We did a deep dive with Zach Kreft and covered it all during our feature interview.
Entering the road racing circuit, a victory in his marathon debut, future competitive goals, taking on the challenge of college coaching plus a retrospective on his time at Notre Dame, Walsh University and Buckeye Valley are just a few of the topics we covered with Kreft.
The many-time OHSAA and OATCCC state champion (across all seasons) is coming off a victory last month at the Columbus Marathon, where he clocked 2:18.05.
Hear from Kreft about his debut over 26.2 miles and how he intends to attack the Olympic Trials qualifying standard moving forward.
Interview Topics
- 0:00 - Episode Introduction
- 0:30 - Impression on how his marathon debut went
- 2:15 - Talking about coming up just short of the Olympic Trials qualifying standard
- 3:25 - Trying to get into CIM for one last shot at qualification
- 4:25 - Thoughts on the Trials starting time controversy
- 6:05 - Deep dive into his race - expectations leading in vs. what unfolded
- 8:00 - Why he chose Columbus as the location for his first marathon
- 9:20 - Race within the race, moving up in 2nd half + a strong 16 through 19 miles
- 11:10 - Importance of post-collegiates displaying their fitness and still being competitive
- 12:15 - What the future holds for him competitively speaking
- 13:30 - Talking Kelvin Kiptum's World Record marathon mark
- 15:10 - Coaching at Walsh and why opportunity appealed to him
- 16:55 - Showcasing his Great Midwest community achievement award
- 19:05 - Reflecting on how his time went at Notre Dame
- 22:15 - Highlighting the depth of talent in the lower college divisions
- 26:25 - How his time at Buckeye Valley set him up for success
- 28:30 - Amazed by the level of talent in high school and the mile progression
- 30:35 - Episode Closing
(Victorious in his marathon debut, Zach Kreft has forecasted big goals for the 26.2 mile distance and other events on the road racing circuit)
Photo Credit: David Nguyen - MileSplit
