Written by S. Quinn DeJoy and J. Murrer

Jul. 30, 2014:  Last Thursday Mary Cain won the 3000m in the IAAF World Junior Championships with a personal best time of 8:58.48. Cain has come a long way from that young teenage girl running at Bronxville's Chambers Field. She is currently a U.S. junior record holder and, now, an accomplished athlete on the world stage.

"Today I was able to win in a nine-minute race," said Cain in an IAAF World Junior interview after her win. "It was actually a PR for me, but I know I can run faster."

The race went according to plan. Cain was relaxed, staying back in the pack while two Kenyan runners, Lilian Rengeruk and Valentina Mateiko, jostled for the lead. With just 400m to go, Cain remained boxed in the middle of a seven-racer pack, and as the racers approached the final lap it seemed as though it would be impossible for Cain to make a move.

"I just tried to stay calm and tell myself if I am there with 200m to go, that's my sort of race."

With less than half a lap left, Cain found her opening, sprinting past the leaders and finishing the race a full two seconds ahead of second-place finisher Rengeruk.

"The last 120m, I really made my move," noted Cain. "Of course, there was a little bit of a stumble, but if anything, I think that got me going quicker because I immediately got up and got into sprint mode."

The World Junior Championships, held every other year, first took place in Greece in 1986. This year's event, which was held at the University of Oregon, marked the first time the championships were held in the US. It was a perfect venue for Cain, who trains with the Nike Oregon Project in Portland. She was a "hometown" favorite.

"That was just such an amazing experience," said an exuberant Cain. "I mean the last 50m just felt so good. I know you aren't supposed to look up at the screen, but I was looking up, and I was, oh my gosh, I hope I'm in the lead. That last 50 was amazing with the crowd. There was nowhere else where they would be that loud for me, so that was surreal."

In late August, Cain will race against the world's best professionals in the Stockholm and Zurich Diamond League meets. Then, she will head to University of Portland to begin her college experience. Cain, who will be part of the honors program, will take 19 credits this fall and continue to train under Alberto Salazar.

Cain was thrilled to have won the race and happy to be representing the United States. "I've got the flag here," said Cain after the race. "We are going to hear the national anthem later. So I'm just really pumped."

Click this link to see a YouTube video of Cain's race at the IAAF World Junior Championships: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3opMcfWPphs.

Pictured here:  A young Mary Cain (center) running at Chambers Field.

Photo by J. Murrer