Although there were no judges to grade her answer, Jacque Wilkins still paused for a few moments when asked what she thought was the biggest difference between her two passions. 

“That’s a great question,” she said. “It’s probably the footwear.”

and to break three hours at the distance. .

On May 17, she won the Ms. Georgia United States pageant and was also named Most Photogenic and Miss Congeniality. The win earned Wilkins a spot in the United States finals in Washington, D.C., earlier this summer.

Why Can’t I Eat After a Marathon.

Why Can’t I Eat After a Marathon Boston Marathons. She set her PR at Boston this April with a 3:18:55, even though she suffered a foot injury in February and had to decrease her training mileage.

Just a few months later in July, Wilkins completed the Loonies Midnight Marathon in Livingston, Tennessee, as the latest addition to her resume. She placed first overall for female finishers with a time of 3:31:58. 

Yet, Wilkins said she doesn’t run for trophies or other accolades. Instead, she finds motivation from a small pink ribbon with rhinestones she ties to her right shoelace before every race.  

“Jacque sees marathons as an opportunity to run in the memory of her mother,” said her father, Jack Wilkins.

* * *

Growing up in Reno, Nevada, Wilkins was far from the “pageant girl” you see in competitions. She performed in The Nutcracker when she was 10 years old, but sports soon pulled her away from the stage.

“She had natural talent,” her father said. “Once we got home from Jacque’s first tryout for travel softball, there were two messages on the answering machine. Every team wanted Jacque to play for them.” 

Jacque Wilkins played second base just like her mother, Joan. She also followed in her mother’s footsteps when she was elected homecoming queen during her senior year at Galena High School in Reno. But Wilkins’ best friend and supporter never got to see her wear the crown. When Wilkins was 16, her mother died after a seven-year battle with breast cancer.

Wilkins said she had no intention of competing in pageants before her senior year. But in the spring of 2004, her advisor received a pamphlet in the mail for the Nevada Homecoming Queen. Wilkins balked at the idea until she found out the prize for first place was a $500 scholarship.

“I thought if I could win, it would be a way to help my Dad pay for college,” she said.

 So Wilkins entered the pageant, despite having no formal experience, and won anyway.

While at the University of Reno Nevada, Wilkins continued to participate in pageants as far away as Nashville and Daytona Beach, Florida. In 2010, she was the first runner-up in the Miss Nevada pageant. She said she financed her entire undergraduate education with the prize money.

Besides the financial incentive, the pageants have offered a level of camaraderie mixed with competition that is similar to running.

“In both you develop a sense of community,” Wilkins said. “Once you know a runner or get to know another girl at a pageant, you always stay in touch.” 

That bond is why Wilkins has filled her schedule with races since completing her first marathon in 2009. She also paces three or four marathons each year, and typically leads the 4:00 group. Wilkins said her fellow runners are usually shocked when she tells them about the pageants and that the topic makes for good banter.

“I talk all the time when I run,” she said. “It always makes the distance seem shorter.”

Wilkins moved to Atlanta with her fiancé, Guillermo Sanchez, last spring after she graduated from George Washington University with a Masters in Physician Assistant Studies. She hopes to pursue a career in the health industry.

For now, though, she has plenty to keep her busy. Wilkins has received numerous requests for appearances and speeches since winning Ms. Georgia and wants to use her title to promote and advocate for her platform of “No Child Should Grieve Alone,” which was inspired by her mother.

Her long-term running goal is to complete a marathon in all 50 states (Tennessee was her 18th) and to break three hours at the distance. 

But she won’t be alone as she continues her journey.

“Thinking of my mom helps me push through during a marathon,” Wilkins said. “She’s my guardian angel running with me.”