March 16, 2025 • 38 mins
In this special race-day edition of Set the Pace, Olympian Carrie Tollefson gets the very first interviews with 2025 United Airlines NYC Half champions Sharon Lokedi, Abel Kipchumba, Manuela Schär and Geert Schipper, who led more than 28,600 athletes through Brooklyn and Manhattan to the finish line in Central Park.
Geert Schipper at: (01:45)
Manuela Schär at: (15:22)
Sharon Lokedi at: (22:34)
Abel Kipchumba! at:( 30:51)
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
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(00:23):
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Speaker 2 (00:39):
Thank you, New York. Today we're reminded of the power
of community and the power of coming together. Athletes, on
your mark.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
The first woman to finish for the second straight year
here in the New York City Marathon is Miki Gorman, a smiling
Miki Gorman, and why not? 2
Speaker 4 (01:03):
Look at the emotion of Shalane Flanagan as she comes
to the line.
Speaker 5 (01:06):
Pointing to his chest, pointing to the USA he so
proudly wears across his chest. A great day for Matt Jablonski.
Carrie Tollefson (01:19):
Hey everybody, welcome to the Set the Pace Podcast. I'm Olympian,
Carrie Tollefson, and a member of the broadcast team here
again in the city for the United Airlines NYC Half.
And I am really excited to bring you our race
day champions. I'm bringing on four of our champions, Sharon
Lokedi, Abel Kipchumba, Manuela Schär, and Geert Schipper. I know I
(01:40):
didn't say that right. It's GB, he told me I
could say GB. So here we go. Let's get it
underway. All right, I'm here with the winner of the
men's wheelchair for the second year in a row.
Geert Schipper (01:50):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (01:50):
Geert.
Geert Schipper (01:50):
Geert.
Carrie Tollefson (01:50):
Geert Schippert. We were saying it Gert.
Geert Schipper (01:50):
Gert (inaudible) .
Carrie Tollefson (01:52):
I want to say Schippert because of Geert. So Geert Schipper.
Geert Schipper (01:54):
Geert Schipper, but whatever the way you pronounce it, I
think it's okay.
Carrie Tollefson (02:05):
Do you know what you said though today in the post- race interview
was people can just call you GB.
Geert Schipper (02:09):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (02:10):
So where does GB come from?
Geert Schipper (02:12):
Gerard Bastiaan, that's my (foreign language) . What is it?
Carrie Tollefson (02:18):
Your middle name?
Geert Schipper (02:18):
Middle name, yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (02:20):
So in America here where most of our listeners are,
well, we have them international, but most here, do you
want to become GB? Because you are winning all these
major races over here? Would you rather have us figure
out how to say your name right or call you
GB
Geert Schipper (02:37):
GB is fine to me, but don't see me as
a big winner or just leave me in the shadow.
I don't like media stuff. I just do what I
do, what I like to do, and that's sport moving
from one place to the other one and improve myself
(02:57):
every race or every training. That's the reason I try
to compete in competitions. And the last couple of years
I had to compete with all the best guys of
the world to make sure that I can still improve
myself a little bit. So that's the reason I race,
not especially for winning. Winning of course gives a way
(03:18):
better feeling than become second, third, or fourth, like the
Paralympics in Tokyo. But improving myself, that's for me more important.
Carrie Tollefson (03:28):
Yeah. Today you said you didn't think you were going
to be the one to break the tape.
Geert Schipper (03:32):
No, no. Actually, yesterday I was doing a training ride with
Evan Correll and somewhere in the park, you've got some
hills and he was pushing up the hill like I
was standing still and I was like, " Damn." And I don't know tomorrow, you've got
quite a lot of hills, or at least up and
(03:53):
downs. So, I was pretty afraid. And also the first of the 300 meters from the
start, you start going up already and he was pushing
away. I was like, " Uh- oh. Oh boy." And then in the
downhill I was slightly faster, and then the second uphill,
he was still on my tail, but I was still
(04:15):
afraid. And he's a young guy and what I really
hope that he will pass me, hopefully I can start
next year, but that he will pass me next year
or at least the year thereafter. And not only him,
but also way more younger guys.
Carrie Tollefson (04:30):
Yeah, you want.
Geert Schipper (04:31):
That's what I want.
Carrie Tollefson (04:32):
And you want more people pushing you to the line.
Geert Schipper (04:36):
The more competitive everybody is, the more fun the competition
is. But those guys are young and they have to
learn, or maybe not learn but need a bit-
Carrie Tollefson (04:46):
More experience.
Geert Schipper (04:49):
... race-
Carrie Tollefson (04:49):
And race, yeah.
Geert Schipper (04:50):
... endurance. And I think the next coming years I can do a step
back or maybe quit in total and hopefully they take
over what I am doing at the moment.
Carrie Tollefson (05:05):
So, okay, today you won and you're talking about Evan
who is 21?
Geert Schipper (05:09):
I have no clue, but he's young-
Carrie Tollefson (05:10):
He's one of the youngest, I think he's 21. I
think we had a 19- year- old in the wheelchair
division. But Evan Correll is 21. You're fairly new. I
mean we know... Well, a lot of us know your
background in triathlon. So you are obviously on the roads
doing some racing, but you're fairly new to this half-
marathon, marathon distance, correct?
Geert Schipper (05:30):
Yep, that's correct.
Carrie Tollefson (05:30):
Yeah. So when you speak to a runner like me, when you
come to the sport later, you're a little bit more
fresh, you don't have as much wear and tear. Is
that the same for you? I mean why are you giving it, not giving
it to Evan, but you're saying like, you want him
to catch you, you're still pretty new in here.
Geert Schipper (05:49):
Yeah, maybe in my heart, maybe the biggest winner, I
just do what I like to do as fast as
I can. And yeah, I'm new in the sport, but
when you look through my history before I had my
accident and then shortly after my accident, the way I
(06:13):
can perform in sport, we did some tests, and my
genes are already really good to do endurance competitions and
trainings like this. And further, the way how you train
is important and maybe the variation in the three disciplines
I do in triathlon gives me also a bit more
(06:36):
endurance for doing wheelchair racing. But it is still painful in my
back, in my legs, in my... It seems that I race
like pain- free or that it's really easy, it isn't. Not
for me, not for (inaudible) , not for even Evan.
It's always painful.
Carrie Tollefson (06:56):
Yeah, there's always something, right? If it's not, for the runners,
their feet, their back, their glutes, whatever, it's your guys'
shoulders or your abs like you said, or your back-
Geert Schipper (07:05):
Most of the times, it's not your shoulders or your arm, it's
most of the time the pain in your back or your legs or
it sounds crazy, but not the joints you used as
much you think during the run, but maybe the joints
and the muscles, you won't use that much.
Carrie Tollefson (07:21):
Sure.
Geert Schipper (07:22):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (07:22):
Sure. Tell me a little bit, just walk us back
to your injury. Tell me how you got injured again.
Geert Schipper (07:28):
In 2004, I was flying my own single engine airplane for
the first time, that typical airplane. And I was approaching
and I didn't have enough attention on my approaching speed,
so I flew slightly slow already, and then a particular
(07:49):
moment too slow, I stalled, made a little dive and
then right turn, and instead of making my landing straight
ahead in front of me due to the turn, I
made a crash landing into the field just beside the
little airfield in France, broke my back and yeah, that's
pretty much it. Then you think, okay, I've got a
(08:11):
lot of pain in my back, just help me out the
rest of my airplane. There was nothing left actually. And
then I walk away, but I noticed my foot was
kind of in a rear position and my knee was
not pointing to my face, but pointing to my other
(08:32):
knee. I was like, " Oh, that's not good. Maybe it's
broken." But I didn't have pain in my legs. I
only had an awful pain in my back. So after one
hour, the first ambulance was there, they had some troubles
to find it, and I was in a field which not easy to
reach. And they told me, " Okay, just lay still and
(08:57):
wait for another ambulance." And finally they put me on
a stretcher, drove me out of the field to the
hospital, and flew me to another hospital. And then they told me
the next morning after my operation, " Okay, you never can
walk again, you broke your back. And you've got some
(09:17):
movement back in your legs in the nearby future, you'll
be lucky, but walking and standing and biking, the stuff
you've done before, you will sit in a wheelchair for the
rest of your life." And that came in pretty hard.
But after six days in France and a few days
(09:37):
in the Netherlands, all the drugs I get for making
the pain kind of doable, I didn't need it so
much. So my girlfriend told me, " There will be a
good life with you with a chair as well." And
we found a good life.
Carrie Tollefson (09:57):
I guess so.
Geert Schipper (09:59):
We found an awesome life. There were doors closed due to
my accident, but there were so many doors get open
again. And one of the doors is I found in sport.
Carrie Tollefson (10:08):
Yeah. Sport before the accident looked like what?
Geert Schipper (10:12):
It was just regular, whatever, you know what I mean?
Carrie Tollefson (10:16):
Yeah.
Geert Schipper (10:17):
On a bike, I was ice skating, I did some
swimming, I did some running-
Carrie Tollefson (10:20):
Okay. Okay. Just everything.
