Kristy Johnston (born 3 June 1965) is a retired American marathoner. Johnson started her athletic career in 1986 and won her only World Marathon Majors at the 1994 Chicago Marathon. She reappeared at Chicago from 1995 to 2000 and was the Chicago women's runner-up in 1996. Outside of Chicago, Johnston ran at the United States Olympic Trials from 1992 to 2000. After retiring from athletics in 2000, Johnston became a middle school language arts teacher in Martinsburg, West Virginia.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Born | June 3, 1965 Coos Bay, Oregon |
| Height | 5 ft 5 in (165 cm) |
| Weight | 110 lb (50 kg) |
Medal record | |
Early life and education
editJohnston was born on 3 June 1965 in Coos Bay, Oregon. After attending Marshfield High School, she graduated from an English program at Portland College in 1988.[1]
Career
editJohnston began running in 1986 at a 5K run in Portland, Oregon. During her career, Johnston ran in various lengths of marathons ranging from 3 kilometre runs to full marathons.[2] Her first win in a full marathon came at the 1993 Houston Marathon with a time of 2:29:05. The following year, Johnston won her only World Marathon Majors at the 1994 Chicago Marathon with a time of 2:31:34.[3] Before competing at the 1995 Chicago Marathon, Johnston told the Daily Herald Suburban Chicago that she had "almost quit running altogether before last year's Chicago marathon" due to a long term back injury.[4] Johnston continued to reappear at the Chicago Marathon from 1995 to 2000 and had multiple top 8 finishes, which included second place in 1996.[5] Outside of Chicago, Johnston competed at the United States Olympic Trials consecutively from 1992 to 2000. After reaching the semi-finals in 1992, Johnston was fifth in the 1996 Olympic Trials and second place at the 2000 Olympic Trials.[2] After ending her athletic career in 2000, Johnston began teaching language arts to students at a middle school in Martinsburg, West Virginia.[1]
Achievements
edit| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Representing  United States
| |||||||||||||
| 1991 | Houston Marathon | Houston, United States | 8th | Marathon | 2:39:45 | ||||||||
| 1993 | Houston Marathon | Houston, United States | 1st | Marathon | 2:29:05 | ||||||||
| 1994 | Chicago Marathon | Chicago, United States | 1st | Marathon | 2:31:34 | ||||||||
| 1995 | Chicago Marathon | Chicago, United States | 8th | Marathon | 2:35:50 | ||||||||
| 1996 | Chicago Marathon | Chicago, United States | 2nd | Marathon | 2:31:06 | ||||||||
| 1997 | Boston Marathon | Boston, United States | DNF | Marathon | |||||||||
| Chicago Marathon | Chicago, United States | 13th | Marathon | 2:42:24 | |||||||||
| 1998 | Chicago Marathon | Chicago, United States | 8th | Marathon | 2:32:37 | ||||||||
| 1999 | Chicago Marathon | Chicago, United States | 10th | Marathon | 2:32:34 | ||||||||
| 2000 | Chicago Marathon | Chicago, United States | 8th | Marathon | 2:33:20 | ||||||||
Awards and honors
editJohnston was inducted into the Marshfield High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2008.[6]
Personal life
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c "Kirsty Johnson". USATrack&Field. Retrieved 28 October 2018.
- ^ a b "Runner Kristy Johnson". Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
- ^ Hanna, Julie (31 October 1994). "Oregon Runner Collapses - After Running Race". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 28 October 2018.
- ^ Gorski, Reggie (12 October 1995). "Chicago event draws stars Jones, Johnston". Daily Herald Suburban Chicago. sec. 2. p. 7.
- ^ Hersh, Philip (5 October 2002). "17th Chicago Marathon: Oct. 30, 1994". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 28 October 2018.
- ^ Hansen, Joe (18 August 2008). "New Marshfield Hall of Fame members honor their mentors". The World (Coos Bay). Retrieved 29 October 2018.
