Conley, Tapia step onto World stage
Kim Conley at the SacTown 10 (Photo by Sean Dulany/Freeplay Magazine)
By John Schumacher
Olympian Kim Conley returns to the international stage hoping for a breakthrough. Daniel Tapia eagerly awaits his first chance to wear a USA jersey.
The two Sacramento Running Association standouts head into the IAAF World Championships in Athletics beginning Saturday in Moscow, Russia ready to build on recent successes.
Conley, a former UC Davis standout, used an SRA training grant to step back from her duties as an Aggies assistant coach and focus more on her training. The result: a dramatic third-place finish in the women’s 5,000 meters at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials and a trip to the Olympic Games in London, where she recorded a then personal-best 15:14.48 to finish 12th in her heat.
She didn’t stop there, either, making the U.S. team for the World Cross Country Championships in March, lowering her personal best to 15:09.57 at the Prefontaine Classic in June and then earning a spot in the 5,000 meters for the World Championships.
The SRA helped her spend three weeks earlier this summer training at altitude in Switzerland. Conley then went to London and ran a personal-best 8:47.95 in the 3,000 meters at a Diamond League meet.
She trained at the U.S. team camp in Linz, Austria before heading to Moscow. Conley, who lives in West Sacramento, begins competition on Aug. 14.
“I am a firm believer in surrounding myself with people that bring out the best in me, and training here amongst the best athletes in the world has me highly motivated,” Conley said in her blog.
“Coming to team camp provides a good effect of launching me into a ‘peak race’ mode mentally, and I am starting to dial down my attitude to get ready for two big races in Russia.
“This entire year has been planned around the World Championships, and I am very excited that it is right around the corner.”
Conley also said she was thrilled to have an SRA teammate joining her in the World Championships.
“I am very excited that Daniel is coming to Moscow,” she said. “It’s a great opportunity for him and validates the support that SRA is having on local athletes.”
Tapia, the 2012 California International Marathon champion, was training for a fall marathon when he received word a few weeks ago he was on the U.S. team. He’s scheduled to run in the marathon on Aug. 17.
“I have very little time to get ready, obviously,” said Tapia, who just finished taking the California bar exam.
“It’s a great feeling. It’s an honor to represent my country. As a runner, that was always one of my goals, to wear a USA jersey.”
Tapia, who lives in Castroville, delivered a surprising victory at the 2012 CIM, overcoming wind and rain and several runners with faster personal bests with a 2:16:29 performance.
He followed up his CIM win with a 2:14:30 effort to finish ninth in the 2013 Boston Marathon, joining SRA teammates Kevin Pool (2:18:59) and Cheyne Inman (2:31:05) to combine for the top team time.