Ursinus College track and field and cross country associated head coach Crystal Bacon is set to compete on the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials in the marathon this Saturday at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta.
Bacon stamped her spot in the trials thanks to her incredible performance at the Indianapolis Monumental Marathon, where she recorded a lifetime-best time of 2:44.05. That clocking is an official "B Standard" and grades out to an average mile time of 6:16.
Bacon was one of only 512 women in the United States to meet the qualifying standards for the Olympic Trials. The top three finishers in Saturday's race will be named to the U.S. Olympic Team for this summer's Games in Tokyo. The race will be televised live on NBC beginning at noon.
A former two-time all-region performer in cross country at Slippery Rock University, Bacon has made a name for herself as one of the premier distance runners in the Mid-Atlantic Region. She was champion of the Broad Street Run in 2016, one of five top-10 finishers at the storied Philadelphia competition, and was the top American finisher at the 2017 Philadelphia Half Marathon.
Bacon, who competes for the Philadelphia Runner Track Club, is in her fifth season at Ursinus.