Geert Schipper (10:21):
... inline skating. Just after my job as a carpenter
at that time, just do some sportive things, but never
ever with the idea to do it in bigger or
bigger competitions.
Carrie Tollefson (10:38):
So life has changed in so many different ways.
Geert Schipper (10:41):
Yes. Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (10:42):
And-
Geert Schipper (10:42):
And there is always light.
Carrie Tollefson (10:44):
Yeah, there is always light. And it's really good for you to
remind us because you've been through a lot, but we're
so thankful that you have used that athletic background and
now have become one of the world's best wheelchair athletes
and triathletes.
Geert Schipper (10:56):
For you, it's maybe that I'm one of the best,
but I don't feel like one.
Carrie Tollefson (10:59):
Well you are.
Geert Schipper (11:01):
I'm just a guy. Believe me.
Carrie Tollefson (11:03):
Well, you're just a guy, but I think what's really cool is
that you brought one of your three girls, one of
your three daughters.
Geert Schipper (11:08):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (11:08):
Was your girlfriend at the time when you had your accident-
Geert Schipper (11:11):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (11:11):
... is she now your wife?
Geert Schipper (11:12):
Yep.
Carrie Tollefson (11:12):
Oh my goodness. You guys, what a love story. So
you have one daughter here who's 12, you said in
quotation marks, she's " sick" from school.
Geert Schipper (11:20):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (11:21):
She took a couple of days off from school. So
tell us a little bit about bringing her over.
Geert Schipper (11:28):
She's 12. You've got a girl from 12, they already a
woman, she is kind of in between. Moments, she's still a kid
and the other moments, she's kind of a young adult
and she act like it, but it is fun to
walk with her here. Yesterday, we went into the park
(11:50):
and we were feeding the squirrels. And she's sitting on
her knees and hold her hand with some peanuts and
the squirrels come there and it's so adorable to watch,
see my girl doing that in her pink jacket. And
we walk over the Times Square and then she's just-
Carrie Tollefson (12:10):
In awe.
Geert Schipper (12:10):
... watching and seeing and noticed everything what I usually
see as well. It is fun. It is so much fun.
Carrie Tollefson (12:20):
She came in here. Can I ask her a question?
Geert Schipper (12:22):
Oh, hi. Yeah, of course you can ask a question.
Carrie Tollefson (12:27):
What was it like to see Dad win today? Was
it pretty cool? Did you get to see him in
Central Park?
Speaker 8 (12:34):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (12:36):
What is-
Geert Schipper (12:36):
You're a little shot.
Carrie Tollefson (12:36):
That's okay. What was New York, what is the big city like?
Geert Schipper (12:43):
(foreign language) . Is it nice?
Speaker 8 (12:47):
It was good.
Carrie Tollefson (12:47):
yeah,
Geert Schipper (12:47):
It was fun, isn't it?
Carrie Tollefson (12:48):
And are you the oldest of the three girls?
Speaker 8 (12:52):
No, I'm the middle.
Carrie Tollefson (12:53):
You're the middle child. Oh. So are you the first
one to come to New York City with your dad?
Speaker 8 (12:58):
No, here's my mother and then my older sister and
now me.
Carrie Tollefson (13:02):
Oh, okay. Well congratulations and thanks for letting dad do
his thing. Now, you guys get to go out and
have some fun.
Geert Schipper (13:10):
Thanks.
Carrie Tollefson (13:11):
Well, tell me a little bit more about your spring.
What do you have going on now after this?
Geert Schipper (13:16):
I've got a few days off. This afternoon, we fly
back to the Netherlands. So tomorrow early in the morning
we arrive, I make a short sleep. Maybe in the
afternoon, I go to the pool to get myself-
Carrie Tollefson (13:34):
Loosened up a little bit.
Geert Schipper (13:35):
Yes. Not only for loosen up, just make sure you won't do nothing.
Carrie Tollefson (13:41):
Yeah.
Geert Schipper (13:42):
And when you do nothing, you get really tired. Just
take a little exercise to make sure you've done something
on a day. So I probably go to the pool and
maybe go on my bike for an hour or two,
but only an easy spin and an easy swim, no
rush. Then in three weeks, I go to Paris for
(14:05):
the Paris Marathon. Thereafter, I go home for a few
days, then I fly to Boston for the Boston Marathon,
go home for two days, then back to London for
the London marathon, two weeks off. Training as fast and as good
as I can for the first triathlon competition in Japan.
(14:28):
And then there's a few more triathlon competitions, one in
Italy and one in France. And in the meantime, I'm
also moving from one place to another place. So-
Carrie Tollefson (14:38):
Like one house to another house? Oh, man.
Geert Schipper (14:40):
No, it's not a house. It's more like a farm.
Carrie Tollefson (14:43):
Okay. Oh, you've got a lot going on.
Geert Schipper (14:46):
I've got too much equipment to move. It won't fit
in one truck. I think I need five.
Carrie Tollefson (14:53):
Well, I'm glad that you won some money today. Maybe
you can hire some help.
Geert Schipper (14:58):
That definitely helps.
Carrie Tollefson (15:01):
Yeah. Well congratulations-
Geert Schipper (15:01):
Thank you so much.
Carrie Tollefson (15:01):
... on such an awesome race. 49:53 is what you ran
today and two- time winner of the United Airlines NYC Half.
Geert Schipper (15:10):
Yes. Maybe it comes a third time then.
Carrie Tollefson (15:12):
There you go.
Geert Schipper (15:13):
And then it'll be time to quit.
Carrie Tollefson (15:15):
No, I don't think so. We don't want you to do that yet.
Geert Schipper (15:17):
After three times it's time.
Carrie Tollefson (15:18):
Well, we'll see you in Boston for sure. Congratulations.
Geert Schipper (15:20):
Yes, thank you very much.
Carrie Tollefson (15:22):
Sitting across the table from Manuela Schär, our four- time
United NYC Half Marathon champion. I mean that's pretty crazy.
Four times you've won this race before.
Manuela Schär (15:33):
Yeah, it's unbelievable. I mean it's always great to race
in New York and then to even win in New
York, it's even better. So I'm really happy. Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (15:42):
So today was different. I want to talk about that,
because you got off the line, and we've seen you
get off the line really fast in other races, but
today you got off the line and really you were
on your own for most of the race.
Manuela Schär (15:55):
Yeah, it was not easy conditions for us because usually
we race with different settings when it's dry or when
it's raining. And today, it was so foggy, so we had to
decide if you want to go with the dry setup
or if you want to go with the rain setup.
(16:16):
And I decided to go with my gloves I would
use in rain. So I think that made the difference.
Carrie Tollefson (16:23):
So remind me, when you wear gloves, the wheelchair athletes,
I was stumbling on the word in the broadcast too,
is sandpaper that you have or some kind of grit
on the glove?
Manuela Schär (16:34):
Yeah. So usually, in dry conditions we use gloves with
like a rubber and then our push rim has a
rubber too. So rubber on rubber works really well when
it's dry, but then when it's wet, it's slippery and
so you have to find something that gives you back
that grip. And some people use sandpaper on their gloves,
some people use some kind of like...
Carrie Tollefson (16:57):
Like a sticky?
Manuela Schär (16:59):
Yeah. And then some people use like a handball cluster.
So they're all different options you have. So you have
to find the right thing for you.
Carrie Tollefson (17:13):
It was really interesting though, because when we were walking
there was a little bit of a slip. So I
love that you mentioned that in the post- race interview
that you really went with the wet weather. And as
a runner, we think about that with our shoes, but
for us that don't know what it's like to be
a wheelchair athlete, I love that you give that insight.
Manuela Schär (17:32):
Yeah. That's always the biggest challenge because sometimes you don't
have enough time to make the decision and then you
don't know what to bring to the start line. And
if you still have enough time to change if it
doesn't work and sometimes you just realize it a few
miles into the race if you made the right call
or not.
Carrie Tollefson (17:51):
Yeah, because there's no changing mid- race.
Manuela Schär (17:53):
Yes. No. I mean I brought my other gloves, but that would
mean I would have to stop and then sit out
my racing chair and then change my gloves. I would
rather not do that, but I mean if it wouldn't
work, I would still have this option to change.
Carrie Tollefson (18:11):
Yeah. Well today, you won big. You ran 54
want to talk a little bit, you're getting ready for
not just Boston, but London, the wheelchair athletes do back
to back to back to back. You're amazing that way.
And even like, I get it, it's different, right? There's
not as much pounding, but there's still wear and tear
on your body in different ways, but also the travel-
Manuela Schär (18:31):
Exactly.
Carrie Tollefson (18:31):
... is wild with you guys.
Manuela Schär (18:33):
Yeah. And to be honest, the older I get, the
more I realize it's not easy to do all this
time difference and different food and then other hotel and
the traveling with all your, that big box with the
racing chair and then you have a separate box for
your wheels and then maybe you bring a spare wheel
(18:54):
and then you have your luggage. So it's always-
Carrie Tollefson (18:57):
It's challenging.
