Amy Cragg Finds Success on the Roads Following Her Own Path

By Adam Kopet

Amy Cragg is one of the top road racers in the U.S. She will take that ability to the Czech Republic for Saturday's Prague Half Marathon.

Cragg's recent story goes back to the 2016 Olympics. After winning the 2016 Olympic Trials Marathon as a new member of the Bowerman Track Club, Cragg went on to place ninth in the Olympic Marathon, finishing as the third American.

Cragg left Rio disappointed. She felt she could have done better in the tactical style race that occurs in championship marathons. Cragg wanted another shot at it.

That desire led Cragg and her coach, Jerry Schumacher, to devise a plan that saw Cragg race the marathon at the 2017 IAAF World Outdoor Championships in London. After spending the past year training alongside Shalane Flanagan, Cragg was forced to complete more of her training alone.

Most elite marathoners tend to follow a simple marathon schedule. They race a marathon in the spring and again in the fall each year. Once every four years, that schedule gets upset with the Olympics often taking place in the summer.

The plan for the World Championships saw Cragg deviate from that schedule. She had her husband, Alistair Cragg, available to help her through workouts and long runs, but the rest of her training tended to be alone.

However, the time spent alone seemed to pay off. Cragg raced well in London and used a strong kick in the final half mile to earn the bronze medal, almost catching Edna Kiplagat of Kenya, who won the silver medal. Both women were timed in 2:27:18. Cragg earned her medal and showed she could succeed in a championship race.

A year later, Cragg was once again running on her own racing path. After her 2017 success, she could have easily positioned herself for a strong Boston Marathon run in 2018. Instead, Cragg decided to chase a fast time at a marathon elite Americans rarely compete in, the Tokyo Marathon.

The current Tokyo Marathon course has been altered from its original form to make it faster. In the first year with the new course, 2017, Wilson Kipsang set an event record in 2:03:58. That kind of time requires a fast course.

Cragg ran a strong race and once again placed third. But more importantly, she knocked more than five minutes off her personal best, which she had run at the 2014 Chicago Marathon. Cragg crossed the line in 2:21:42. That ranks her fifth on the U.S. all-time performer list.

After Tokyo, 2018 it was a rocky year for Cragg. She tried returning to the Chicago Marathon, but ended up withdrawing in the weeks leading up to the race, citing an injury early in her build up that left her not fit enough to toe the line.

Since missing the Chicago Marathon last year, Cragg has once again chartered her own path as she returns to the upper echelons of the sport. Her return began last fall at the USATF 5 km Championships in New York City, only a month after Chicago. Cragg placed third in 15:54.

Cragg opened her 2019 campaign at the USATF Cross Country Championships. Her fifth-place finish in 33:18 on the 10K course helped the Bowerman Track Club dominate the team standings.

Then in March, Cragg once again increased her racing distance, winning the Atlanta Track Club's Road to Gold race. The hilly 8-mile race covered the final miles of the 2020 Olympic Trials Marathon as a test event one year out. Cragg won by 61 seconds, running 43:23.

Now, Cragg is stepping up in distance once again with the Prague Half Marathon. She currently stands sixth on the U.S. all-time performer list with a best of 1:08:27, which she ran in 2017.

Prague is a fast course. Joyciline Jepkosgei of Kenya ran a then world record 1:04:52 at the 2017 Prague Half Marathon. She has since lowered the record to 1:04:51.

Depending on Cragg's goals and her fitness heading into Saturday's race, the American record of 1:07:25 could be in play. It is by no means a lock. A lot of things would have to go right for Craig, but it is certainly possible, especially with Fancy Chemutai of Kenya in the race. Chemutai is the second-fastest half marathon performer in history, having run 1:04:52 at the 2018 RAK Half Marathon.

The weather appears nearly perfect for a fast race on Saturday. Current weather reports call for cloudy skies and race-time temperatures in the low 50-degree range. There is a small chance of rain.

Cragg has yet to announce her marathon plans this year. Given the stricter standards and the difficulty level of the Olympic Trials Marathon course, it seems likely she will need to race at least one marathon this year to get the Olympic standard. It would put a lot of pressure on her to have to earn the standard at the Trials.

However, without a firm plan for the year, and no race commitments following her USATF Cross Country Championships race (watch Cragg's post-race interview on USATF.TV), Cragg is in a position to enjoy herself in her racing and take risks she might not otherwise.

Cragg's career path recent years might not be one that has been heavily traveled, but when she has been able to take her time and stay healthy, she has been hard to beat. She has the opportunity to continue that trend Saturday in Prague.