Shelby Houlihan
 Houlihan at the 2016 Olympics | |||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Shelby Christine Prince Houlihan | ||||||||
| Nationality | American | ||||||||
| Born |
February 8, 1993 Sioux City, Iowa | ||||||||
| Residence | Portland, Oregon | ||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 3 in (1.60 m)[1] | ||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||
| Sport | Track and field | ||||||||
| Event(s) | 5000 metres 1500 metres 800 metres | ||||||||
| College team | Arizona State University Sun Devils | ||||||||
| Club | Nike Bowerman Track Club | ||||||||
| Turned pro | 2015 | ||||||||
| Achievements and titles | |||||||||
| Personal best(s) |
| ||||||||
Shelby Houlihan (born February 8, 1993) is an American middle distance runner. She resides in Portland, Oregon and was born in Sioux City, Iowa. Houlihan participated in the 2016 Summer Olympics and placed 11th in the 5000 m final with a time of 15 minutes, 8.89 seconds. She has been a runner for much of her life, winning competitions in high school, college and further on.
Personal
Ever since she was a 5 year old child, Houlihan dreamed of being in the Olympics.[2] Her mother and uncle were both competitive runners, as well her half sister. Houlihan said that she "always gets very excited every time" that she is able to run. During her time at East High School in Sioux City, Iowa, she was victorious in eight Iowa championships and could do 400 meter sprints all the way up to long distance races.[3] After her high school graduation in 2011, she attended Arizona State University where she continued to expand on her running goals while winning multiple competitive races.[2]
Professional
Shelby Houlihan began competing for Nike and the Bowerman Track Club under coach Jerry Schumacher in 2015. She was among seven women who were trained by Schumacher and all of them made it to the Olympics. Houlihan said of her teammates, "After watching all of my teammates make the team, I knew that I could do the same. The prelim felt very easy and gave me a lot of confidence going into the final. I thought the final would most likely be much faster, but I knew I was fit and capable of handling a fast pace." She also stated, "It's just amazing to have teammates be able to push me everyday. It's something I've never had before. Even that has put me above and beyond what I've done before. Obviously I made the right decision for me."
2016 Olympics
Houlihan qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympics with a second place finish, after the 2012 Olympic athlete American Molly Huddle, in the women's 5000 meters and a time of 15 minutes, 6.14 seconds.[4] When she finished the race, Houlihan cried. Houlihan said of the moment, "I've been working for that moment my entire life and for it all to come together and happen was one of the most amazing experiences of my life". She thought that qualifying in 2020 was more likely than qualifying in 2016. Despite that, she was not nervous about the race.[5] To promote a Sioux City native being in the Olympics, Sioux City billboards featured Houlihan. The Tyson Events Center video billboard also featured the Olympic runner. The Sioux City Journal ran a poll on August 18, 2016, asking the question "Will Shelby Houlihan win a medal in the Olympics?". 62.9% of the voters responded with an answer of yes while 37.1% of voters responded with an answer of no.
Houlihan placed 4th in her heat in the 5000 m preliminary, qualifying her for the final in 10th place with a time of 15 minutes, 19.76 seconds. [6] A watch party was held in her hometown of Sioux City, Iowa at the Sioux City Convention Center to view the televised event. The party was coordinated by Sioux City and the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce.[7] After the season on September 27th, Sioux City Musketeers honored her, ovation and Ceremonial first puck.[8]
She placed 11th in the 5000 m final with a time of 15 minutes, 8.89 seconds as well as being the highest placed American in the competition.[3] Houlihan said, "“I didn’t place as high as I wanted to, and I’ve got to take that as a learning step and just try to move forward and make me stronger. I wouldn’t have guessed I’d be doing the 5K this year. Ideally I’d like to stick with it. Once I get the (mileage) volume up and get more aerobically strong, I’m going to be even more of a threat. I’m excited to see where that could take me.”
Now Houlihan plans on racing in Europe for what is left of 2016 and then prepare for the 2020 Olympics. Shelby Houlihan placed 6th in 4:23.0 at 2016 Fifth Avenue Mile.[9]
NCAA
Shelby Houlihan was the 2014 NCAA champion in the 1500 meters at Arizona State University as a junior and was close to achieving it a second time as a senior.[10] She was also the first student at Arizona State University to win a national individual title in the outdoor 1,500.
Houlihan competed collegiately for Arizona State University where she was a 12-time All-American, the second best in its history, and a NCAA champion.[11] She holds the school records in the 800 meters, 1500 meters, one mile, and 3000 meters.[12]
Prep
Houlihan had high school personal records of 4:43.64 in the one mile run, 2:07.35 in the 800 meter run, and 4:26.39 in the 1500 meter run.[13] She was the 2011 Iowa Gatorade Player of the Year awards Girls Track and Field Runner of the Year and the 2010 Iowa Gatorade Player of the Year awards Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year. She claimed eight Drake Relays crowns, while also earning the title of Drake Relays Outstanding Female High School Performer for being the first female athlete from a high school to win three events in only a year.
References
- ↑ ASU Shelby Houlihan profile
- 1 2 Naughton, John (August 2, 2016). "From Iowa to Rio: Shelby Houlihan racing her way to Rio". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
- 1 2 Journal Staff (August 19, 2016). "Houlihan finishes 11th in 5,000". Sioux City Journal. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
- ↑ "Portland's Shelby Houlihan passes pack to qualify for Olympics in women's 5,000". oregonlive.com. Retrieved 2016-07-11.
- ↑ Metcalfe, Jeff (August 16, 2016). "Iowa native Shelby Houlihan advances in Olympic 5K". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
- ↑ http://results.nbcolympics.com/track-field/event/women-5000m/index.html
- ↑ Richardson, Ian (August 16, 2016). "Sioux City cheers as Houlihan qualifies for Olympic finals". Sioux City Journal. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
- ↑ "photos from Sioux City Musketeers hockey night". Sioux City Musketeers. September 27, 2016. Retrieved December 3, 2016.
- ↑ New Balance 5th Avenue Mile Professional Women nyrrc.org. Retrieved by September 3, 2016.
- ↑ Metcalfe, Jeff (August 19, 2016). "ASU's Shelby Houlihan places 11th in Olympic 5,000-meter final". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
- ↑ "Shelby Houlihan Biography". TheSunDevils.com. Retrieved 2016-05-27.
- ↑ "ASU Outdoor Record Book - Women Page 12" (PDF). June 1, 2016.
- ↑ "Shelby Houlihan Biography". TheSunDevils.com. Retrieved 2016-05-27.
External links
- "Shelby Houlihan Profile iaaf profile". iaaf.org. Retrieved 2016-05-28.
- "Shelby Houlihan Biography - Arizona State Sun Devils". thesundevils.com. Retrieved 2016-05-28.