Manuela Schär (18:58):
It's challenging. Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (18:59):
Yeah. So last year seemed like there were some challenges
and maybe that's just me being the broadcaster that I
am and looking on paper that Manuela didn't win the
road races that we've seen in the past. And as
an athlete to athlete, like I get it, we have
ups and down years, but can you explain that to
me? Was it a down year? Was it a great
(19:20):
year? You won the Paralympic 800, you got silver in the
400. I mean it's an amazing year, but yet some
of your longer distances, we didn't see a number one
next to. Tell me a little bit about that. And
maybe I am totally wrong.
Manuela Schär (19:33):
No, you're not. I mean I'm so happy that I
was able to win these two medals because if not,
I would have been so frustrated with my Paralympic Games.
For sure, the marathon did not go well. I'm still
struggling a little bit with that because, yeah, the marathon
(19:53):
was supposed to be my distance, it's my favorite race.
But yeah, I had some really up and downs last
year and I had some big changes also. So, yeah,
it's hard to put it all in one, it's hard
to find one reason why this happened.
Carrie Tollefson (20:16):
And that's why we do it, right?
Manuela Schär (20:17):
Yeah, exactly.
Carrie Tollefson (20:17):
We have to figure out how to be better each time we toe the line.
Manuela Schär (20:20):
Yeah. And then also some athletes just improved so much. Like,
Catherine, she's insane, it's crazy-
Carrie Tollefson (20:29):
Catherine Debrunner.
Manuela Schär (20:29):
Yeah. And then Susannah is doing really, really well and
I think it's a really exciting time for the women's
field and I'm so excited to see that and to
still be part of it and to... I don't know,
it's like we're all in this together and it's always
fun to watch everybody race and break records and yeah,
(20:54):
still being part of it is amazing.
Carrie Tollefson (20:56):
I love that, the camaraderie that, well the runners, but
also the wheelers have, it's just something really special. Getting
ready now for some fall or some spring marathons. We're
not trying to look too far out to the New York
City Marathon, but so spring races, how does this win
now and maybe more so mentally get you fired up
for Boston, London, all the other races?
Manuela Schär (21:19):
I think I came here to use this as a
bit of a warmup for the marathons, for Boston and
London, and I think it was a good decision because it
gives me a good feeling obviously to go into Boston
and, yeah, I mean it's going to be exciting. It's going to
be a really strong field, really strong women's field, and
(21:42):
as always, Boston is a challenging course, so I'm very
excited to see how it goes.
Carrie Tollefson (21:48):
Oh, we are too. Now, what do you do here in
New York for fun after the race? Like Susannah likes
to try to go to a show, Susannah Scaroni we're
talking about, do you get to do anything fun or
are you going to get home right away?
Manuela Schär (22:01):
Yeah, I made this a short one. I'm leaving tonight
and I got here on Friday night, so, yeah, there
was not a lot of time. I just went to a
few stores and went a little shopping-
Carrie Tollefson (22:17):
(inaudible) . Yeah. Oh, well good luck to you. Thank
you for just such an awesome intense race today. It
was fun to see that fire. I mean we always
see it in you, but when you broke the tape
today, I think I even said it, " She's back."
Manuela Schär (22:31):
Thank you.
Carrie Tollefson (22:32):
So, congratulations.
Manuela Schär (22:33):
Thank you.
Carrie Tollefson (22:34):
And now we get to talk to our new winner,
Sharon Lokedi. Sharon, okay, you have cracked the tape for
the TCS New York City Marathon in your very first
marathon ever.
Sharon Lokedi (22:45):
Yeah, yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (22:45):
And now you cracked the tape today at NYC Half.
Sharon Lokedi (22:48):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (22:49):
Tell me now it's about an hour past the race, so how are
you feeling?
Sharon Lokedi (22:52):
I feel good. I'm very happy about the race today.
I honestly, I don't know if we would have gone
any other way. I just wanted to come out here
and compete and just get the race going and see
how aware I am with my training and everything. And
I'm so glad to have come with a win in
(23:14):
a very magical race, in a very magical place, and
yeah, the course was awesome.
Carrie Tollefson (23:20):
So magical. That's what you've said now twice.
Sharon Lokedi (23:23):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (23:23):
What was so magical? Why was it so awesome?
Sharon Lokedi (23:26):
Honestly, I feel like every time I'm out here, it
just brings something out of me. I just get so
excited and I just want to go out there and
run fast and compete so well. And there's strength, as
you go out there, the New York Roadrunners, they're just
so cool and so awesome and they're always so nice.
(23:48):
So I mean they provide everything for you and it just feels, from
the time you get here, it just feels so relaxing. And I
think that helps with, as an athlete, just settling in
and feeling very loved and very welcomed and I think
that support fuels you and I think for me, it just
makes me want to do well. And yeah, every time
I'm out there and the people on the course, that is
(24:12):
another thing, is so cool. They just cheer you on
and they're wanting you to run so fast. And I
think that helps me, just gives me more support and
confidence and I just want to keep going and keep fighting.
Carrie Tollefson (24:26):
Well, let's break the race down just a little bit.
So off the line, you weren't right up there pushing
the pace, it was Calli Hauger- Thackery, there was a number of
other athletes, Fiona O'Keeffe, but you were kind of in
this big pack for, I don't know, about five miles?
Sharon Lokedi (24:40):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (24:40):
So walk us through that. Why did you do that?
Was that intentional?
Sharon Lokedi (24:44):
Not really. Just most of the time for me is
I just get to the race and just pay attention
to whatever happens, if there's a move made, just make
sure I'm staying with it. And yeah, we did start
today and everyone was in there and I just wanted to just
be in... It was a bit chilly when we started, but it wasn't that
bad so I just wanted to stay in it and
(25:06):
just stay as relaxed and controlled as long as I
could. And then just maybe the last few miles just
kept making moves and yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (25:17):
You were on the FDR for quite some time. Was there a
little bit of a tailwind there, did I hear?
Sharon Lokedi (25:23):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (25:23):
Did you let that take you? Were you trying not
to let it take you? How do you run with
that big of a tailwind?
Sharon Lokedi (25:30):
Honestly, I don't know if you can even feel it because you're just
so focused.
Carrie Tollefson (25:33):
So focused.
Sharon Lokedi (25:34):
So most of the time it's like, I feel like once
you're set your head in that, you're just thinking about
that moment. And I think, yeah, yes, it did definitely help
us because I mean it's almost helping you get faster
or go faster, and there was a few miles in
there that we were running and I'm like, " Oh, jeez."
Carrie Tollefson (25:56):
Yeah, it was pushing you.
Sharon Lokedi (25:56):
Yes, yes. So yeah, I think it did play a big part of
getting us going, so, yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (26:00):
Yeah, yeah. Okay, then you go through Times Square?
Sharon Lokedi (26:02):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (26:03):
How cool was that?
Sharon Lokedi (26:04):
Yes, oh, that was... We got up through this hill
and it was a little bit over nine miles and then there was a hill and then a
downhill and then once we got to the city, you could
tell when you get to the city-
Carrie Tollefson (26:14):
You can feel the energy coming.
Sharon Lokedi (26:14):
Yes. And all of a sudden it's starting to get so loud and everything. And
I think that's when I just got the cadence and the
rhythm going and I just took it.
Carrie Tollefson (26:27):
You did. At 10 miles, it was almost like a
light switch.
Sharon Lokedi (26:29):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (26:30):
Did you have that strategy coming in? Did you and
coach say, " At 10 miles I want to make a move?"
Sharon Lokedi (26:35):
No, actually we had a tempo last week where we
did like a six- mile progressive run. So, he texted
me last night and he was like, " Just do it
like you did last time. Just keep getting faster, go
marathon pace and then half- marathon pace," just like that.
But I thought about it but then I was like,
six miles is a long way to go, you know?
And so, yeah, I just wanted to... At 10 miles, I
(26:58):
just wanted to maybe slowly just keep improving and see
how that goes.
Carrie Tollefson (27:03):
No looking back after 10 miles though really, you really were
like... Did you feel the sense that you were really
gaining on them? Or?
Sharon Lokedi (27:10):
I did, but I also, there's something that's always like,
oh, you need to look back, maybe see how far
they... And I feel like I always do that and I'm trying
to get better at it and just trust myself, just
trust once I get going, I just trust that I
can just take it all the way to the end
and yeah, it was just that was a new thing for me.
Carrie Tollefson (27:33):
I love that you say that, because in many interviews
that I've either done or I've listened to of yours,
you trust. You have a lot of trust in your
training, in your coach, in your community around you.
Sharon Lokedi (27:47):
Yes, yes. Because-
Carrie Tollefson (27:49):
How do you get that? How do these runners, I
mean we can hear the crowds going crazy still and
we're 46 floors up, right?
Sharon Lokedi (27:54):
Yeah, yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (27:55):
But I mean how do you learn to trust your instinct and
what you've been doing?
Sharon Lokedi (28:00):
I think for me it starts with training. Every time
I'm training it's like we start doing these workouts and
sometimes they get so hard and then I'm just like, " Okay, you can
just do it. You can just hold it a little
bit longer and it gets better." So just like I
said, I work on that during my training and then
I come to races and even I think when I
was in college, I used to be like, every time
(28:21):
I go for a run or a race, my coach would tell me, "
Just make sure you're using the person in front of
you to get you going, to pull you." So even
in training, even when I have a pacemaker or I
don't, I just try to use something that's ahead of
me just to get me going.
