Emma Bates (born July 8, 1992) is an American

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely Aerobic exercise, aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

, who competes in the

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

. Her achievements include winning the

USA Marathon Championships The USA Marathon Championships is the annual national championships for marathon running in the United States. The race serves as a way of designating the American national champion for the marathon. The men's race was first contested in 1925 and ...

in 2018, placing second in the

2021 Chicago Marathon The 2021 Chicago Marathon was held on October 10, 2021. It was the 43rd edition of the annual Chicago Marathon, and the first after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019. The 2020 Chicago Marathon was canceled as a result of the pandemic. T ...

, and finishing fifth in the

2023 Boston Marathon The 2023 Boston Marathon was a marathon race held in Boston, Massachusetts, on April 17, 2023. It was the 127th official running of the race, and 125th time it was run on course (excluding the virtual event of 2020, and the ekiden of 1918). It a ...

. Bates also represented the United States in the marathon at the

2022 World Athletics Championships The 2022 World Athletics Championships was the eighteenth edition of the World Athletics Championships. It was held at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, United States, from July 15–24, 2022, with the country hosting that competition for the ...

, where she set a personal best of 2:23.18 and finished seventh. Her highest position on the

World Athletics Rankings The World Athletics Rankings are an individual athlete ranking system for the sport of athletics, managed by World Athletics. It is used to establish the number one athlete within an athletics event and to partially determine qualification into t ...

was No. 14 in the marathon in July 2022. In college, Bates competed for

Boise State University Boise State University (BSU) is a Public university, public research university in Boise, Idaho, United States. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has b ...

, where she was a 12-time All-American. She won the

10000 metres The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship-level events. The ...

at the

2014 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 2014 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships were the 93rd NCAA Men's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships and the 33rd NCAA Women's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships held for the second consecutive yea ...

and was the runner-up in the 2013 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships. Bates turned professional in June 2015 and was associated with the

Boston Athletic Association The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) is a non-profit dedicated to organized sports, with a focus on running, in the Greater Boston area. The B.A.A. hosts such events as the Boston Marathon, the B.A.A. 5K, the B.A.A. 10K, the B.A.A. Half Mar ...

until 2017. In January 2021, she signed a multi-year sponsorship deal with the sports company Asics. Bates trains with the distance group

Team Boss A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal. As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interdependent with respect to info ...

Running career

High school and college

Encouraged by her parents to channel her energy, Bates began running in 6th grade. She attended Elk River High School in

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, graduating in 2010. During her senior year, she achieved runner-up in the state cross country championships and led her team to a state title. She also recorded personal bests of 11:08.25 for 3200 m and 5:00.13 for 1600 m. Reflecting on her high school training, Bates stated that she took a relaxed approach. In an interview, she recalled, “On easy days, my teammates and I would often not even run — we’d go to the grocery store and get donuts or something.” Bates attended

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

, where she was a 12-time All American in the NCAA. She specialized in the 10000 m, placing third in this event at the 2013 NCAA Track and Field Championship and progressing to win first place in 2014. Her winning time of 32:32.35 in 2014 was the second fastest in the championship's history. In cross country, she was the runner-up at the 2013 NCAA Cross Country Championships, finishing behind Abbey D'Agostino. At the 2014 NCAA Cross Country Championships, she finished third.

Professional

2015 -2017

After graduating from Boise State, Bates began competing professionally for the

(BAA) in July 2015 as part of the High Performance Group. This decision led her to relocate to

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. During this early phase of her career, Bates competed in a range of distances. Her fastest times in 2016 included a 4:22.48 in the

1500 metres The 1500 metres or 1500-metre run is the foremost middle distance track event in athletics. The distance has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 and the World Championships in Athletics since 1983. It is equivalent to 1.5 kilomet ...

and a 56:00 in the ten-mile race. Bates also finished 21st at the 2016 USA Track and Field Championships. A shift in Bates' focus occurred in 2017 as she transitioned away from the track to longer-distance events, including the half marathon. Her half marathon debut was at the Des Moines Half Marathon on October 15, 2017, which she won with a time of 1:15:10. Bates faced challenges in her first few years a professional runner after joining the BAA. In an interview with

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

, she stated, "I was not enjoying life in Boston, not enjoying running like I once did and did not fully believe in the training program I was a part of." By the end of 2017, Bates decided to leave the BAA and return to Idaho. There, she established a new training group called the Idaho Distance Project.

