Eight Questions with Jess McClain, 4th in 2024 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials (now a sponsored Brooks Running athlete)

The 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon was full of surprises on February 3, 2024. One of them was the superb 4th place finish by Jess McClain, who had recently taken a two year break from racing. Jess McClain scored a 4 minute PB in Orlando, and recently signed a sponsorship deal with Brooks Running. From 2014-2018, Jess had run from the Brooks Beasts TC.

We reached out to Jess McClain through Megan Stills, at Brooks communications with 8 questions. We thank Jess for her time and answers and Megan for putting this opportunity together. 

RunBlogRun, # 1. Tell us about your race in Orlando. What went according to plan, and what surprised you?

Jess McClain: The race in Orlando is undoubtedly my most cherished race memory—I had so much fun. The plan was to put myself in the race from the start and find a good place in the lead pack for the first 13.1 miles. I did this for the first three miles until I realized we were running well under 5:30, which was too quick for me.

I made the call to back off and work in the second pack of awesome women through about 10 miles and then started to work my way back up to the women who were falling off the first pack. I ran by myself until about mile 14/15 and then slowly worked to catch some of the women before me. I kept moving up throughout the rest of the race and realized I was in fourth place with about 800m to go, a little too late to catch third. But I was so happy with my performance—nearly a four-minute personal best!

RunBlogRun, # 2. How do you feel about being a professional runner with a sponsor, Brooks?

Jess McClain: I am so excited to be a Brooks athlete again. I spent time at the Brooks Hyperion house in Orlando, and it felt like a sense of home to be around the brand, old teammates, and Brooks employees again. I feel very fortunate to be supported by Brooks at this stage in life—married, working in the nonprofit sector, and living in Arizona full-time. I am so excited to join a brand at the forefront of our sport for so many years. It feels great to be back!

RunBlogRun, # 3. How is your recovery going?

Jess McClain: Recovery is going great, and I am three weeks back into training! After my last two marathons, I found taking complete time off and then a few weeks of easy running beneficial. I went to Cabo with my family to hit the reset button and have been diligent about bodywork (massage and bodywork)…