Carrie Tollefson (28:37):
Well today you had no one in front of you
the last three miles, but you did have that finish
tape and then did you see the time when you crossed?
Sharon Lokedi (28:46):
Actually-
Carrie Tollefson (28:46):
1:07:04?
Sharon Lokedi (28:46):
I actually saw, I think it was 1K to go and it was like 62 and I'm like, " Oh my
god," I think it was 63, sorry, I don't remember-
Carrie Tollefson (28:53):
Something like that. Yeah.
Sharon Lokedi (28:55):
Somewhere around there. And in my head I'm like, " If I'm running 3:
10 pace, I'm on 66," and I'm like, " Okay, just hold it. Just run."
But then I got the hill and I was like, "
Dang it." And then the course turned and then I
had to go and I could see... I know it was
so cold, so I tried to fight as hard as
(29:16):
I could, but I didn't get 66, but 67 is still so much
better. So I'm really glad with that time and I
think if anything, it just made me so confident going forward.
Carrie Tollefson (29:27):
Yeah. New event record today. How does this set you
up for Boston? Because Boston now is what? Five weeks away?
Sharon Lokedi (29:33):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (29:33):
So tell me, I mean this race in itself is huge,
now you have another big one coming up. So how
does this help you?
Sharon Lokedi (29:39):
Honestly, I think it was just... It is really like,
I've done so many workouts in running that I'm like, "
Okay, yes, I might be fit, but I didn't know
where I was." So I think this going forward is
just going to be a step in the right direction
of knowing, okay, I can do this or I'm here and
I have to do this. So I think, if anything,
(30:01):
it's just going to help me fuel me more and
get more excited for Boston.
Carrie Tollefson (30:05):
Oh my goodness. Okay. So you told me beforehand that you
spend too much money in the city. So we got
to know, I mean I think you probably just came
home and you got showered. Did you eat something? What did
you eat? What was your first thing that you ate
after the race?
Sharon Lokedi (30:17):
Actually we went to the Tavern on the Green and I had tea and
they had this quiche.
Carrie Tollefson (30:22):
Ooh, yum.
Sharon Lokedi (30:23):
Yeah, it was good. It was really good. And then
this green bagel.
Carrie Tollefson (30:27):
Because it's St Paddy's Day on Monday.
Sharon Lokedi (30:30):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (30:30):
Oh my gosh, so fun.
Sharon Lokedi (30:31):
So I had that and yeah, we have that big lunch
coming, so I need to like... I think that's enough for
now, but I am really looking forward to that because
they always have really good food.
Carrie Tollefson (30:44):
Yeah, they do it up here.
Sharon Lokedi (30:44):
I'm very excited. Yeah. Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (30:45):
Oh my goodness. Well, congratulations. Thank you for putting on such a
great show. It's always fun to watch you race.
Sharon Lokedi (30:49):
Oh, thank you. Thank you. I appreciate it.
Carrie Tollefson (30:51):
All right, everybody sitting across the table here from Abel Kipchumba,
who is the two- time United Airlines NYC Half Marathon
champion. Listen, 59:09 today and Conner Mantz ran you basically
to that finish line. So I got to hear about
your race. Let's talk about it. Coming back here as
the defending champion, how excited were you to toe the line
(31:12):
again this year?
Abel Kipchumba (31:13):
First of all, today when I was coming for this second
Half Marathon for New York, I was training for Marathon,
but I was well- prepared for myself because you must
prepare your psychology. And when I reached here, the course
(31:36):
was changed, not like for the last year and today the field was so strong, that
helped me to push more and then I ran that 59:
09. But when I compare for last year and this year,
this last year was cold, so cold. But this year is cold, but it has a lot of mist. But that cannot
(32:06):
affect the race. The race, when somebody is ready, you
are ready. So, that made me today run well.
Carrie Tollefson (32:18):
Let's hear about your strategy coming in. Did you have
a strategy to sit and push at a certain moment?
Last year you made a move around 15K, this year it
was pretty close to that as well. Were you thinking,
I'm going to go once we get closer to Times Square?
Abel Kipchumba (32:37):
Today I see the guy who we were running together, I see
he was strong, but when I reached around 17 kilometer,
I decided that when we continue going like this, it will
be tough for me to win this race. So in race, you must calculate yourself
(33:00):
first. Yeah, and then I change. And when I was trying
to move to go away, I do several zigzag and then I move.
Carrie Tollefson (33:12):
That was really interesting, Abel, you were running and you guys were kind of
running next to each other, you were one step in
front of him, but then you started to zigzag, right?
You started to go to one side and then to
the other. Do you remember doing that?
Abel Kipchumba (33:28):
Yeah, I remember because that guy was noticing, so you must
have planned yourself out to drop him and then you will be safe.
Carrie Tollefson (33:36):
You were trying to drop Conner Mantz? I said that
on the broadcast. I said, " He's either going to drop
Conner Mantz or he's going to use too much energy."
So I was wondering what way it was going to
go, because that is a risk that you took, right?
I mean that could have worked for you by doing
the zigzag and putting surges in, or it could have
backfired, meaning it could have caused you to run too
(33:59):
much or too hard at that stage.
Abel Kipchumba (34:02):
When you're running to doing zigzag, you use a lot
of energy, but you must work for it that you feel your body,
if you'll survive in front when you are going for a finishing line. So I decided, when I look
back, I see the guy still is strong, he is following
(34:23):
me, but I try to inject the best to be higher.
And then when I look, I says, that guy, he
will be constant. The guy will run constant and I
will be running constant. So that guy will not be close. So
it will be hard.
Carrie Tollefson (34:41):
Yeah, Conner Mantz is a tough competitor and has run
very well, just set the American record and he doesn't
like getting beat. Nobody does, right?
Abel Kipchumba (34:51):
I understand because I watched him in Houston-
Carrie Tollefson (34:55):
You watched him run?
Abel Kipchumba (34:56):
... even before I ran this race yesterday, I review
back to follow him, to watch how he was running.
So, I see this guy is tough.
Carrie Tollefson (35:06):
But so are you. I mean you've run the 10th
fastest half- marathon ever.
Abel Kipchumba (35:10):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (35:10):
I mean that's pretty amazing. You walk around this big
city, the Big Apple, and you know that you are
the 10th fastest man on the planet in this half-
marathon. Does that give you confidence?
Abel Kipchumba (35:26):
Yes, I am confident because I have run several 59 and 58. Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (35:37):
Okay. Tell me about how this race sets you up
for the Boston Marathon. You were eighth at the TCS
New York City Marathon last fall. Now you're heading into Boston.
Abel Kipchumba (35:49):
But if I compare for last year when I was
coming to New York Marathon, I didn't many long runs.
I did only a few long runs. But if I compare
for this year with Boston, I did a lot of long runs.
Carrie Tollefson (36:04):
So you've done a lot of long runs heading in?
Abel Kipchumba (36:08):
I think even for Boston, I have a lot of
confidence. We will go out there and we see what
next they will be.
Carrie Tollefson (36:18):
I mean I can see this glimmer in your eye, the
smile is huge, I wish everyone could see it. When you
talk to me about Boston, what do you think? I want
to win it?
Abel Kipchumba (36:30):
No, no. You know Boston is a tactical game and
Boston is hard. It is for every time, weather can
change. When we say Boston is for anybody race, anybody
can win.
Carrie Tollefson (36:47):
Yeah.
Abel Kipchumba (36:48):
Yeah?
Carrie Tollefson (36:48):
Yeah. The survival of the fittest there, that's a tough
course, but much like this, you get to see some
hills, you have some flats and things like that. Today
you tackled those later stages in Central Park really well,
it almost looked like you attacked the hills. Did you
feel really strong over the hills today?
Abel Kipchumba (37:07):
Yes, I feel very strong.
Carrie Tollefson (37:10):
Oh, what are you going to do to celebrate? I mean
you have to celebrate today's win. So are you doing
anything in the city? You going to have some ice cream
today? What do you do to celebrate? I mean I know
you do. Your agent is sitting next to you, I
wonder if I can ask Stavor what do you do to celebrate?
Abel Kipchumba (37:31):
Maybe he know himself.
Carrie Tollefson (37:33):
Oh, well, congratulations on everything. This has been really fun.
You don't get to see a two- time winner of
the United Airlines NYC Half very often. So we're sitting
in rare company. Congratulations.
Abel Kipchumba (37:45):
Thank you.
Carrie Tollefson (37:45):
Thanks everybody for joining us today at the Set the
Pace Podcast. Wow. These athletes are amazing on the course,
but they're also amazing off the course and I'm so
thankful I had the opportunity to interview them all. I
hope you enjoyed it and we'll see you next time.
Speaker 1 (38:11):
New York Road Runners is a nonprofit organization with a
vision to build healthier lives and stronger communities through the
transformative power of running. The support of members and donors
like you helps us achieve our mission to transform the
health and wellbeing of our communities through inclusive and accessible
running experiences, empowering all to achieve their potential. Learn more
(38:33):
and contribute at nyrr. org/ donate.