2018 - 2019

Bates participated in various road races within the USATF Running Circuit. These races included third place finishes at the US 20 km Road Running Championships and the US 10M Road Running Championships. The circuit operates on a points system in which athletes earn points according to their finishes; the better the finish, the more points gained. Bates's high finishes allowed her to accumulate enough points to win the 2018 USATF Running Circuit. Bates competed in two half marathons in 2018. Her first half marathon was at the Doha Half Marathon on January 12, where she placed fourth with a time of 1:12:52. She then improved her personal best at the

2018 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships The 2018 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships took place on 24 March 2018 in Valencia, Spain. It was the 23rd edition of the event and the 2nd time it was held in Spain. Netsanet Gudeta gave the standout performance of the competition, winning ...

on March 24, finishing in 1:11:45 and placing 27th; she was the fastest American woman in the race. Bates capped the year by participating in the

California International Marathon The California International Marathon (CIM) is an annual road marathon () held in Northern California since 1983. The net downhill course starts at Folsom Dam and ends at the State Capitol in Sacramento. The race is organized by the Sacramento ...

on December 2. This race also served as the USA Marathon Championships. In this race, her first-ever marathon, she won with a time of 2:28:19. Her win came despite stopping multiple times to vomit in the latter half of the course. During her peak training for this event, she logged 110–115 miles per week. In January 2019, Bates attained a professional sponsorship deal from the sportswear company Asics. Her first race representing Asics was at the

New York City Half Marathon The New York City Half Marathon (branded as the United Airlines NYC Half) is an annual half marathon road running race from Brooklyn's Prospect Park to Manhattan's Central Park via the Manhattan Bridge, held since 2006. It passes through or ...

on March 17, 2019, where she finished fourth. Two months later on May 5, 2019, Bates came third in the USA Half Marathon Championships. In her second-attempt at the marathon, Bates placed fourth in the 2019 Chicago Marathon on October 13. She was the first American to finish and recorded a mark of 2:25:27. The race featured strong competition, including a world record set by the first-place finisher,

Brigid Kosgei Brigid Jepchirchir Kosgei (born 20 February 1994) is a Kenyan long-distance runner who specialises in the marathon. She won the 2018 and 2019 Chicago Marathons, the 2019 and 2020 London Marathons and the 2021 Tokyo Marathon. Kosgei was the m ...

2020 - 2021

On 29 February 2020, Bates competed in the 2020 United States Olympic trials marathon in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

. She finished in seventh place, outside of the top three needed to qualify for the

2020 Summer Games The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

. Afterward, her competition was limited due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. She returned to competition on October 28, 2020 at the Michigan Pro Half Marathon. She came in second and achieved a personal best of 1:09:44. Her last race of the year was at the

Marathon Project The Marathon Project was an elite-only marathon held on the Gila River Indian Reservation in Chandler, Arizona. December 2020. It was created by Northern Arizona Elite coach Ben Rosario together with Josh Cox and Matt Helbig to provide a race after ...

Chandler, Arizona Chandler is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and a suburb in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the List of municipalities in Arizona, fourth-most populous city in Arizona ...

, where she placed fourth in 2:25:40. In April 2021, Bates relocated to

Boulder, Colorado Boulder is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city in Boulder County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the most ...

to join Team Boss, a training group led by coach Joe Bosshard. She competed in the 10000 m at the U.S. Olympic Trials to finish 29th in 33:21.00. On October 10, she competed in the

in 2:24:20 to take second. This was her first podium finish in a

World Marathon Majors The World Marathon Majors (WMM) sponsored by Abbott Laboratories is a championship-style competition for marathon runners that started in 2006. A points-based competition founded on seven major marathon races recognised as the most high-profile o ...

