Aliphine Tuliamuk was the surprise winner of the Olympic Trials marathon on Feb. 29.
The elation was short-lived, though. Within a month, the coronavirus pandemic had forced organizers to postpone the Tokyo Olympics by a year. Tuliamuk’s attention briefly shifted toward a fall marathon. But when it became clear that nearly every major marathon would be canceled, her focus once again shifted.
At 31, she and her partner, Tim Gannon, decided that fate had given them a small window to have a child.
“We’ve been wanting to start a family, and so the disruptions to the 2020 season made it possible for us to start a family before the Olympics,” Tuliamuk said.