She was tenth in her age division and first among Canadians.
After Boston, Croft competed in the Portland Rock ‘n’ Roll Half Marathon in Portland, Ore. on May 20. She says she was the second female to cross the finish line behind Olympic athlete Kara Gaucher.
“Really, really exciting,” says Croft in a phone interview about her results. “I feel really happy to share it with my family and friends.”
Originally from Liverpool, the Redmond, Washington resident was one of 1,814 Canadians to finish the Boston Marathon.
But running is not the only thing Croft does – that is, it’s not the only sport she competes in. She also does in ironman competitions and triathlons.
“I apparently learned to swim before I could walk…biked everywhere or wouldn’t have gotten anywhere and started to competitively run when I was 17 because I loved the way it made me feel,” she says.
Twenty years later, she still spends a lot of time swimming, cycling and running. But she’s also got her day job as a critical care nurse at the University of Washington Medical Center.
Croft got her bachelor of science in nursing from Dalhousie University in 2002. She says she’s been working as a nurse since graduating.
It was in her final year of university, she says, when a friend of hers introduced her to triathlon.
“I began to compete in a number of Olympic distance, duathlons and eventually long-course running and triathlon events,” she says. “When I was 28 years old, I began to achieve podium finishes at all of the events I competed in.”
In her 11th year of competing in running, cycling and multisport races, Croft says she feels as though she can compete with the best athletes in the world. Her times are continuing to improve, she adds.
“I am continually running faster mile-repeats in training and with focus believe I can improve my bike splits, swimming technique and race times in all areas.”
When training, Croft says she focuses on her plans and goals. Though balancing her time is important, training involves a number of hours, especially during the racing reason. She says many of her hours at this time of year are spent working and training.
“It’s a huge commitment, but it pays off well,” she says. “I have fun when I compete, it’s exciting, and it’s fun to travel to different places and meet other elite athletes who love to do it. It’s a passion, and it’s a total commitment.”
Though Croft is set to compete in a number of events in the coming months, she says her next big event is the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon in Seattle, Wash. on June 23.
She says she won last year as the overall female finisher.
“This year I’ll be going back as the defending champion, so I hope to win that,” Croft says.
