Lisa Uhl (née Koll) (born August 31, 1987,

Fort Dodge, Iowa Fort Dodge is a city in and the county seat of Webster County, Iowa, United States, along the Des Moines River. The population was 24,871 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, a decrease from 25,136 in 2000 United States Census, 2000. F ...

) is an American runner. She is a four-time

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

Division One champion, former

record holder in the

10,000 meters 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 r ...

,ESPN: ISU's Koll records NCAA best in 10,000
/ref> and the sixth fastest American woman to ever cover that distance. She competed in the 10,000 meters in the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

. She competed for

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricult ...

College career

While attending

, Uhl won the

Big 12 The Big 12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States. It consists of 16 full-member universities (3 private universities and 13 public universities) in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Okla ...

outdoor track and field championship in the 10,000 meters in 2007 as a Freshman. In 2008, she set the American Collegiate record in the 10,000 meters with a time of 32:11.13 at the Stanford Invitational in

Palo Alto Palo Alto ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for ) is a charter city in northwestern Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. Th ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. This mark was beat later that year by eventual 2008 NCAA 5,000 meter champion Sally Kipyego of

Texas Tech University Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public university, public research university in Lubbock, Texas, United States. Established on February 10, 1923, and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the flagship instit ...

in a time of 31:25.45. Later that year Uhl went on to win the

outdoor track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

championship, beating the field by almost a full minute, and finished 8th at the 2008 United States Olympic trials in

Eugene Eugene may refer to: People and fictional characters * Eugene (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Gene Eugene, stage name of Canadian born actor, record producer, engineer, composer and musi ...

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

. During the 2008-2009 season she was named the

ESPN The Magazine ''ESPN The Magazine'' was an American monthly sports magazine published by the ESPN sports network in Bristol, Connecticut. The first issue, with the cover line "NEXT.," was published on March 11, 1998 (cover date March 23, 1998), and featured K ...

/ CoSIDA Academic All-America of the Year winner for track & field/cross country. At the 2010 NCAA indoor championships Uhl won the 5,000 meter run by over 10 seconds in a time of 15:39.65. Just a few months later she broke the 10,000 meter record for the second time at the Stanford Invitational, finishing with a time of 31 minutes, 18.07 seconds. This stood as the record for just over 14 years, until it was broken by

Parker Valby Parker Alys Valby (born September 27, 2002) is a professional American track and field and cross-country athlete. She is a six-time NCAA champion and the current NCAA record holder for the indoor 5000m, outdoor 5000m, and outdoor 10000m. Earl ...

by 27.64 seconds in 2024. She also dominated the outdoor collegiate 5,000 meter event. At the Payton Jordan invitational she finished fourth in an elite 5,000 meter field, beaten only by World Championship bronze medalist

Shannon Rowbury Shannon Solares-Rowbury (born September 19, 1984) is an American middle-distance runner from San Francisco, California. After competing collegiately for Duke University, she turned professional in 2007. Rowbury has represented the United States ...

, Olympic bronze medalist

Shalane Flanagan Shalane Grace Flanagan (born July 8, 1981) is an American long-distance runner, coach, Olympic medalist and New York City Marathon champion. She was the first American woman to win the New York City Marathon since 1977. She holds the NACAC area ...

, and reigning US national 10,000 meter champion Amy Yoder Begley, in a time of 15 minutes and 17.76 seconds. It was the best NCAA 5,000 meter time in the nation that year by almost 20 seconds. Uhl's record breaking outdoor season continued when she won the

10,000 meter title, becoming the first woman ever to win four straight conference titles in the same event. At her final meet as a collegian Lisa Kohl became both the NCAA outdoor 5,000 meter and 10,000 meter champion. One of only four athletes to have ever done so, and the first to do it since 1996. She won the 10,000 meters by over 20 seconds in a time of 32:49.35 and the 5,000 meters by over 30 seconds in a time of 15:23.80. At the end of her 2010 track season, Uhl won the

Honda Sports Award The Honda Sports Award is an annual award in the United States, given to the best collegiate female athlete in each of twelve sports. There are four nominees for each sport, and the twelve winners of the Honda Sports Award are automatically in t ...

as the nation's best collegiate female track and field athlete of the year and was nominated as one of three athletes for the female collegiate sports person of the year (all sports).