Ready to hit your stride? Whether you're training for your
next race or just lacing up for a run, no
matter your level, the Peloton app has everything you need
to keep you moving. Track your progress with real- time
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way. With thousands of classes to choose from, or the
option to just run or just walk, Peloton makes it
(00:23):
easy to fit fitness into your routine. Learn more at onepeloton. com/ race-
training. Peloton, the official digital fitness partner of New York Roadrunners.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Thank you, New York. Today we're reminded of the power
of community and the power of coming together. Athletes, on
your mark.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
The first woman to finish for the second straight year
here in the New York City Marathon is Miki Gorman, a smiling
Miki Gorman, and why not? 2
Speaker 4 (01:03):
Look at the emotion of Shalane Flanagan as she comes
to the line.
Speaker 5 (01:06):
Pointing to his chest, pointing to the USA he so
proudly wears across his chest. A great day for Matt Jablonski.
Carrie Tollefson (01:19):
Hey everybody, welcome to the Set the Pace Podcast. I'm Olympian,
Carrie Tollefson, and a member of the broadcast team here
again in the city for the United Airlines NYC Half.
And I am really excited to bring you our race
day champions. I'm bringing on four of our champions, Sharon
Lokedi, Abel Kipchumba, Manuela Schär, and Geert Schipper. I know I
(01:40):
didn't say that right. It's GB, he told me I
could say GB. So here we go. Let's get it
underway. All right, I'm here with the winner of the
men's wheelchair for the second year in a row.
Geert Schipper (01:50):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (01:50):
Geert.
Geert Schipper (01:50):
Geert.
Carrie Tollefson (01:50):
Geert Schippert. We were saying it Gert.
Geert Schipper (01:50):
Gert (inaudible) .
Carrie Tollefson (01:52):
I want to say Schippert because of Geert. So Geert Schipper.
Geert Schipper (01:54):
Geert Schipper, but whatever the way you pronounce it, I
think it's okay.
Carrie Tollefson (02:05):
Do you know what you said though today in the post- race interview
was people can just call you GB.
Geert Schipper (02:09):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (02:10):
So where does GB come from?
Geert Schipper (02:12):
Gerard Bastiaan, that's my (foreign language) . What is it?
Carrie Tollefson (02:18):
Your middle name?
Geert Schipper (02:18):
Middle name, yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (02:20):
So in America here where most of our listeners are,
well, we have them international, but most here, do you
want to become GB? Because you are winning all these
major races over here? Would you rather have us figure
out how to say your name right or call you
GB
Geert Schipper (02:37):
GB is fine to me, but don't see me as
a big winner or just leave me in the shadow.
I don't like media stuff. I just do what I
do, what I like to do, and that's sport moving
from one place to the other one and improve myself
(02:57):
every race or every training. That's the reason I try
to compete in competitions. And the last couple of years
I had to compete with all the best guys of
the world to make sure that I can still improve
myself a little bit. So that's the reason I race,
not especially for winning. Winning of course gives a way
(03:18):
better feeling than become second, third, or fourth, like the
Paralympics in Tokyo. But improving myself, that's for me more important.
Carrie Tollefson (03:28):
Yeah. Today you said you didn't think you were going
to be the one to break the tape.
Geert Schipper (03:32):
No, no. Actually, yesterday I was doing a training ride with
Evan Correll and somewhere in the park, you've got some
hills and he was pushing up the hill like I
was standing still and I was like, " Damn." And I don't know tomorrow, you've got
quite a lot of hills, or at least up and
(03:53):
downs. So, I was pretty afraid. And also the first of the 300 meters from the
start, you start going up already and he was pushing
away. I was like, " Uh- oh. Oh boy." And then in the
downhill I was slightly faster, and then the second uphill,
he was still on my tail, but I was still
(04:15):
afraid. And he's a young guy and what I really
hope that he will pass me, hopefully I can start
next year, but that he will pass me next year
or at least the year thereafter. And not only him,
but also way more younger guys.
Carrie Tollefson (04:30):
Yeah, you want.
Geert Schipper (04:31):
That's what I want.
Carrie Tollefson (04:32):
And you want more people pushing you to the line.
Geert Schipper (04:36):
The more competitive everybody is, the more fun the competition
is. But those guys are young and they have to
learn, or maybe not learn but need a bit-
Carrie Tollefson (04:46):
More experience.
Geert Schipper (04:49):
... race-
Carrie Tollefson (04:49):
And race, yeah.
Geert Schipper (04:50):
... endurance. And I think the next coming years I can do a step
back or maybe quit in total and hopefully they take
over what I am doing at the moment.
Carrie Tollefson (05:05):
So, okay, today you won and you're talking about Evan
who is 21?
Geert Schipper (05:09):
I have no clue, but he's young-
Carrie Tollefson (05:10):
He's one of the youngest, I think he's 21. I
think we had a 19- year- old in the wheelchair
division. But Evan Correll is 21. You're fairly new. I
mean we know... Well, a lot of us know your
background in triathlon. So you are obviously on the roads
doing some racing, but you're fairly new to this half-
marathon, marathon distance, correct?
Geert Schipper (05:30):
Yep, that's correct.
Carrie Tollefson (05:30):
Yeah. So when you speak to a runner like me, when you
come to the sport later, you're a little bit more
fresh, you don't have as much wear and tear. Is
that the same for you? I mean why are you giving it, not giving
it to Evan, but you're saying like, you want him
to catch you, you're still pretty new in here.
Geert Schipper (05:49):
Yeah, maybe in my heart, maybe the biggest winner, I
just do what I like to do as fast as
I can. And yeah, I'm new in the sport, but
when you look through my history before I had my
accident and then shortly after my accident, the way I
(06:13):
can perform in sport, we did some tests, and my
genes are already really good to do endurance competitions and
trainings like this. And further, the way how you train
is important and maybe the variation in the three disciplines
I do in triathlon gives me also a bit more
(06:36):
endurance for doing wheelchair racing. But it is still painful in my
back, in my legs, in my... It seems that I race
like pain- free or that it's really easy, it isn't. Not
for me, not for (inaudible) , not for even Evan.
It's always painful.
Carrie Tollefson (06:56):
Yeah, there's always something, right? If it's not, for the runners,
their feet, their back, their glutes, whatever, it's your guys'
shoulders or your abs like you said, or your back-
Geert Schipper (07:05):
Most of the times, it's not your shoulders or your arm, it's
most of the time the pain in your back or your legs or
it sounds crazy, but not the joints you used as
much you think during the run, but maybe the joints
and the muscles, you won't use that much.
Carrie Tollefson (07:21):
Sure.
Geert Schipper (07:22):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (07:22):
Sure. Tell me a little bit, just walk us back
to your injury. Tell me how you got injured again.
Geert Schipper (07:28):
In 2004, I was flying my own single engine airplane for
the first time, that typical airplane. And I was approaching
and I didn't have enough attention on my approaching speed,
so I flew slightly slow already, and then a particular
(07:49):
moment too slow, I stalled, made a little dive and
then right turn, and instead of making my landing straight
ahead in front of me due to the turn, I
made a crash landing into the field just beside the
little airfield in France, broke my back and yeah, that's
pretty much it. Then you think, okay, I've got a
(08:11):
lot of pain in my back, just help me out the
rest of my airplane. There was nothing left actually. And
then I walk away, but I noticed my foot was
kind of in a rear position and my knee was
not pointing to my face, but pointing to my other
(08:32):
knee. I was like, " Oh, that's not good. Maybe it's
broken." But I didn't have pain in my legs. I
only had an awful pain in my back. So after one
hour, the first ambulance was there, they had some troubles
to find it, and I was in a field which not easy to
reach. And they told me, " Okay, just lay still and
(08:57):
wait for another ambulance." And finally they put me on
a stretcher, drove me out of the field to the
hospital, and flew me to another hospital. And then they told me
the next morning after my operation, " Okay, you never can
walk again, you broke your back. And you've got some
(09:17):
movement back in your legs in the nearby future, you'll
be lucky, but walking and standing and biking, the stuff
you've done before, you will sit in a wheelchair for the
rest of your life." And that came in pretty hard.
But after six days in France and a few days
(09:37):
in the Netherlands, all the drugs I get for making
the pain kind of doable, I didn't need it so
much. So my girlfriend told me, " There will be a
good life with you with a chair as well." And
we found a good life.
Carrie Tollefson (09:57):
I guess so.
Geert Schipper (09:59):
We found an awesome life. There were doors closed due to
my accident, but there were so many doors get open
again. And one of the doors is I found in sport.
Carrie Tollefson (10:08):
Yeah. Sport before the accident looked like what?
Geert Schipper (10:12):
It was just regular, whatever, you know what I mean?
Carrie Tollefson (10:16):
Yeah.
Geert Schipper (10:17):
On a bike, I was ice skating, I did some
swimming, I did some running-
Carrie Tollefson (10:20):
Okay. Okay. Just everything.
Geert Schipper (10:21):
... inline skating. Just after my job as a carpenter
at that time, just do some sportive things, but never
ever with the idea to do it in bigger or
bigger competitions.
Carrie Tollefson (10:38):
So life has changed in so many different ways.
Geert Schipper (10:41):
Yes. Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (10:42):
And-
Geert Schipper (10:42):
And there is always light.
Carrie Tollefson (10:44):
Yeah, there is always light. And it's really good for you to
remind us because you've been through a lot, but we're
so thankful that you have used that athletic background and
now have become one of the world's best wheelchair athletes
and triathletes.
Geert Schipper (10:56):
For you, it's maybe that I'm one of the best,
but I don't feel like one.
Carrie Tollefson (10:59):
Well you are.
Geert Schipper (11:01):
I'm just a guy. Believe me.
Carrie Tollefson (11:03):
Well, you're just a guy, but I think what's really cool is
that you brought one of your three girls, one of
your three daughters.
Geert Schipper (11:08):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (11:08):
Was your girlfriend at the time when you had your accident-
Geert Schipper (11:11):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (11:11):
... is she now your wife?
Geert Schipper (11:12):
Yep.
Carrie Tollefson (11:12):
Oh my goodness. You guys, what a love story. So
you have one daughter here who's 12, you said in
quotation marks, she's " sick" from school.
Geert Schipper (11:20):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (11:21):
She took a couple of days off from school. So
tell us a little bit about bringing her over.
Geert Schipper (11:28):
She's 12. You've got a girl from 12, they already a
woman, she is kind of in between. Moments, she's still a kid
and the other moments, she's kind of a young adult
and she act like it, but it is fun to
walk with her here. Yesterday, we went into the park
(11:50):
and we were feeding the squirrels. And she's sitting on
her knees and hold her hand with some peanuts and
the squirrels come there and it's so adorable to watch,
see my girl doing that in her pink jacket. And
we walk over the Times Square and then she's just-
Carrie Tollefson (12:10):
In awe.
Geert Schipper (12:10):
... watching and seeing and noticed everything what I usually
see as well. It is fun. It is so much fun.
Carrie Tollefson (12:20):
She came in here. Can I ask her a question?
Geert Schipper (12:22):
Oh, hi. Yeah, of course you can ask a question.
Carrie Tollefson (12:27):
What was it like to see Dad win today? Was
it pretty cool? Did you get to see him in
Central Park?
Speaker 8 (12:34):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (12:36):
What is-
Geert Schipper (12:36):
You're a little shot.
Carrie Tollefson (12:36):
That's okay. What was New York, what is the big city like?
Geert Schipper (12:43):
(foreign language) . Is it nice?
Speaker 8 (12:47):
It was good.
Carrie Tollefson (12:47):
yeah,
Geert Schipper (12:47):
It was fun, isn't it?
Carrie Tollefson (12:48):
And are you the oldest of the three girls?
Speaker 8 (12:52):
No, I'm the middle.
Carrie Tollefson (12:53):
You're the middle child. Oh. So are you the first
one to come to New York City with your dad?
Speaker 8 (12:58):
No, here's my mother and then my older sister and
now me.
Carrie Tollefson (13:02):
Oh, okay. Well congratulations and thanks for letting dad do
his thing. Now, you guys get to go out and
have some fun.
Geert Schipper (13:10):
Thanks.
Carrie Tollefson (13:11):
Well, tell me a little bit more about your spring.
What do you have going on now after this?
Geert Schipper (13:16):
I've got a few days off. This afternoon, we fly
back to the Netherlands. So tomorrow early in the morning
we arrive, I make a short sleep. Maybe in the
afternoon, I go to the pool to get myself-
Carrie Tollefson (13:34):
Loosened up a little bit.
Geert Schipper (13:35):
Yes. Not only for loosen up, just make sure you won't do nothing.
Carrie Tollefson (13:41):
Yeah.
Geert Schipper (13:42):
And when you do nothing, you get really tired. Just
take a little exercise to make sure you've done something
on a day. So I probably go to the pool and
maybe go on my bike for an hour or two,
but only an easy spin and an easy swim, no
rush. Then in three weeks, I go to Paris for
(14:05):
the Paris Marathon. Thereafter, I go home for a few
days, then I fly to Boston for the Boston Marathon,
go home for two days, then back to London for
the London marathon, two weeks off. Training as fast and as good
as I can for the first triathlon competition in Japan.
(14:28):
And then there's a few more triathlon competitions, one in
Italy and one in France. And in the meantime, I'm
also moving from one place to another place. So-
Carrie Tollefson (14:38):
Like one house to another house? Oh, man.
Geert Schipper (14:40):
No, it's not a house. It's more like a farm.
Carrie Tollefson (14:43):
Okay. Oh, you've got a lot going on.
Geert Schipper (14:46):
I've got too much equipment to move. It won't fit
in one truck. I think I need five.
Carrie Tollefson (14:53):
Well, I'm glad that you won some money today. Maybe
you can hire some help.
Geert Schipper (14:58):
That definitely helps.
Carrie Tollefson (15:01):
Yeah. Well congratulations-
Geert Schipper (15:01):
Thank you so much.
Carrie Tollefson (15:01):
... on such an awesome race. 49:53 is what you ran
today and two- time winner of the United Airlines NYC Half.
Geert Schipper (15:10):
Yes. Maybe it comes a third time then.
Carrie Tollefson (15:12):
There you go.
Geert Schipper (15:13):
And then it'll be time to quit.
Carrie Tollefson (15:15):
No, I don't think so. We don't want you to do that yet.
Geert Schipper (15:17):
After three times it's time.
Carrie Tollefson (15:18):
Well, we'll see you in Boston for sure. Congratulations.
Geert Schipper (15:20):
Yes, thank you very much.
Carrie Tollefson (15:22):
Sitting across the table from Manuela Schär, our four- time
United NYC Half Marathon champion. I mean that's pretty crazy.
Four times you've won this race before.
Manuela Schär (15:33):
Yeah, it's unbelievable. I mean it's always great to race
in New York and then to even win in New
York, it's even better. So I'm really happy. Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (15:42):
So today was different. I want to talk about that,
because you got off the line, and we've seen you
get off the line really fast in other races, but
today you got off the line and really you were
on your own for most of the race.
Manuela Schär (15:55):
Yeah, it was not easy conditions for us because usually
we race with different settings when it's dry or when
it's raining. And today, it was so foggy, so we had to
decide if you want to go with the dry setup
or if you want to go with the rain setup.
(16:16):
And I decided to go with my gloves I would
use in rain. So I think that made the difference.
Carrie Tollefson (16:23):
So remind me, when you wear gloves, the wheelchair athletes,
I was stumbling on the word in the broadcast too,
is sandpaper that you have or some kind of grit
on the glove?
Manuela Schär (16:34):
Yeah. So usually, in dry conditions we use gloves with
like a rubber and then our push rim has a
rubber too. So rubber on rubber works really well when
it's dry, but then when it's wet, it's slippery and
so you have to find something that gives you back
that grip. And some people use sandpaper on their gloves,
some people use some kind of like...
Carrie Tollefson (16:57):
Like a sticky?
Manuela Schär (16:59):
Yeah. And then some people use like a handball cluster.
So they're all different options you have. So you have
to find the right thing for you.
Carrie Tollefson (17:13):
It was really interesting though, because when we were walking
there was a little bit of a slip. So I
love that you mentioned that in the post- race interview
that you really went with the wet weather. And as
a runner, we think about that with our shoes, but
for us that don't know what it's like to be
a wheelchair athlete, I love that you give that insight.
Manuela Schär (17:32):
Yeah. That's always the biggest challenge because sometimes you don't
have enough time to make the decision and then you
don't know what to bring to the start line. And
if you still have enough time to change if it
doesn't work and sometimes you just realize it a few
miles into the race if you made the right call
or not.
Carrie Tollefson (17:51):
Yeah, because there's no changing mid- race.
Manuela Schär (17:53):
Yes. No. I mean I brought my other gloves, but that would
mean I would have to stop and then sit out
my racing chair and then change my gloves. I would
rather not do that, but I mean if it wouldn't
work, I would still have this option to change.
Carrie Tollefson (18:11):
Yeah. Well today, you won big. You ran 54
want to talk a little bit, you're getting ready for
not just Boston, but London, the wheelchair athletes do back
to back to back to back. You're amazing that way.
And even like, I get it, it's different, right? There's
not as much pounding, but there's still wear and tear
on your body in different ways, but also the travel-
Manuela Schär (18:31):
Exactly.
Carrie Tollefson (18:31):
... is wild with you guys.
Manuela Schär (18:33):
Yeah. And to be honest, the older I get, the
more I realize it's not easy to do all this
time difference and different food and then other hotel and
the traveling with all your, that big box with the
racing chair and then you have a separate box for
your wheels and then maybe you bring a spare wheel
(18:54):
and then you have your luggage. So it's always-
Carrie Tollefson (18:57):
It's challenging.
Manuela Schär (18:58):
It's challenging. Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (18:59):
Yeah. So last year seemed like there were some challenges
and maybe that's just me being the broadcaster that I
am and looking on paper that Manuela didn't win the
road races that we've seen in the past. And as
an athlete to athlete, like I get it, we have
ups and down years, but can you explain that to
me? Was it a down year? Was it a great
(19:20):
year? You won the Paralympic 800, you got silver in the
400. I mean it's an amazing year, but yet some
of your longer distances, we didn't see a number one
next to. Tell me a little bit about that. And
maybe I am totally wrong.
Manuela Schär (19:33):
No, you're not. I mean I'm so happy that I
was able to win these two medals because if not,
I would have been so frustrated with my Paralympic Games.
For sure, the marathon did not go well. I'm still
struggling a little bit with that because, yeah, the marathon
(19:53):
was supposed to be my distance, it's my favorite race.
But yeah, I had some really up and downs last
year and I had some big changes also. So, yeah,
it's hard to put it all in one, it's hard
to find one reason why this happened.
Carrie Tollefson (20:16):
And that's why we do it, right?
Manuela Schär (20:17):
Yeah, exactly.
Carrie Tollefson (20:17):
We have to figure out how to be better each time we toe the line.
Manuela Schär (20:20):
Yeah. And then also some athletes just improved so much. Like,
Catherine, she's insane, it's crazy-
Carrie Tollefson (20:29):
Catherine Debrunner.
Manuela Schär (20:29):
Yeah. And then Susannah is doing really, really well and
I think it's a really exciting time for the women's
field and I'm so excited to see that and to
still be part of it and to... I don't know,
it's like we're all in this together and it's always
fun to watch everybody race and break records and yeah,
(20:54):
still being part of it is amazing.
Carrie Tollefson (20:56):
I love that, the camaraderie that, well the runners, but
also the wheelers have, it's just something really special. Getting
ready now for some fall or some spring marathons. We're
not trying to look too far out to the New York
City Marathon, but so spring races, how does this win
now and maybe more so mentally get you fired up
for Boston, London, all the other races?
Manuela Schär (21:19):
I think I came here to use this as a
bit of a warmup for the marathons, for Boston and
London, and I think it was a good decision because it
gives me a good feeling obviously to go into Boston
and, yeah, I mean it's going to be exciting. It's going to
be a really strong field, really strong women's field, and
(21:42):
as always, Boston is a challenging course, so I'm very
excited to see how it goes.
Carrie Tollefson (21:48):
Oh, we are too. Now, what do you do here in
New York for fun after the race? Like Susannah likes
to try to go to a show, Susannah Scaroni we're
talking about, do you get to do anything fun or
are you going to get home right away?
Manuela Schär (22:01):
Yeah, I made this a short one. I'm leaving tonight
and I got here on Friday night, so, yeah, there
was not a lot of time. I just went to a
few stores and went a little shopping-
Carrie Tollefson (22:17):
(inaudible) . Yeah. Oh, well good luck to you. Thank
you for just such an awesome intense race today. It
was fun to see that fire. I mean we always
see it in you, but when you broke the tape
today, I think I even said it, " She's back."
Manuela Schär (22:31):
Thank you.
Carrie Tollefson (22:32):
So, congratulations.
Manuela Schär (22:33):
Thank you.
Carrie Tollefson (22:34):
And now we get to talk to our new winner,
Sharon Lokedi. Sharon, okay, you have cracked the tape for
the TCS New York City Marathon in your very first
marathon ever.
Sharon Lokedi (22:45):
Yeah, yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (22:45):
And now you cracked the tape today at NYC Half.
Sharon Lokedi (22:48):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (22:49):
Tell me now it's about an hour past the race, so how are
you feeling?
Sharon Lokedi (22:52):
I feel good. I'm very happy about the race today.
I honestly, I don't know if we would have gone
any other way. I just wanted to come out here
and compete and just get the race going and see
how aware I am with my training and everything. And
I'm so glad to have come with a win in
(23:14):
a very magical race, in a very magical place, and
yeah, the course was awesome.
Carrie Tollefson (23:20):
So magical. That's what you've said now twice.
Sharon Lokedi (23:23):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (23:23):
What was so magical? Why was it so awesome?
Sharon Lokedi (23:26):
Honestly, I feel like every time I'm out here, it
just brings something out of me. I just get so
excited and I just want to go out there and
run fast and compete so well. And there's strength, as
you go out there, the New York Roadrunners, they're just
so cool and so awesome and they're always so nice.
(23:48):
So I mean they provide everything for you and it just feels, from
the time you get here, it just feels so relaxing. And I
think that helps with, as an athlete, just settling in
and feeling very loved and very welcomed and I think
that support fuels you and I think for me, it just
makes me want to do well. And yeah, every time
I'm out there and the people on the course, that is
(24:12):
another thing, is so cool. They just cheer you on
and they're wanting you to run so fast. And I
think that helps me, just gives me more support and
confidence and I just want to keep going and keep fighting.
Carrie Tollefson (24:26):
Well, let's break the race down just a little bit.
So off the line, you weren't right up there pushing
the pace, it was Calli Hauger- Thackery, there was a number of
other athletes, Fiona O'Keeffe, but you were kind of in
this big pack for, I don't know, about five miles?
Sharon Lokedi (24:40):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (24:40):
So walk us through that. Why did you do that?
Was that intentional?
Sharon Lokedi (24:44):
Not really. Just most of the time for me is
I just get to the race and just pay attention
to whatever happens, if there's a move made, just make
sure I'm staying with it. And yeah, we did start
today and everyone was in there and I just wanted to just
be in... It was a bit chilly when we started, but it wasn't that
bad so I just wanted to stay in it and
(25:06):
just stay as relaxed and controlled as long as I
could. And then just maybe the last few miles just
kept making moves and yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (25:17):
You were on the FDR for quite some time. Was there a
little bit of a tailwind there, did I hear?
Sharon Lokedi (25:23):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (25:23):
Did you let that take you? Were you trying not
to let it take you? How do you run with
that big of a tailwind?
Sharon Lokedi (25:30):
Honestly, I don't know if you can even feel it because you're just
so focused.
Carrie Tollefson (25:33):
So focused.
Sharon Lokedi (25:34):
So most of the time it's like, I feel like once
you're set your head in that, you're just thinking about
that moment. And I think, yeah, yes, it did definitely help
us because I mean it's almost helping you get faster
or go faster, and there was a few miles in
there that we were running and I'm like, " Oh, jeez."
Carrie Tollefson (25:56):
Yeah, it was pushing you.
Sharon Lokedi (25:56):
Yes, yes. So yeah, I think it did play a big part of
getting us going, so, yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (26:00):
Yeah, yeah. Okay, then you go through Times Square?
Sharon Lokedi (26:02):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (26:03):
How cool was that?
Sharon Lokedi (26:04):
Yes, oh, that was... We got up through this hill
and it was a little bit over nine miles and then there was a hill and then a
downhill and then once we got to the city, you could
tell when you get to the city-
Carrie Tollefson (26:14):
You can feel the energy coming.
Sharon Lokedi (26:14):
Yes. And all of a sudden it's starting to get so loud and everything. And
I think that's when I just got the cadence and the
rhythm going and I just took it.
Carrie Tollefson (26:27):
You did. At 10 miles, it was almost like a
light switch.
Sharon Lokedi (26:29):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (26:30):
Did you have that strategy coming in? Did you and
coach say, " At 10 miles I want to make a move?"
Sharon Lokedi (26:35):
No, actually we had a tempo last week where we
did like a six- mile progressive run. So, he texted
me last night and he was like, " Just do it
like you did last time. Just keep getting faster, go
marathon pace and then half- marathon pace," just like that.
But I thought about it but then I was like,
six miles is a long way to go, you know?
And so, yeah, I just wanted to... At 10 miles, I
(26:58):
just wanted to maybe slowly just keep improving and see
how that goes.
Carrie Tollefson (27:03):
No looking back after 10 miles though really, you really were
like... Did you feel the sense that you were really
gaining on them? Or?
Sharon Lokedi (27:10):
I did, but I also, there's something that's always like,
oh, you need to look back, maybe see how far
they... And I feel like I always do that and I'm trying
to get better at it and just trust myself, just
trust once I get going, I just trust that I
can just take it all the way to the end
and yeah, it was just that was a new thing for me.
Carrie Tollefson (27:33):
I love that you say that, because in many interviews
that I've either done or I've listened to of yours,
you trust. You have a lot of trust in your
training, in your coach, in your community around you.
Sharon Lokedi (27:47):
Yes, yes. Because-
Carrie Tollefson (27:49):
How do you get that? How do these runners, I
mean we can hear the crowds going crazy still and
we're 46 floors up, right?
Sharon Lokedi (27:54):
Yeah, yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (27:55):
But I mean how do you learn to trust your instinct and
what you've been doing?
Sharon Lokedi (28:00):
I think for me it starts with training. Every time
I'm training it's like we start doing these workouts and
sometimes they get so hard and then I'm just like, " Okay, you can
just do it. You can just hold it a little
bit longer and it gets better." So just like I
said, I work on that during my training and then
I come to races and even I think when I
was in college, I used to be like, every time
(28:21):
I go for a run or a race, my coach would tell me, "
Just make sure you're using the person in front of
you to get you going, to pull you." So even
in training, even when I have a pacemaker or I
don't, I just try to use something that's ahead of
me just to get me going.
