Beantown Bound: Sarah Ann Sibert To Contest Boston Marathon

Beantown Bound: Former Indiana native Sarah Ann Sibert has been admitted into the elite women's field for the 128th Annual Boston Marathon, which is scheduled for Patriot's Day, Monday, April 15th. 

Sibert, known formerly as Leinheiser during her high school tenure at Carmel, provided us with extensive access for our two-part interview series that covers the early stages of her running career, through her time in Ames at Iowa State University and to the present, where she represents the New York City-based Dashing Whippets Running Team. 

The 2015 IHSAA Cross Country State Championships individual titleist and Foot Locker Nationals and Nike Cross Nationals veteran shared with us the many highs and lows that accompanied her journey and how all of those experiences helped to shape the resilient athlete that she's become.

Her most memorable races, her struggles to remain injury-free, her goals for Boston and her long-term aspirations with the grueling 26.2 mile distance are just a sample of the many topics we reviewed with Sibert. 

Hear it all from the 2017 Greyhounds graduate in Part 1 of our series above and the Part 2 installment found below.

• 0:00 - Introduction
• 0:35 - Learning the sport at Carmel High School
• 5:50 - Challenge of representing Carmel set her up for success later in her career
• 08:20 - Personal highlights from her high school career
• 11:10 - Reviewing her time at Iowa State
• 19:30 - Remarking on the disconnect between her personal medical staff and the medical staff at Iowa State
• 24:10 - What appealed to her about pursuing the road racing circuit after college
• 28:40 - Training with the Dashing Whippets and the Nike Dream Weavers and being coached by Oregon-based Brad Winn

• 0:00 - Introduction / Influence Coach Winn has had on her running career
• 4:00 - Her reaction to receiving the news she was accepted into the Boston Marathon pro field 
• 8:15 - Summarizing the difficulties and challenges during her marathon training build-up
• 12:40 - Acknowledging the added pressure associated with being in the pro field and goals for race day
• 16:00 - Her plans on approaching the unique course that is Boston: net downhill first 10km plus steep hill climbs throughout miles 18 to 21
• 19:20 - What the future holds and goals ahead for elite road racing 
• 21:10 - Thoughts on ever returning to the track and the cross country fields 
• 22:45 - The athletes who have inspired her to push her own boundaries in running 
• 26:20 - Tips for graduating college runners who want to extend their athletics careers beyond the NCAA level 
• 30:15 - You have to know the 'Why' and Interview Closing