Nicole Aish (maiden name Jefferson, born March 8, 1976) is a long distance runner who is a U.S. National Championship Marathon winner and a bronze medalist at the 2003 Pan American Games in the 5,000 metres.
Running career
editSince she was cut from her high school basketball team, Aish decided to become a runner.[1] She ran cross country and track at Western Colorado Mountaineers with Elva Dryer. Aish set multiple school records[2] on her way to becoming the national champion at the 1998 and 1999 NCAA Division II Women's Outdoor Track and Field Championships in the 3,000 metres. She finished her college career also as the one mile national champion in the 1999 NCAA Division II Women's Indoor Track and Field Championships. She still holds the school record for fastest time in the mile (4:38.76).[3]
Aish continued running after college. In 2001 she raced 3,000 metres at the Prefontaine Classic, where she placed 13th.[4] Two years later, she ran a 32:10 in the 10,000 metres, qualifying for the 2004 U.S. Olympic Track Trials.[4]
Aish continued racing track and road races around the country.[5] Her first ever half-marathon was in the Monterey Peninsula of California, which she won.[5] Aish then netted prize money for win a large 10k in Colorado.[6] A year later, in 2005, she also won her first-ever marathon, the Twin Cities Marathon.[1] She finished with a time of 2:40.21, which happened to be the slowest winning time, likely due to the heat—the temperature at the starting line was more than 70 degrees F.[7] Although her hamstrings cramped and she walked briefly, Aish won with a comfortable lead.[1] She won $30,000 and the title of U.S. National Marathon Champion.[8]
Later in 2006, Aish had hip surgery, which stopped her from running in any more major races.[9] She still competes in shorter distance races, such as the FireKraker 5k for the 4th of July in her hometown in Colorado.[10] She has won nearly $85,000 in her running career so far.[11]
Early and personal life
editAish was previously married to Michael Aish, a long distance runner who competed for the 2000 and 2004 New Zealand Olympic Team.[5] They ran together and won respective men's and woman's titles in the Monterey Half Marathon.[5] Aish started a blog about her personal and daily life but has not posted on it since 2014. Her last post was about a second hip surgery. She and Michael Aish divorced in 2017 and he has since remarried.[12][13]
Achievements
edit- 2001 Prefontaine Classic 3K 13th place 9:29.42
- 2003 Pan American Games 5K 3rd place 15:42.40
- 2003 Freihofer's Run for Women 5K 4th place 15:51
- 2004 Monterey Half-Marathon 1st place 1:15.13
- 2005 TD Banknorth Beach to Beacon 7th place 33:08.8
- 2005 Twin Cities Marathon 1st place 2:40.21
- 2005 Colorado 10k 1st place 34:57
- 2006 Spokane 12,000m Race 9th place 41:32
- 2008 Aramco Houston Half Marathon 4th place 1:12:30
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c Zgoda, Jerry (October 3, 2005). "2005 Twin Cities Marathon Race Wrapup". Star Tribune.
- ^ "Nicole Aish - Hall of Fame - Western Colorado University Athletics". gomountaineers.com. January 1, 2020. Retrieved January 31, 2020.
- ^ "Track and Field National Champions - Western Colorado University Athletics". gomountaineers.com. Western Colorado University. Retrieved January 31, 2020.
- ^ a b Wintz, Mark. "Athletics: Aish duo win big sur half marathon with course records". Runner's and Triathlete's Web News. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
- ^ a b c d Stewart, Jerry (October 18, 2004). "Running couple keeps it in the family". Knight Rider Tribune News Service.
- ^ Roper, Geoffry (July 31, 2005). "Conditions yield top times at Grand PRix". Colorado Springs, Colorado: The Gazette.
- ^ "Federer claims 24th straight ATP Final". Star Tribune. October 3, 2005.
- ^ Griffiths, Derek (March–April 2006). "Ahead of the Pack: Colorado Couple Michael and Nicole Aish" (PDF). issuu.com. Littleton, Colorado: Colorado Runner. pp. 14–15. Retrieved January 31, 2020.
- ^ "Coming Sunday: 25th Twin Cities Marathon". Star Tribune. September 26, 2006.
- ^ Roley, Michael (July 5, 2017). "A run for independence". Fort Collins Coloradoan.
- ^ "ARRS - Runner Nicole Aish". more.aars.run. Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved January 31, 2020.
- ^ "Nicole Aish". Retrieved January 17, 2020.
- ^ "Christy Aish on Instagram: "We do ..."". Archived from the original on December 25, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2020.
External links
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