American athlete, Alysia Montano put aside the fact that she was
carrying an 8-month pregnancy and ran 800 meters in the US Track and
Fields Championships yesterday. Montano, a 5-time national champion,
finished the race in 2 minutes, 32.13 seconds in the qualifying rounds,
barely seven weeks before she’s due to give birth to her first child.
The 28-year-old, who is a former University of California star, finished
last in her heat but that didn’t matter to the crowd gathered at the
Hornet Stadium. Trailing the lead pack by more than 120 meters for most
of the race, Montano received a rousing ovation as she finished her
first lap and the cheering grew louder when she finally crossed the
finish line.
“I’ve
been running throughout my pregnancy and I felt really, really good
during the whole process,” She said. “I just didn’t want to get lapped
and be the first person to get lapped in the 800.”
Montano,
who won the 800 national titles the past four years, was never in
trouble of being lapped. She took a nice relaxed pace from the start and
maintained it throughout.
That
was according to the plan Montano laid out after consulting with her
physician. Not only did doctors give Montano the OK to run, they
encouraged her.
See more of her picture below and even before pregnancy>>>
“That took away any fear of what the outside world might think about a woman running during her pregnancy,” she continued.
“What
I found out mostly was that exercising during pregnancy is actually
much better for the mom and the baby. … I did all the things I normally
do … I just happened to be pregnant. This is my normal this year.”
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