Irish class of 2006 runner Molly Huddle broke the American record while finishing sixth in the 10,000 meters at the Rio Olympic Games. Competing in her second Olympics, Huddle ran a time of 30:17.17 which knocked five seconds off the previous record of 30:22.48 held by Shalane Flanagan.  This Olympic race was exceptionally fast as Huddle’s time would have been good for a medal at every other Olympics. Almaz Ayana from Ethiopia won the race in 29:17.45, smashing the previous world record by 14 seconds. Kenyan Vivian Cheruiyot won the silver with a Kenyan national record time of 29:32.53, and fellow Ethiopian Tirunesh Dibaba took bronze in 29:42.56.

Huddle was a 10-time All American in both track and cross country for the Irish. As a professional, she’s won multiple US championships and also holds the record for the 5000m at 14:42.64. Huddle previously competed in the 2012 London Olympic games where she finished 11th in the 5000m. She’s expected to make her marathon debut this fall in New York.

Other Irish Olympians in Rio

In addition to Huddle, numerous other Irish alums have been competing at the Rio Games. Notre Dame Fencing sent five of 14 fencers on the US team to the games. The men’s foil team which includes former Irish fencer Gerek Meinhardt faces Italy for the bronze medal this afternoon. Former gold medalist Mariel Zagunis lost in the round of 16 in her individual competition. She’ll be part of the team sabre event on Saturday. Natalie Achonwa, 2014 women’s basketball alum, is competing for the currently undefeated Canadian team. They face the gold medal favorite team USA later in pool play. Soccer alum Melissa Tancredi is also competing for Canada. On the coaching side, former Irish basketball star Monty Williams is an assistant coach for gold medal favorite team USA men’s basketball.