so much damage to my hamstring, but I'm excited to line up with the best in the country."
 
On Feb. 29, 2020, the race will be broadcast live on NBC across the country. The broadcast will be live at 9:00 a.m. PST, with the men's race starting at 9:03 and the women's race starting at 9:13. The broadcast will end at 12:00 p.m.