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Ben Flanagan is a 27 year old Canadian track and road runner who has been setting records and winning races seemingly every time he toes a start line lately. He grew up in Kitchener ON with big dreams of becoming a hockey player, but when his growth spurt never materialized he switched focus to running and has never looked back. Always drawn to the NCAA, he decided to attend the University of Michigan and serendipitously wound up being coached by Canadian middle distance legend Kevin Sullivan, who he credits with developing him into the athlete and competitor he is today. Ben capped off his university years in 2018 with an NCAA title in the 10,000m in a race that, on paper, he wasn’t a favourite to win. This put him on the map and he’s had pro contracts ever since, first with the Reebok Boston Track Club and more recently with On Running. In the past year alone, Ben has won the prestigious and historic Falmouth and Manchester road races, became the Canadian 10K Champion twice (Toronto 2021, Ottawa 2022), ran a half marathon PB of 61:38 in Houston, and set a new Canadian 10K record on the roads of Boston in a time of 28:11, six seconds faster than the previous record which had stood for 35 years.

It hasn’t been all rainbows and sunshine for Ben, though. Five months prior to winning NCAAs in 2018 when he was on the verge of a breakthrough, he was so plagued with injuries that he thought about hanging it all up. We talk about several serious and important topics such as stress fractures, underfueling and RED-S, as well as why bringing his competitive mindset to cross training may have backfired on him.

Although Ben is at the very top of his sport, he’s as down-to-earth and funny as can be. He recently proposed to his girlfriend Hannah and you’ll have to keep listening for the incredible story about how the two of them first met. So without further delay, please enjoy this jam packed episode with Ben Flanagan.

Connect with Ben:

• Instagram: @ben_flanagan

Resources we discussed in the episode:

• Video: Ben's NCAA 10,000m win
• Favourite Mantra: Don’t take the lead until you know you’re going to win;  Running means everything and it means nothing.
• Favourite Place to Run: Ann Arbor track; Kitchener, ON
• Bucket List Race: Toronto Waterfront Marathon; Boston Marathon; Paris 2024 Olympics (marathon)
• Favourite Running Book/Movie: Once a Runner; Without Limits
• Favourite Post Run Indulgence: Pizza & beer

Connect with Carolyn & Kim:

• Email us with guest ideas: [email protected]
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• Carolyn's Facebook
• Carolyn's website (sign up for her free weekly newsletter on the homepage)

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