Lisa Larsen Rainsberger, previously known as Lisa Larsen Weidenbach, (born May 7, 1961) is a distance runner. She is a member of the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

Track and Field and Road Runners of America Halls of Fame. Her marathon times were among the top ten in the US in 1984 and 1987–1994. As of 2008, she was listed four times in the top 100 all-time US women's marathon performances, with a best time of 2:28:15.

Early life

While in high school in

Battle Creek, Michigan Battle Creek is a city in northwestern Calhoun County, Michigan, United States, at the confluence of the Kalamazoo River, Kalamazoo and Battle Creek River, Battle Creek rivers. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a tota ...

, Rainsberger won competitions as a swimmer in the Individual Medley, qualifying for the 1980 Olympic Swimming trials, and later competed on scholarship as an

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

swimmer in college at the

. She walked away from that scholarship to earn another as a collegiate runner and was a two-time

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n in track and cross country.

Professional career

In 1984, she ran the inaugural women's Olympic marathon trials where she finished fourth, missing a spot in the Olympic games. In 1985, she won 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 ...

in a time of 2:34:06. An American did not win the Boston Marathon again until 2018, 33 years later, when

Desiree Linden Desiree "Des" Nicole Linden (née Davila; born July 26, 1983) is an American long-distance runner, author, and podcaster. She represented the United States in the 2012 London Olympics and the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics women's marathon. In 2 ...

ran to victory. Rainsberger finished first back-to-back 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 ...

in 1988 (2:29:17) and 1989 (2:28:15), something no American woman has repeated since. She had run in numerous other distance races on the track and road, in the United States and abroad (notably Japan's

Hokkaido Marathon The Hokkaido Marathon held in Sapporo, Hokkaidō, Japan, is one of the prominent marathon races of the year. The staging area as well as both the start and finish lines are in Odori Park starting between Nishi 3-chome and Nishi 4-chome and the fin ...

). Rainsberger ended her 12-year career of professional competition after a final attempt to become a professional triathlete and training for the Olympics. She now focuses on her family and coaching. She coaches members of the Army's world class athlete program, and her daughter, Katie Rainsberger, who is a champion in her own right.

Achievements

*1980–84

three sport NCAA All-American (swimming, cross country, track & field); Cross Country Team Captain *1984

Montreal Marathon Montreal is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest in Canada, and the ninth-largest in North America. It was founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", and is now named after Mount Royal, the triple-peak ...

champion *1985

champion *1985 USAT&F Runner of the Year *1985

Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run The Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run is an annual 10-mile (16 km) road race in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1973 originally as a precursor training run for elite runners planning to compete in the Boston Marathon, the race has evolved over the ye ...

, champion 53:30 *1986–89 Crim 10 Mile champion, 52:32 *1988 US Olympic Marathon Team Trials, 4th, Alternate *1988 US Olympic Track & Field Trials 10k, 32:12 *1988, 1989 Chicago Marathon champion, 2:29:12 and 2:28:15 *1989, 1990 Cherry Blossom 10 Mile champion, 52:30 *1989 American Record 15k, 48:28 *1989 USAT&F Runner of the Year *1989 Runner's World Runner of the Year *1991 Bloomsday 12k champion *1990

champion *1990, 1991 Sapporo, Japan Half Marathon champion *1993

Twin Cities Marathon The Twin Cities Marathon is a marathon in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area which normally takes place the first weekend in October. The race is often called "The Most Beautiful Urban Marathon in America" due to a course that winds through down ...

champion *1995, 1996 Kyoto, Japan Half Marathon 2nd place *1996 US Olympic Marathon Trials Qualifier *1997 Lawrence Triathlon - 1st *1997 USA Triathlon Nationals - 5th *1997 Mrs. T's Triathlon Pro - 5th

Personal

Lisa's daughter, Katie Rainsberger, secured the United States' girls' high school 5K cross country record with a time of 16:23.40, set in 2016. It was surpassed in 2018 by

Katelyn Tuohy Katelyn Tuohy (born March 18, 2002) is an American professional middle- and long-distance runner. She is a four-time individual NCAA Division I champion. In high school Tuohy won five Gatorade Player of the Year awards and was the 2018 ''Track ...

.Footsteps: Lisa and Katie , Rainsberger are Colorado's distance running duo
''

Mile High Sports The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a British imperial unit and United States customary unit of length; both are based on the older English unit of length equal to 5,280 English fe ...

'', Dan Mohrmann, May 7, 2016. Retrieved September 25, 2018.

References

External links