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David Roche (runner)

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David Roche
Roche at 2014 Loon Mountain Race
Personal information
Nationality United States
Born (1988-06-22) June 22, 1988 (age 36)
Millington, Maryland
Sport
SportUltramarathon

David Roche (born June 22, 1988) is an ultramarathoner and running coach. He currently holds the record for the Leadville Trail 100.

Roche previously worked as an attorney for the Environmental Law Institute and a contributor to Outside. He is married to Megan (Deakins) Roche and has a son.[1][2][3]

Running Career

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Roche began his college athletics career as a football player at Columbia University.[4] He took up endurance running while in graduate school at Duke University. He won the 2012 USATF 10k Trail Championship and received the 2014 USATF Trail Runner of the Year sub-ultra award.[1][5][6]

Roche won the Quad Dipsea Race twice, in 2016 and 2019, and the Way Too Cool 50k in 2016.[7][8] He has also competed in the duathlon, placing ninth in the 2009 World Triathlon Duathlon Championships.[9]

In 2024, Roche won the Leadville Trail 100 in 15:26:34 in his first 100-mile race. He broke the previous 19-year-old record held by Matt Carpenter.[10]

Coaching Career

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Roche currently coaches, alongside his wife, elite runners including Grayson Murphy, Clare Gallagher, Amelia Boone, Allie Ostrander, Stephanie Garcia, Erin Clark, and John Kelly.[11] He often works with athletes with a history of disordered eating.[6] Under his coaching, his athletes have achieved top finishes at the Leadville Trail 100, World Mountain Running Championships, and Barkley Marathons and competed in the 2024 US Olympic Trials.[10][12][13]

Roche and his wife published a book, The Happy Runner: Love the Process, Get Faster, Run Longer, in 2019.[14]

References

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  1. ^ a b "A Match Made in Mountain Running". Trail Runner Magazine. 2017-04-26. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  2. ^ Dreier, Frederick (2024-08-21). "David Roche Had Never Raced 100 Miles. He Still Smashed the Leadville 100 Ultramarathon". Outside Online. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  3. ^ Fitzgerald, Jason (2024-09-12). "Why David Roche Needed 4-Minute Mile Speed to Win the Leadville 100 (+ More Secrets)". Strength Running. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  4. ^ "Roche, David - Football". Columbia University Athletics. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  5. ^ "Going Up: Roche and Deakins Contending for Mountain Cup Titles". Runner's World. 2014-05-09. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  6. ^ a b Mertens, Maggie (2024-08-08). "A new generation of elite female runners embraces strength over thinness". NPR. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  7. ^ "Quad Dipsea". www.quad-dipsea.com. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  8. ^ "2016 Way Too Cool Race Results (50 KM )". Ultra Running Magazine. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  9. ^ Triathlon, World. "Results: 20-24 Male AG | 2009 Concord ITU Duathlon World Championships". World Triathlon. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  10. ^ a b "In His First 100-Miler, David Roche Demolishes the Legendary Leadville 100 Course Record". Runner's World. 2024-08-19. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  11. ^ Play, Some Work All. "SWAP Adventure Team". SWAP Adventure Team. Retrieved 2024-06-15.
  12. ^ Sandrock, Michael (2022-08-15). "Ultrarunner Clare Gallagher: Her dominance 'is impressively consistent'". Boulder Daily Camera. Retrieved 2024-06-15.
  13. ^ Helminiak, Jeff (2024-06-11). "Ostrander wins tuneup race for Olympic Trials". Peninsula Clarion. Retrieved 2024-06-15.
  14. ^ Roche, David; Roche, Megan (2019). The Happy Runner: Love the Process, Get Faster, Run Longer. Champaign, Illinois: Human Kinetics. ISBN 9781492567646.