2022 - 2023

On 18 July 2022, Bates participated in the marathon at the

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lane County, Oregon, United States. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie River (Oregon), McKenzie and Willamette River, Willamette rivers, ...

. She placed seventh in 2:23:18, setting a personal best and finishing with one of the strongest ever American contingents ( Sara Hall was fifth,

Keira D'Amato Keira D'Amato (born Keira Carlstrom on October 21, 1984) is an American distance runner. She is the American half marathon record holder with a time of 1:06:39 at the 2023 Gold Coast Half marathon on July 1, 2023. She held the American women's ...

was eighth). On November 6, she ran 2:26:53 in the

New York City Marathon The New York City Marathon, currently branded as the TCS New York City Marathon for sponsorship reasons, is an annual marathon () that courses through the five boroughs of New York City. It is the largest marathon in the world, with 53,627 fini ...

to finish eighth. In 2023, Bates competed in two marathons. Her first was the

Boston Marathon The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon race hosted by eight cities and towns in greater Boston in eastern Massachusetts, United States. It is traditionally held on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897, the event was ins ...

, where she finished fifth with a time of 2:22:10, averaging 5:27 per mile and leading for most of the race. Her performance came during intermittent rain and headwinds, and it was just shy of the fastest time by an American woman on this course, narrowly missing Shalane Flanagan's record of 2:22:02. While Bates achieved a personal best in this race, her time is not considered legal for record purposes by

World Athletics World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation and International Association of Athletics Federations and formerly abbreviated as the IAAF, is the international sports governing body, governing body for the sport ...

due to the course's net downhill elevation. On October 8, she finished 13th in the

Chicago Marathon The Chicago Marathon is a road marathon held in October in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the seven World Marathon Majors. Thus, it is also a World Athletics Label Road Race. The Chicago Marathon is one of the largest races by number of fini ...

with a time of 2:25:04. She reached the halfway point in 69:31 but completed the second half in 75:33 due to pain in her foot.

2024

Bates announced on January 6 that she would not participate in the 2024 US Olympic Trials, held in February. The announcement followed a foot-related injury sustained by Bates during her running of the 2023 Chicago Marathon the previous October. In April, she was the top American woman to finish at the Boston Marathon and finished 12th overall.

2025

At the

2025 Boston Marathon The 2025 Boston Marathon was the 129th official edition of the Boston Marathon, annual marathon race in Boston, Massachusetts, held on Monday, . It was a World Athletics Label Road Races, Platinum Label marathon, one of seven World Marathon Ma ...

Bates finished 13th overall and was the 3rd American, finishing in 02:25:10.

Personal life

Bates is an avid backpacker and enjoys hiking in the Sawtooth Range. In 2017, she moved to a remote cabin in the

Boise National Forest Boise National Forest is a United States National Forest, National Forest covering of the U.S. state of Idaho. Created on July 1, 1908, from part of Sawtooth National Forest, it is managed by the United States Forest Service, U.S. Forest Se ...

that offered secluded trails for running. The cabin was solar powered, with no television or cellular service. In 2023, ''Outside Magazine'' released an article about Bates' relationship with her partner. The article described how her partner helps her cope with the pressures of elite competition.

Competition record

NCAA championships

Outdoor track and field

Indoor track and field

Cross country

Conference championships

Outdoor track and field

Indoor track and field

Cross country

References

External links

* *
Emma Bates Athletics profile

Emma Bates Flocast Interviews
*

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bates, Emma 1992 births Living people Sportspeople from Idaho American female middle-distance runners American female long-distance runners Track and field athletes from Minnesota Track and field athletes from Idaho Boise State Broncos women's track and field athletes Boise State University alumni 21st-century American sportswomen NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners