So it’s the captivating part, it’s the fun part, and I just wanted that as a throughline to kind of lead to that next race scene, lift you back up again, and engage you. When I do speaking engagements it’s like you have to do all the build-up to get to the point to talk about the race and then you finish and then people just have questions about the race. I love that a lot of great sports books I’ve read are written out that way. The book alternates between taking us through that historic day at the 2018 Boston Marathon and through your entire professional career until this point. And I think it kind of goes back to my childhood where it was the first thing that was mine and it sort of gave me this independence, so it is wrestling with that and the choices that we make and how they move us forward and change the path we take in life. I think it goes beyond just Boston it’s kind of been a theme of my career where I’m always deciding whether this is the path I want to pursue or not and weighing out what that means I’m leaving behind. What would you say made you go with this title? The title reads as though it could be a reference to not leaving the sport (as you considered doing before your win in Boston in 2018), choosing to stay in that race when things got tough, or just choosing to pursue this career as a whole. She also opens up about various high and low points, highlighting key relationships with friends and family, as well as with her coaches and competitors.Ĭongratulations on the release of your book. In the book, Linden takes readers through both her career as a whole and her historic win, alternating chapters between the past and present moments. Unsurprisingly, Linden, 39, is getting ready to line up for her 10th Boston Marathon on April 17, and this time it will be right on the heels of the April 4 release of her memoir, “ Choosing to Run,” co-authored by Bonnie D. Not only has the two-time Olympian lined up at this race nearly every year since her debut at the distance in 2007, but Linden was also the first American woman to win the race in 33 years when she took the top honors in treacherous conditions, no less.

Most recreational long-distance runners who follow the elite side of the sport associate the prestigious Boston Marathon with professional runner Desiree Linden. Olympian and Boston Marathon champion Des Linden gives her race day must haves.

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