The Olympic Marathon Trials are just around the corner (Saturday, February 29 in Atlanta), officially starting the process of building the 2020 U.S. Track and Field Olympic Team. The Trials will be televised (or you can watch at the Run Pub Viewing Party!), so Oregon runners will be able to watch the race unfold and cheer for familiar names and faces.
You can meet five of the Oregon women that have qualified to run at the Trials at a Run Pub Tap Takeover on Wednesday, February 19. Run Pub, a community gathering place offering runners and walkers local brews and ciders, is located inside Portland Running Company at 2258 NW Raleigh St. The first of many Tap Takeover events, the panel on the 19th will feature Carrie Dimoff, Jeannette Faber, Fionna Fallon, Susie Rivard, and Jessie Vickers, who all ran faster than a 2:45 marathon or 1:13 half on a USATF-certified course.
RSVP to the event here on Facebook, and then submit your questions online here for these fast women online here! Portland Running Company’s own Paula and Dave Harkin will be the moderators, and since it’s a PRC event, of course there will be sweet raffles including some New Balance bags and PRC gear. Come early to grab a seat and a beer – the event runs from 6p-8p with the panel starting around 6:30p.
Below is some information about the panelists, so you can get to know them a little before the Tap Takeover:
Carrie Dimoff: This Bowerman Track Club (BTC) Elite runner finished 13th at the World Marathon Championships in Doha, Qatar where temps were over 100 degrees for the race, with a time of 2:44:35. Previously, she has qualified for two USATF Track & Field Olympic Trials in the 3000m Steeplechase and run some impressive times on the track, notably her 2nd-place finish in 2018 Stanford Invitational 10,000m. Dimoff is doubly amazing because she is also a mother of two and works full time.
Jeannette Faber: This will be Faber’s 3rd Trials for the Marathon, with her most recent qualifier coming in 2017 at the California International Marathon (CIM) with a 2:43:08. She’s run at the IAAF World Championships (Russia, 2013, 23rd in 2:44:03) and holds a PB of 2:32:37 in the marathon. Faber works full time and devotes much of her free energy to Portland Track, an organization working to bring more high-caliber track meets and racing opportunities to the Portland area. Faber runs with the Portland Roses.
Fionna Fallon: After earning her trip to the Trials at the 2018 CIM by running 2:43:07, Fallon knocked out a 1:19:20 at the Eugene Half Marathon in 2019. Working full-time for a non-profit, the Iowa native is passionate about fighting for immigrants and our environment. She has lived in Tanzania and spent time working at a refugee camp in Kenya, but can be found nowadays running with Rose City Track Club or exploring trails.
Susie Rivard: Working as a rep for New Balance (who sponsor her club, the Portland Roses), Rivard also has a penchant for the local music scene, going to shows with friends, and other sports from cycling and snowboarding to climbing and yoga. If it sounds fun, she’s interested in giving it a try. Rivard qualified at the 2019 CIM in 2:44:40, and is a 6-time Division 2 All-American at Grand Valley State University, where she focused on mid-distance. (Faber and Vickers also went to GVSU). Rivard also won the 2015 Portland Marathon, was the top American finisher at the 2016 Berlin Marathon, and perhaps most impressively, has a PB of 7:01 in the beer mile.
Jessie Vickers: Vickers earned her ticket to the Trials at the 2019 London Marathon, where she ran 2:43:14. An avid soccer fan of the U.S. Women’s National Team, Vickers herself is also part of a team – the Portland Roses Track Club with Rivard and Faber. Vickers can give you tips on where to find the best oat-milk lattes, local brews, and which trails are worth trying out this winter.
