Top Canadian Woman at Boston Marathon Relocating to Austin

Michelle Krezonoski was the first Canadian woman to cross the finish line last Monday at the 128^th annual Boston Marathon. Why does that matter for the Austin running community? Because we’re delighted to announce that Michelle has landed a job at The University of Texas and will be moving here in May.

It’s not Michelle’s first taste of Texas. After all, she ran for Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, TX as a Division II athlete. Additionally, during the past few years, she started training with Austin’s Bat City Track Club under coach Jeff Cunningham.

“I found out about Bat City Track Club online and sent Jeff a message,” said Krezonoski. So I’ve been training (remotely) with Jeff since 2021. I did some training in Austin during the winter for a few years. You feel so much community and connection in Austin. It’s been a life-changing move.”

Building up for Boston was a bit tricky. Krezonoski, 30, was coming off a partially torn Achillies in September 2023 and didn’t really start training again until January.

“I partially  tore my Achillies last fall, so I started off in January run-walking. So I only had four months to get ready for Boston,” she said. “Patience was the key. You don’t go to Boston to run fast; you go to Boston to race. My race went well strategy-wise—I kept consistent pacing. I aimed for top 30 and came in 23^rd.”

Michelle ran even splits, speeding to a 2:38:23, while her twin sister Kim Krezonoski, posted a 2:40:50, finishing a few places behind Michelle.

“It was important to race well but also to have fun. You’re lining up with the world’s best. Anything can happen on race day. You can make excuses or you can control, the controllables.  Going into it I focused my energy on race strategy—nutrition, hydration along  the course. I ran conservatively, holding back because I knew that in Boston, the race begins at mile 17,”  said Krezonoski, who is looking to run the Chevron Houston Marathon in 2025.

“I’m so proud of them,” said Cunningham. “A a top 25 finish for Michelle and 26th for Kim in their first IAAF Gold Label world major is fabulous!”

“It felt special to be the first Canadian woman to finish… Everyone peaks for this race. It’s exciting that I’ll be permanently based in Austin and I’ll use the support of the strong Austin running community for my dreams of going to the Olympics,” said Krezonoski.  “The first time I came to Austin was for the Texas Relays in 2013. I ran the 10K. I remember stepping out on Town Lake trail and thinking ‘this is home’.

I was looking for a job to move to Austin permanently,” added Krezonoski, who earned a degree in biology and chemistry from Midwestern State. “I will be working in the UT anatomy lab in the biology instructional office. This move totally aligns with my training and taking my running to the next level.”

Upcoming Races:  Saturday, April 27, the Luau 5K, 10K, & Half Marathon, at 8:00 a.m. at Pfennig Park, Pflugerville. Saturday, April 27, the Austin Falls Ultra 50K, 30K, 20K, 10K, 5K trail run at McKinney Falls State Park. Races begin at 7:00 a.m.