Carrie Tollefson (28:37):
Well today you had no one in front of you
the last three miles, but you did have that finish
tape and then did you see the time when you crossed?
Sharon Lokedi (28:46):
Actually-
Carrie Tollefson (28:46):
1:07:04?
Sharon Lokedi (28:46):
I actually saw, I think it was 1K to go and it was like 62 and I'm like, " Oh my
god," I think it was 63, sorry, I don't remember-
Carrie Tollefson (28:53):
Something like that. Yeah.
Sharon Lokedi (28:55):
Somewhere around there. And in my head I'm like, " If I'm running 3:
10 pace, I'm on 66," and I'm like, " Okay, just hold it. Just run."
But then I got the hill and I was like, "
Dang it." And then the course turned and then I
had to go and I could see... I know it was
so cold, so I tried to fight as hard as
(29:16):
I could, but I didn't get 66, but 67 is still so much
better. So I'm really glad with that time and I
think if anything, it just made me so confident going forward.
Carrie Tollefson (29:27):
Yeah. New event record today. How does this set you
up for Boston? Because Boston now is what? Five weeks away?
Sharon Lokedi (29:33):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (29:33):
So tell me, I mean this race in itself is huge,
now you have another big one coming up. So how
does this help you?
Sharon Lokedi (29:39):
Honestly, I think it was just... It is really like,
I've done so many workouts in running that I'm like, "
Okay, yes, I might be fit, but I didn't know
where I was." So I think this going forward is
just going to be a step in the right direction
of knowing, okay, I can do this or I'm here and
I have to do this. So I think, if anything,
(30:01):
it's just going to help me fuel me more and
get more excited for Boston.
Carrie Tollefson (30:05):
Oh my goodness. Okay. So you told me beforehand that you
spend too much money in the city. So we got
to know, I mean I think you probably just came
home and you got showered. Did you eat something? What did
you eat? What was your first thing that you ate
after the race?
Sharon Lokedi (30:17):
Actually we went to the Tavern on the Green and I had tea and
they had this quiche.
Carrie Tollefson (30:22):
Ooh, yum.
Sharon Lokedi (30:23):
Yeah, it was good. It was really good. And then
this green bagel.
Carrie Tollefson (30:27):
Because it's St Paddy's Day on Monday.
Sharon Lokedi (30:30):
Yes.
Carrie Tollefson (30:30):
Oh my gosh, so fun.
Sharon Lokedi (30:31):
So I had that and yeah, we have that big lunch
coming, so I need to like... I think that's enough for
now, but I am really looking forward to that because
they always have really good food.
Carrie Tollefson (30:44):
Yeah, they do it up here.
Sharon Lokedi (30:44):
I'm very excited. Yeah. Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (30:45):
Oh my goodness. Well, congratulations. Thank you for putting on such a
great show. It's always fun to watch you race.
Sharon Lokedi (30:49):
Oh, thank you. Thank you. I appreciate it.
Carrie Tollefson (30:51):
All right, everybody sitting across the table here from Abel Kipchumba,
who is the two- time United Airlines NYC Half Marathon
champion. Listen, 59:09 today and Conner Mantz ran you basically
to that finish line. So I got to hear about
your race. Let's talk about it. Coming back here as
the defending champion, how excited were you to toe the line
(31:12):
again this year?
Abel Kipchumba (31:13):
First of all, today when I was coming for this second
Half Marathon for New York, I was training for Marathon,
but I was well- prepared for myself because you must
prepare your psychology. And when I reached here, the course
(31:36):
was changed, not like for the last year and today the field was so strong, that
helped me to push more and then I ran that 59:
09. But when I compare for last year and this year,
this last year was cold, so cold. But this year is cold, but it has a lot of mist. But that cannot
(32:06):
affect the race. The race, when somebody is ready, you
are ready. So, that made me today run well.
Carrie Tollefson (32:18):
Let's hear about your strategy coming in. Did you have
a strategy to sit and push at a certain moment?
Last year you made a move around 15K, this year it
was pretty close to that as well. Were you thinking,
I'm going to go once we get closer to Times Square?
Abel Kipchumba (32:37):
Today I see the guy who we were running together, I see
he was strong, but when I reached around 17 kilometer,
I decided that when we continue going like this, it will
be tough for me to win this race. So in race, you must calculate yourself
(33:00):
first. Yeah, and then I change. And when I was trying
to move to go away, I do several zigzag and then I move.
Carrie Tollefson (33:12):
That was really interesting, Abel, you were running and you guys were kind of
running next to each other, you were one step in
front of him, but then you started to zigzag, right?
You started to go to one side and then to
the other. Do you remember doing that?
Abel Kipchumba (33:28):
Yeah, I remember because that guy was noticing, so you must
have planned yourself out to drop him and then you will be safe.
Carrie Tollefson (33:36):
You were trying to drop Conner Mantz? I said that
on the broadcast. I said, " He's either going to drop
Conner Mantz or he's going to use too much energy."
So I was wondering what way it was going to
go, because that is a risk that you took, right?
I mean that could have worked for you by doing
the zigzag and putting surges in, or it could have
backfired, meaning it could have caused you to run too
(33:59):
much or too hard at that stage.
Abel Kipchumba (34:02):
When you're running to doing zigzag, you use a lot
of energy, but you must work for it that you feel your body,
if you'll survive in front when you are going for a finishing line. So I decided, when I look
back, I see the guy still is strong, he is following
(34:23):
me, but I try to inject the best to be higher.
And then when I look, I says, that guy, he
will be constant. The guy will run constant and I
will be running constant. So that guy will not be close. So
it will be hard.
Carrie Tollefson (34:41):
Yeah, Conner Mantz is a tough competitor and has run
very well, just set the American record and he doesn't
like getting beat. Nobody does, right?
Abel Kipchumba (34:51):
I understand because I watched him in Houston-
Carrie Tollefson (34:55):
You watched him run?
Abel Kipchumba (34:56):
... even before I ran this race yesterday, I review
back to follow him, to watch how he was running.
So, I see this guy is tough.
Carrie Tollefson (35:06):
But so are you. I mean you've run the 10th
fastest half- marathon ever.
Abel Kipchumba (35:10):
Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (35:10):
I mean that's pretty amazing. You walk around this big
city, the Big Apple, and you know that you are
the 10th fastest man on the planet in this half-
marathon. Does that give you confidence?
Abel Kipchumba (35:26):
Yes, I am confident because I have run several 59 and 58. Yeah.
Carrie Tollefson (35:37):
Okay. Tell me about how this race sets you up
for the Boston Marathon. You were eighth at the TCS
New York City Marathon last fall. Now you're heading into Boston.
Abel Kipchumba (35:49):
But if I compare for last year when I was
coming to New York Marathon, I didn't many long runs.
I did only a few long runs. But if I compare
for this year with Boston, I did a lot of long runs.
Carrie Tollefson (36:04):
So you've done a lot of long runs heading in?
Abel Kipchumba (36:08):
I think even for Boston, I have a lot of
confidence. We will go out there and we see what
next they will be.
Carrie Tollefson (36:18):
I mean I can see this glimmer in your eye, the
smile is huge, I wish everyone could see it. When you
talk to me about Boston, what do you think? I want
to win it?
Abel Kipchumba (36:30):
No, no. You know Boston is a tactical game and
Boston is hard. It is for every time, weather can
change. When we say Boston is for anybody race, anybody
can win.
Carrie Tollefson (36:47):
Yeah.
Abel Kipchumba (36:48):
Yeah?
Carrie Tollefson (36:48):
Yeah. The survival of the fittest there, that's a tough
course, but much like this, you get to see some
hills, you have some flats and things like that. Today
you tackled those later stages in Central Park really well,
it almost looked like you attacked the hills. Did you
feel really strong over the hills today?
Abel Kipchumba (37:07):
Yes, I feel very strong.
Carrie Tollefson (37:10):
Oh, what are you going to do to celebrate? I mean
you have to celebrate today's win. So are you doing
anything in the city? You going to have some ice cream
today? What do you do to celebrate? I mean I know
you do. Your agent is sitting next to you, I
wonder if I can ask Stavor what do you do to celebrate?
Abel Kipchumba (37:31):
Maybe he know himself.
Carrie Tollefson (37:33):
Oh, well, congratulations on everything. This has been really fun.
You don't get to see a two- time winner of
the United Airlines NYC Half very often. So we're sitting
in rare company. Congratulations.
Abel Kipchumba (37:45):
Thank you.
Carrie Tollefson (37:45):
Thanks everybody for joining us today at the Set the
Pace Podcast. Wow. These athletes are amazing on the course,
but they're also amazing off the course and I'm so
thankful I had the opportunity to interview them all. I
hope you enjoyed it and we'll see you next time.
Speaker 1 (38:11):
New York Road Runners is a nonprofit organization with a
vision to build healthier lives and stronger communities through the
transformative power of running. The support of members and donors
like you helps us achieve our mission to transform the
health and wellbeing of our communities through inclusive and accessible
running experiences, empowering all to achieve their potential. Learn more
(38:33):
and contribute at nyrr. org/ donate.
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