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Thursday, March 28, 2024
The Observer

Anna Rohrer shines at Stanford Invitational

At the Stanford Invitational this past weekend, sophomore Anna Rohrer ran her first career 10,000-meter race in 31:58, setting a new Notre Dame record and posting the fastest time for a female in the world so far this year.

Prior to the meet, Rohrer did not have any specific goals for the 10,000-meter race.

Irish sophomore Anna Rohrer competes in the 3,000-meter race at the Meyo Invitational on Feb. 4 at Loftus Sports Center.
Irish sophomore Anna Rohrer competes in the 3,000-meter race at the Meyo Invitational on Feb. 4 at Loftus Sports Center.
Irish sophomore Anna Rohrer competes in the 3,000-meter race at the Meyo Invitational on Feb. 4 at Loftus Sports Center.


“Before the race, a lot of people asked me what I was thinking, and I kept telling them that I really was trying not to think about it,” Rohrer said. “I didn’t look at the seed times, I didn’t think about how fast I was going, or what splits I wanted to run because I didn't know what to expect. I knew there were going to be professionals in it, all I wanted to do was just stay with them as long as I could.

“I was surprisingly relaxed at the starting line; I was more excited for this race than I had been in a long time. There was nothing for me to compare it to, I am just going to go and see what I can do and not think about it.”

Rohrer said she was not aware of what she had accomplished immediately after the race.

“I didn’t really realize how good it was,” Rohrer said. “When I broke 32 I knew it was fast, but I didn’t really know any of the statistics about it, like who has ran it faster, where that places me in comparison to others, I really didn’t have any idea. I had amateur thoughts at that point and didn’t really know much about it. I just felt good that I ran fast.”

According to Rohrer, her time may be the fastest at the moment, but will fall down the ranks as more people run the race this year.

“It is kind of blown out of proportion because not a lot of people have raced a 10k yet this year,” Rohrer said. “Yes, it is really cool to say my time is the fastest in the world right now, but the fastest people in the world have not raced yet. So it is cool to say that, but it’s not totally true. But my time will still be up there.”

After the performance that garnered attention from many, Rohrer will not run the 10,000-meter race for a month.

“The longer the race the less you run it because it takes that much more of a toll on your body,” Rohrer said. “So I am not going to race it again until the ACCs, which is in a month, about mid-May. Then I will race it two weeks later at Regionals and I should race again two weeks later at Nationals. More than I should race it, but I have to.”

Looking forward to the rest of the season, Rohrer is focused on maintaining her health.

“My main goal is to stay healthy because I have been on a good track for a while and I have been feeling good,” Rohrer said. “Obviously, I want to get better and faster, but if my health stays at the level it is now, then I will be able to get faster. I’m looking forward to having [Irish graduate student] Molly [Seidel] again to race with. We are going to put out great times together because we have each other to work out with and push each other. It will be really exciting to see what we can do at ACCs and Nationals.”

Seidel also raced in the 10,000-meter race, in a different heat and earning the win in her section. Five other Irish athletes had top-ten finishes at the Stanford Invitational.

While Rohrer and company were competing in California, multiple Irish athletes also partook in the Texas Relays. The results from that event were headlined by senior Anthony Shivers, who finished fifth in the discus and junior Payton Miller who finished in fifth place in the 400-meter dash. Miller also took part in the 4x400-meter relay, which finished in 17th place.

The Irish squad will next see action at the Sun Angel Track Classic, which begins Friday in Tempe, Arizona.