Chris Sloane has been running for 23 years, and coaching for 10 years. Chris has competed in over a dozen US Championships, including a 27th place in the 2018 US 10K Championship, 34th place in the 2016 US Half Marathon Championship, and a 1st place for his age group 30-34 in the 2016 US 15K Championship. Chris has run 1:05:25 for the half marathon (4:59 per mile), currently his best distance. Although he is continuing to pursue the marathon, in which he has run a 2:25 twice.
Chris grew up in Gaithersburg, MD, and has been running for over 20 years. Originally a soccer player, Chris got cut from the high school soccer team and decided to give cross country a try. As a freshman, he made the varsity team at Quince Orchard and competed through his senior year to finish 12th in the Cross Country State Championship. After high school, Chris went to Virginia Tech where he made the cross country and track teams as a walk on. At Virginia Tech, Chris was coached by Ben Thomas, who is now the University of Oregon Distance Coach. Chris learned a lot under Thomas' training, and applies a lot of what he learned to his coaching today. Chris' high school coach, Seann Pelkey, always saw Chris as a strength runner, and Thomas helped bring out Chris' potential for longer distances. Although Chris ran PRs for 3K, 5K, 8K, and 10K at Virginia Tech, he felt there was a lot more in him after finishing his collegiate career.
Following a break from running to finish his architecture degree at Virginia Tech, Chris realized he needed running in his life and felt a burning desire to compete again and perhaps do better in the longer distances. During college, Chris did run a half marathon in 1:16 and a marathon in 2:38. They gave him insight on what his potential could be in those distances. Chris got back into his running in 2007 but was out of shape, and needed a kick in the butt to get back in gear. He joined the Georgetown Running Club and trained with them for a few years. He returned to his old form, and he started running PRs. Chris then switched club teams because of his job working at Potomac River Running Store (=PR=). In 2011, Chris had a big breakthrough year - he ran PRs in the mile, 5K, 10K, 10 Mile, Half & Full Marathon. In 2012, he qualified for his first US Half Marathon Championship, held in Duluth, MN. Although he had a disappointing race, he came back in 2014 to finish 56th in the US Half Marathon Championship, in a time of 1:07:29 (held in Houston). Up until this point Chris had coached himself. As Chris got to a pretty high level in his running, he began exploring other opportunities. In April of 2014, following a 19th place in the US Mens 10 Mile Championship (hosted by Cherry Blossom), he made a trip down to Greenville, SC to visit Greenville Track Club Elite for an opportunity to run for a pro team and for Asics. Although Chris was impressed with the overall visit, something in him told him it wasn't the right thing to do. It was a tough decision to make. Back at home, Chris found out =PR= had a coach for a new team name called DC Elite, who was Roland Rust. Although Chris had been training himself up to this point, he felt he needed a mentor to guide him to the next level up from where he had gotten to. Chris felt he was at a point where it was very difficult for him to improve. Roland taught Chris through a Lydiard style approach, and Chris tested his body to the absolute limit, pushing his mileage higher than ever before. Chris had to learn additional ways to push his body besides what he learned in college. He trained in Florida - running intervals in brutal heat, and ran 120 miles/week. There was a lot of success, and in 2015, Chris was ranked the #2 runner in the DC area, behind Chris Kwiatkowski who was a pro that ran for Oregon training under Centrowitz. Chris went head to head with Kwiatkowski at the 2015 Lawyers Have Heart 10K, where they were together until the final mile. Chris also finished 2nd in the 2015 Rockville Twilighter, losing only to an Ethiopian. In 2015, Chris signed onto the Saucony Hurricane team.
Start line of 2015 Rockville Twilighter
Finish of 2015 Rockville Twilighter
2015 Lawyers Have Heart 10K, chasing Chris Kwiatkowski
There was some frustration Chris had too - he was unable to finish a marathon under Roland's training - and later on Chris believed he was a bit over trained going into the marathons he attempted. It wasn't Roland's fault, as both Chris and Roland were trying to push Chris to a new level. Thankfully, the results showed in other races. In 2016, in what is one of the best performances Chris has run to date, he was recruited to take part in an Olympic Trials qualifying attempt in Jacksonville, Florida, for the half marathon (1:05:00) standard. Although this was a long shot for Chris, he wanted to improve his monster PR of 1:07:29. 60 elite men were recruited, and Chris finished 40th among them, in a time of 1:06:50. It was a personal breakthrough for Chris, as he really never thought he could ever run 5:05 miles for the 13.1 distance. The first half of 2016 was very successful for Chris. He placed 17th in the World Class Cherry Blossom 10 Miler and was 9th American. He also was the 1st place 30-34 year old in the US 15K Championships, and placed 34th in the 2016 US Half Marathon Championships.
Chris places 34th at the 2016 US Half Marathon Championships
The second half of 2016, however, Chris developed bad plantar fascitis in his left foot. His second half of 2016 was derailed, and Chris and Roland agreed to depart (respectfully - they keep in touch). Chris concluded the mileage was pushed too much. (So for those of you who think higher mileage without intensity is injury proof, think again!) While Chris had gotten to a new successful level in his running, he needed to rest and heal for a while. The second half of 2016 he did not race, and ran minimally during the fall. Chris unfortunately also lost the Saucony sponsorship he had. He needed to reset and begin again.
In 2017, Chris returned to self coaching, and slightly decreased his volume of training (but not dramatically). It worked. It took a while to get back to fitness, but by spring Chris had returned to his former self. He set a new 5K PR, won the Crystal City Twilighter 5K, and outkicked pro Nike runner Andrew Bumbalough in the US 10K Championships in Atlanta. He was also 2nd in both the Annapolis 10 Miler and Parks Half Marathon. In 2017, Chris was once again ranked #2 in the Washington DC area by RunWashington Magazine. Most significant that year however, would be that Chris met his now-girlfriend Silvia, who he started coaching in 2017. That fall, Silvia won the Baltimore Marathon. During that time, the city was going through some really rough times, and Chris saw the power of Silvia's inspiration as women on the streets cheered for her during the race.
The 2017 Baltimore Women's Champion, Silvia Baage
Chris places 27th at the 2017 US 10K Championships, Atlanta, GA
Chris was ranked #2 in 2017 by RunWashington
But even after the success Chris had in 2017, the next few years were a breakthrough for Chris.
In 2018, Chris ran one of the best races of his life, finishing a stellar 6th place in the World Class Army Ten Miler in Washington, DC. He also placed 27th in the US 10K Championships, and competed in a pro meet in Oregon for 10,000m. He traveled to the UK, competing in the elite field of the Great North Run and started next to Mo Farah. He joined the MCRRC racing team, and both Chris and Silvia were awarded runners of the year for MCRRC in 2018. Towards the end of 2018, Chris chipped off a bit of his half marathon PR, running 1:06:37, before running another PR of 2:25:05 in the marathon to finish the year.
Chris races in Washington, DC to place 6th in the Army Ten Miler
Then, in the beginning of 2019, Chris ran the fastest half marathon race of his career, a 1:05:25 at the Houston Half Marathon, averaging 4:59/mile. Chris personally feels this is his best performance of all time. In 2019, Chris won 7 races (one of them the Parks Half Marathon, another was Pikes Peek 10K). He also set a course record for age 35-39 at the Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon, in 1:06:18.
Chris races a 1:05:25 PR at the 2019 Houston Half Marathon
To date, the 2020 Houston Marathon remains Chris' last race since Covid-19.
Chris and Silvia are entered in the 2021 Houston Half Marathon.
Time for an update, dude!
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