In high school, Colleen Quigley dreamed of moving to New York City upon graduation so she could try to “make it big” as a model.
As an eighth-grader, Quigley attended a local casting call for a Macy’s prom dress fashion show after her dance teacher urged her to try out. Despite auditioning in flip-flops, a T-shirt, and not a trace of makeup—“I was vastly out of my league,” she said—Quigley was one of 12 girls chosen from the group of more than 100. Then, with the help of an agent from the casting call, Quigley signed with the modeling agencies Wilhelmina and Storm.
Quigley began traveling to shoots, some of which took place overseas, up to four times a month, squeezing in schoolwork whenever she could. She attended an all-girls Catholic high school in St. Louis, Missouri, and, “As long as I kept my grades up, they were fine with me missing 30 days of school each semester.” She still managed to become a National Merit Commended Scholar.
“It was great fun,” said Quigley, who shot retail catalog ads for stores like Nordstrom and JCPenney in addition to editorial work for Glamour and Seventeen magazines. “One of my parents would always travel with me because I was under 18. So they would have a vacation in the Bahamas while I worked at a shoot for two days. It was pretty great. I have really good memories of it.” (Check out photos of her work here.)
She was also juggling a burgeoning running career.
By the time she graduated in 2011, she’d racked up Missouri state titles at 1600 meters and 3200 meters and placed 20th at the Foot Locker National Championship in cross country. Her accomplishments caught the attention of Florida State University.
“USATF to Elect New President Amid Budget Deficit, USATF to Elect New President Amid Budget Deficit,” Quigley said. “So I changed my mind late in the game.
“As soon as I decided to go to college, I stopped modeling,” she added. “My body type was totally different, and the travel schedule was impossible to put together with training and going to school.”
Her victory earlier this month at the NCAA National Championships in the 3000-meter steeplechase proved her sacrifice of one passion for another was worth it. She topped the field in a personal best of 9:29.32, the fifth fastest time ever run by a collegian.
“I’d been on the cusp of [winning Nationals] for two years,” Quigley said. “I placed second my sophomore year to Emma Coburn, then my junior year, I got a stress fracture in my foot before the Regional meet. It was my first real injury, and I had to watch my team fly off to Eugene, Oregon, without me. It put things in perspective for me and made me realize [making it to Nationals] is something you need to savor. So finally getting to be the one to cross the line first and do the interviews and victory lap was absolutely incredible.”
Now Quigley has a different kind of agent representing her. Now that school is over—she graduated with a degree in dietetics—she’ll run professionally for Nike's Bowerman Track Club. On Thursday evening in Eugene, she’ll make her pro debut at the USATF National Championship meet in the steeplechase.
“Top three go to the world championships, so that would be the ultimate win of the day,” she said. “I’ve never competed overseas, much less put on the USA jersey, and that’s always been a dream. Even if that doesn't happen, just to be in the race with the top-notch women in the U.S. is awesome.”
When asked if she thinks she’ll return to modeling, Quigley said there’s a chance she’ll step in front of a camera during the off season when her training schedule is more low-key.
“I think it’ll be a bigger element in my life again, more than it’s been over the last four years,” she said. “I know that whatever company I end up getting a contract with will expect me to do some kind of promotional stuff for them, which will be really fun. I’m definitely looking forward to getting back into it. Hopefully I’m not too rusty.”
