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Elle Purrier St. Pierre
American runner From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Elinor Purrier St. Pierre (born February 20, 1995), better known as Elle Purrier St. Pierre[a], is an American track and field athlete who specializes in middle-distance and long-distance running. She won a gold medal in the 3000 meters at the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow. Purrier is a two-time Olympian for the United States, making the final in the 1500m at both the 2020 and 2024 Olympic Games.
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Early life and youth sports
Purrier was raised in Montgomery Center, Vermont, a small town near the Canadian border.[1][2] She lived on a dairy farm, where she woke up at 5 a.m. each day before school to milk cows and perform other chores, such as throwing hay bales and caring for pigs.[1][3] At Richford High School, Purrier took up running alongside basketball. She competed at a high level in track and cross country, with first-place finishes at the New England Cross Country Championships and Northeast Regional championships for the Nike Cross Nationals. She was named Vermont Gatorade Cross Country Athlete of the Year three times, receiving the honor in 2010, 2011, and 2012.[4] Purrier was later inducted into the hall of fame of the Vermont Principals' Association in 2022.[4]
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College competition
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Purrier competed for the University of New Hampshire from 2013 to 2018, where she was NCAA champion and an 11-time All-American.[5] As a freshman, she ran 4:36 in the mile.[6] By her sophomore year, she improved her time to 4:29.71, setting a school record and achieving one of the top ten fastest times by a collegiate athlete. Her fast time in the mile marked her as a favorite to win the event at the 2016 NCAA Division I Indoor Championships.[6] At those championships, she finished third after leading for much of the race but was overtaken in the final stretch.[7] Later that year, Purrier improved one place to take second in the mile at the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Championships. Following several podium finishes at previous NCAA championships, Purrier won a title in the mile at the 2018 NCAA Division I Indoor Championships, finishing in 4:31.76. She led for most of the race and finished just ahead of Dani Jones and Niki Hiltz, with less than a second difference between them.[8]
Purrier also competed at a high level in the steeple while at the University of New Hampshire. In 2014, she won a national title in the 3000 meter steeplechase,[9] and went on to place ninth in the final of the event at the 2014 World Junior Championships in Athletics. Later in her collegiate career, she finished third in the steeplechase at the 2016 NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships. In 2016, the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association named Purrier its Northeast Region Track Athlete of the Year.[10] Purrier majored in nutrition, graduating in 2018.
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Professional career
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Purrier signed with New Balance in July 2018.[11]
2019
At the 2019 USA Indoor Championships, Purrier finished sixth in the mile and won the bronze medal in the two miles. At the 2019 USA Outdoor Championships, she won the bronze medal in the 5000 m.[12] Purrier competed at the 2019 World Championships in October and finished 11th in the 5000 m.[13]
2020
At the 2020 Millrose Games on February 8, Purrier broke the American record for the indoor mile with a time of 4:16.85.[14] At the 2020 USA Indoor Championships, she finished fourth in the 5000 m.[12]
2021
On February 13, 2021, Purrier broke the American indoor two mile record with a time of 9:10.28.[15] At the 2020 USA Olympic Trials, she won the gold medal in the 1500 m with a time of 3:58.03, setting a personal best and breaking the meet record.[16] Purrier competed at the 2020 Olympic Games in August 2021. She finished 10th in the 1500 m.[12]
2022
At the 2022 USA Indoor Championships, Purrier won the bronze medal in the 1500 m and the gold medal in the 3000 m. She competed at the 2022 World Indoor Championships in March and won the silver medal in the 3000 m.[17]
While pregnant, Purrier competed at the 2022 USA Outdoor Championships and won the bronze medal in the 1500 m.[18] She competed at the 2022 World Championships in July and did not advance to the final of the 1500 m.
2024
In February 2024, Purrier broke her own American record at the Wanamaker Mile race at the Millrose Games in New York City, running 4:16.41.[19] In her first major international competition since giving birth to her first child, Purrier won gold in the 3000 meters at the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland.[20] Her race set the American record for the 3000m.
Personal life
Purrier is a dairy farmer from Vermont.[18] She married her longtime boyfriend Jamie St. Pierre in 2020 and gave birth to their son in March 2023.[12] Their second son was born in May 2025.[21]
Championship results
National
International
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Personal bests
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All sourced from World Athletics, as of February 11, 2024.[24]
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Notes
- First name pronounced /ˈɛli/
References
External links
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