12 year old girl runs sub3 marathon

Evan Kim became a phenomenon in the US when he won the under-19 age group at the Ventura Marathon on February 25 with a time of 2 hours 58 minutes, and is aiming to attend the 2028 Olympics.

Only in sixth grade and 1.52m tall, Kim is not sure what she wants to do in the future. She wants to be an elementary school teacher, but she might also pursue a career in sports . The 2012-born girl's current hobby is running.

Running is Evan Kim’s calling. He was named after 2011 Tour de France champion Cadel Evans. His father, MK, 49, is a former pole vaulter at Duke University. He now coaches running and has run a marathon in 2 hours 51 minutes. That record could be broken by the end of the year when Kim sets a sub-2:48 goal at the California International Marathon in December. Evan’s older brother Cole and older sister Haven are also marathoners.

Kim reached the sub-3 marathon milestone at the age of 12. Photo: LA Times

At just 12 years old, Kim has the will of a long-distance runner. At the Ventura Marathon, she suffered a cramp at the 32nd kilometer but did not give up. "Stay strong", she repeated to herself and continued walking. As a result, Kim finished second among female runners at the Ventura Marathon, with a time of 2 hours 58 minutes, reaching a pace of 4:13. Her result was at least an hour better than all other female runners under 20.

Despite Kim’s impressive record, she is not yet qualified for the 2024 Olympics in Paris. To qualify for the competition, runners need to hit 2 hours 37 minutes. The record of 2020 Olympic marathon champion Peres Jepchirchir is 2 hours 27 minutes 20 seconds. But she has her sights set on the next Olympics, in Los Angeles 2028.

Kim's achievement is remarkable, according to statistics. Only 21% of female runners in the world complete a full marathon in under four hours, and only 1% of women complete a full marathon in under three hours. The marathon record for 12-year-olds, regardless of gender, was set by German male runner Manuela Zipse in 1986, with a time of 2 hours 54 minutes.

Kim's father and coach, MK, said she started running at a very young age. Kim was not naturally gifted with exceptional physical abilities. Her lung capacity was smaller than other children, but it increased over time as Kim trained seven days a week. MK's children were always inspired to walk every morning and then run. Cole started at 11 and Kim at six. She started running a few miles and then at 10, Kim asked her father to let her run a marathon.

"I want to run a marathon like my brother. It's fun to race with him and I want to do races like Cole," Kim said. Cole also ran the Ventura Marathon and beat his sister by a minute. "I'm a little jealous, but I hope to beat his time one day," Kim added.

MK is planning to help Kim break the marathon record for 12-year-olds later this year. He is also trying to get the Boston Marathon organizers to let his daughter participate next year, despite the race's 18-year-old minimum age requirement.

"We feel discriminated against because Evan has proven he can run safely by completing four marathons, including three that are points for the Boston Marathon," MK said. To qualify for the 2025 Boston Marathon, an 18-year-old female runner needs to run 3 hours 30 minutes between September 2023 and September 2024. MK said the rule barring young runners from marathons is similar to when women were banned from running marathons before Boston in 1972.

Pediatricians say there is not enough information to say whether marathons are safe for children, although science has shown that young people’s bodies need time to mature before they can reach the same level of mobility as adults. There is also debate over whether children can handle the psychological stress of marathons.

A study conducted between 1982 and 2007 of 310 adolescents aged seven to 17 found that only four of them had medical problems while running marathons. That’s a lower rate than adults, and none of the injuries were serious. MK said Kim had never suffered any injuries during training or competition.

American sports medicine physician Brian Krabak said whether children are at risk from running marathons depends on many factors, but that it can be limited with close monitoring and a moderate training plan. "It's important that the child is motivated to run a marathon, not pushed by the adults around them," he said.

Kim (center) runs every day with her father and siblings. Photo: LA Times

Before Kim, there have been many children who have completed marathons around the world. In 2022, six-year-old Rainier Crawford conquered a marathon in Cincinnati. His parents then filmed it and posted it online, but it was criticized. At that time, Olympic marathoner Kara Goucher wrote on Twitter : "A six-year-old doesn't understand what it means to struggle with pain, and doesn't know that when it happens, you always have the right to stop."

In Kim’s family, running is a daily activity. Every weekend, the whole family jogs about 11 km at a pace of approximately 6:00 (six minutes per kilometer). This image has become familiar to the locals. They often wave to Kim’s family when they see them on the street. Mr. MK, a single father, has been filming these moments for more than a year.

Kim openly admits that she doesn’t always enjoy running and sometimes, during a race, she feels terrible. However, like any mature runner, training and racing are tough but Kim keeps going. She loves the feeling at the end of each race, when she finishes and cheers for the other runners.

Thuy Hanh (according to Los Angeles Times )

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