Patience is a virtue and it can also serve as a benefit to some of the elite distance runners as they train and compete. If they play their cards right, patience can pay off in due time and lead to something special.
Patience is an art that Olivia Pratt has turned into a skill, and it’s worked for her throughout her running journey. It’s what helps sustain her when days are cloudy and things aren’t going her way, and it gives her hope that things will work out in her favor.
For Pratt, the patience that she’s developed over the years has stemmed from the fact that she loves running, and nothing can change that for her.
“What enables me to be so patient with my running is that I just love running so much, that even when it’s going poorly and I feel like I’m banging my head against the wall and have been banging my head against the wall for years, I still really love going to practice,” she said. “I love running with my teammates. I love running on my own if that’s how the day shakes out.”
Pratt, who was a standout collegiate athlete for Butler University and currently runs for the Hansons Brooks Project has continued to show progress as a professional track, road and cross country runner. She competed in the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials back in February as well as on the track in June, and has represented Team USA twice at multiple meets (2018 Great Edinburgh and 2019 Great Stirling.)
During the course of her career, Pratt has experienced ups and downs in the sport. But she’s leaned on the patience that she’s developed due to her love for running, and she;s seen it pay off time after time.
“Ever since I first started running competitively, I’ve seen patience pay off in the long run,” she said. “Sometimes you gotta be impatient, but usually that’s in a race. But over the long haul, I think it’s kept me going for a really long time. You’ve been banging your head against the wall, eventually you will break through and see improvements, and those moments are so satisfying that it’s worth all those struggles.”
One of those breakthrough moments comes in the way of confidence in the bigger races. She’s able to take her place on the startline, knowing that it’s no accident that she’s competing against the best of the best.
“Probably the biggest thing is I can stand on the line at the Olympic trials and finally believe that I belong there,” she said. “ I think it’s really hard to race like you belong in a race, to race with confidence if you don’t truly believe that you belong there. And that took a while to make that adjustment, to be able to stand on the start line, look around at all these incredible athletes and say, ‘I can compete with them, and I’m going to have fun doing it.”
Pratt has been a member of the Hansons-Brooks Project since 2017. Over her time as a member of the team, she’s seen the squad continue to grow and be filled with excited and enthusiastic runners looking to reach their full potential as runners. The team culture is strong, and it makes going to work every day all the more fun for Pratt.
“Culture builds on culture,” she said. “So when things start going well, they can snowball. And so I just feel like we’ve got a really good mix of personalities right now, a really good mix of talents, and people seem to just be gelling really well and showing up with really positive attitudes towards running. It just makes me excited to show up every day and be a part of it.”
Being a part of a healthy team culture helps Pratt to stay patient and trust the process when trouble arises. She’s able to lean on them, and they help lift her up.
“Even when things aren’t aren’t going too well, having the companionship of my teammates stabilizes everything, and it makes some of the hard stuff a lot easier,” she said.
While Pratt’s love for running has enhanced the patience that she has, every now and then, that love can be tested during hard times. Pratt has developed a mindset that puts running in perspective, which reinforces her love for the sport as well.
“Running doesn’t have to be the biggest thing in the world for me, but it’s still going to be there for me as something that I love and that brings my life more happiness,” she said. “It’s so important for me to bring myself back to that if I’m struggling.”
