From Walking Away From Pro Running in 2018 to the Fastest American EVER at Boston: Jess McClain on the Greatest Comeback in American Marathon History

THE RUNNING EFFECT PODCAST · May 21, 2026 · 1h 1m

Jess McClain went from anonymous to American course record holder in about two years. She'll tell you that it’s not actually that simple.

The 2024 Olympic Trials were the moment the running world met Jess when she finished fourth in Orlando, out of nowhere—or so the story went.

In this episode, she explains what that looked like from the inside: going in without expectations, with her husband Connor by her side, determined to be the person at the start line who was having the most fun. She'd been running at a high level since she was 12; the crowd just hadn't been paying attention.

What…