Emilia Benton is a runner and she is a journalist. In this story, Benton focuses on her marathon journey, up through qualifying for the Boston Marathon and then running the big race itself. Emilia qualified for Boston in 2022 at the Houston Marathon, and she ran the Boston Marathon the next year, 2023.  Benton’s is a story of discovering her own unique needs as a runner and the importance of working with people who listen to those needs.  Emilia Benton is a well recognized journalist in the running world, with a particular focus on professional runners as well as runners and stories that have typically been underrepresented and overlooked by the media. As a runner, a big focus of Benton’s has been marathons. She has run over a dozen of them, and for about a decade, her efforts focused on what many ambitious marathoners focus on: getting a Boston qualifying time, and then running the Boston Marathon.  Over the course of her marathon journey, Amelia has become astutely aware of her own needs as a runner. She discovered that what generally works for many other athletes just wasn't working for her. She's been through a lot of trial and error, and she has found what does work for her and also a coach who backed her approach. And that coach is Nell Rojas. Rojas is both a coach and she is also one of America's very best marathoners: among her many accolades, Rojas has twice been the top American finisher at the Boston Marathon.  Getting to the heart of it, Emilia Benton's story is about learning how to train for and race marathons in ways that work best for her. It’s about understanding what did and didn’t work and trusting what she learned. And, putting that knowledge into practice to reach her goal of qualifying for Boston and racing the Boston Marathon. Keep Up with Emilia Benton Instagram: @emiliambenton Website: emiliabenton.com Mentioned in This Episode "My Run Club Was Profiled for ‘Cheering While Black’—Here’s Why It Only Reaffirms Our Mission," Sidney Baptista, as told to Emilia Benton: https://www.runnersworld.com/runners-stories/a43878096/my-run-club-was-profiled-for-cheering Liz Rock: A TrailblazHer's Journey, Running the Boston Marathon for Mile 21 Joy: https://womensrunningstories.com/liz-rock-a-trailblazhers-journey-running-the-boston-marathon-for-mile-21-joy Alison Mariella Désir: Running While Black, Her Story, Her Book: https://womensrunningstories.com/alison-mariella-desir-running-while-black-her-story-her-book Race Report: Nell Rojas + 2023 25k National Championships: https://womensrunningstories.com/race-report-nell-rojas-2023-usatf-25k-national-championships Boston Marathon Expo Live Stage event, Sun., April 14, 2pm: "Making a Statement: Breaking Barriers in Women's Running" featuring Briana Boehmer, Kelly Bruno, Alisa Harvey; moderated by Cherie Turner, Julie Sapper, Lisa Levin; presentation of Team Bevans takes place immediately following this conversation Music Credits Cormac O'Regan, of Playtoh penguinmusic, via Pixabay chillmore, via Pixabay SergePavkinMusic, via Pixabay Coma-Media, via Pixabay Ways to Connect and Engage with Women's Running Stories Instagram: @womensrunningstories Facebook: facebook.com/WomensRunningStories Facebook Group: facebook.com/groups/444164966663627 Website: womensrunningstories.com Email host Cherie: clouiseturner@gmail.com Women's Running Stories is a proud member of the Evergreen network: https://evergreenpodcasts.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices