29. The Race She Wasn't Supposed to Run: Sara Girotto on Gold Medals, Sub-3 Marathons, and Believing You Belong

Unstoppable At Any Age · Oct 8, 2026 · 43m

Her actual race got cancelled by wildfire smoke.

So Sara Girotto lined up for the 1500m instead, an event she'd run maybe twice in her life, and won the national title.

In this episode of Unstoppable at Any Age, I sit down with Sara, who didn't start running until she was closing in on 40, ran her first marathon with no idea what a gel was, and is now a two-time sub-3 marathoner in her 50s and a USATF Masters national champion.

Sara grew up in Italy, where school sports aren't woven into daily life the way they are in North America. She didn't run competitively as a kid, commuted to college…