Professional career

Uhl turned professional shortly after the collegiate championships, signing with Peter Stubbs Management. In her first track meet as a professional she finished second in the 10,000 meters at the US national championships in a time of 32:11.72, beaten only by the reigning US national champion Amy Yoder Begley. Held at her hometown track, Koll took the lead midway through the race and held it until the final lap when Begley closed in 65 seconds to finish in 32:06.45. ;2010 On July 24, 2010, Uhl won the

Bix 7 Road Race The Bix 7 Road Race is held annually in Davenport, Iowa, as a commemoration to Davenport native and jazz musician Bix Beiderbecke. It is followed a week later by the Bix Beiderbecke Memorial Jazz Festival. Race The 7 mile road race is annually h ...

Davenport, Iowa Davenport ( ) is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. It is situated along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state. Davenport had a population of 101,724 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 cen ...

, capturing the US seven mile road racing championship. In 2010, Uhl deferred entry to

veterinary school Veterinary education is the tertiary education of veterinarians. To become a veterinarian, one must first complete a degree in veterinary medicine Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM, V.M.D., BVS, BVSc, BVMS, BVM etc.). In the United States and C ...

at Iowa State University to move to

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

to run for

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine giv ...

under a new coach,

Jerry Schumacher Jerry Schumacher (born August 6, 1970) is an American coach for track and field and cross country. Since 2022, he has been the head coach of the University of Oregon's track and field and cross country programs. He has also served as the head ...

. At the 2011

USA Cross Country Championships The USA Cross Country Championships is the annual national championships for cross country running in the United States. The championships is generally held in mid-February and it serves as a way of designating the country's national champion, as ...

in February she took third place behind

and

Molly Huddle Molly Huddle (born August 31, 1984) is an American long-distance runner who competes in track and cross country running events. She held the American record in the 5000 meters set in 2014 in Monaco (14:42.64), which has since been lowered by S ...

. ;2011 Uhl missed most of the running season in 2011 due to

plantar fasciitis Plantar fasciitis or plantar heel pain is a disorder of the plantar fascia, which is the connective tissue that supports the Arches of the foot, arch of the foot. It results in pain in the heel and Sole (foot), bottom of the foot that is usuall ...

, and a

stress fracture A stress fracture is a fatigue-induced bone fracture caused by repeated stress over time. Instead of resulting from a single severe impact, stress fractures are the result of accumulated injury from repeated submaximal loading, such as running ...

of her

fifth metatarsal The fifth metatarsal bone is a long bone in the foot, and is palpable along the distal outer edges of the feet. It is the second smallest of the five metatarsal bones. The fifth metatarsal is analogous to the fifth metacarpal bone in the hand. As ...

. ;2012 At the 2012 Olympic Trials, Uhl qualified for the London Olympics in the 10,000 m. and finished 13th at 2012 London Olympics in 31:12.80 which is the 18th fastest American ever. ;2013 Uhl finished 9th in the 10,000 meters in 33:35.80 at

2013 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships The 2013 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships was held at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa. Organised by USA Track and Field, the four-day competition took place June 20–23 in conjunction with the USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Champion ...

. ;2014 In June 2014, she returned to racing at the 2014 Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon - clocking 1:16:16 (5:50 per mile) as her first hard workout to finish 14 out of 4434 Females. On September 7, 2014, she won the City of Lakes Half Marathon in a time of 1:17:12. Uhl qualified for the United States Marathon Olympic Trials on October 12 at the 2014

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 ...

where she finished 18th in a time of 2:40:51. ;2015 Uhl finished 10th at Payton Jordan Invitational 3rd heat of the 5000 meters in 16:31.38 on May 2, 2015. Uhl won the 2015 Dam to Dam half marathon in May (77 minutes) in

Des Moines, IA Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

Personal life

Uhl married former

Iowa State Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State be ...

runner and

Des Moines Des Moines is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Iowa, most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Polk County, Iowa, Polk County with parts extending into Warren County, Iowa, Wa ...

Architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Kiel Uhl in September 2011. Kiel was inducted in 2015 class of

Track and Field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

Hall of Fame.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Uhl, Lisa Living people 1987 births Sportspeople from Fort Dodge, Iowa Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Olympic track and field athletes for the United States American female long-distance runners 21st-century American sportswomen Iowa State Cyclones women's track and field athletes NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships winners