Alysia Montano ran the 800m event in the US Track and Field Championships whilst 34 weeks pregnant yesterday.
The five-time national champion finished in 2min 32.13sec in the qualifying rounds, only seven weeks before she’s scheduled to give birth to her first child.
She said after the race, “I’ve been running throughout my pregnancy and I felt really, really good during the whole process,” Montano said. “I just didn’t want to get lapped and be the first person to get lapped in the 800.”
Montano kept a strong pace throughout the race, this had been planned in the lead up together with her doctors who both approved of her plans to race and encouraged her to do it.
“That took away any fear of what the outside world might think about a woman running during her pregnancy,” Montano said. “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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