Current Residence
Boulder, CO
Hometown
Webster City, IA
High School
Oviedo High, near Orlando, FL
First Trials qualification
No
Previous Trials
Track and Field 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020
Number of attempts to qualify
1
College(s)
University of Colorado
Career Highlights
3-time Olympian at 1,500m, including 2016 bronze medal); 7-time member Team USA for World Athletics Championships (including 2011 1,500m World Champion and silver medalist in 2013 and 2017); ranked #1 in world and was Diamond League Champion in 2014; 4-time NCAA Champion (3 in steeplechase, 1 indoor 3,000m), set five collegiate records.
Family
My husband, Jason Simpson, qualified for and raced in the 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials in Atlanta. My sister, Emily Steenland, served in the Army for 12 years and is now retired, and my brother, John Barringer, is a Christian pastor in Jacksonville, FL. My parents are Bruce and Janet Barringer.
Greatest Accomplishment
Marrying Jason Simpson. And I'm serious. This guy is everyone's favorite ... and I'm his favorite. #1 accomplishment for sure.
Interesting Story
I'm debuting in the marathon at age 37 in my 5th Olympic Trials. I've done and accomplished everything on the track I could possibly imagine. My transition to the marathon is unlikely and has been grueling and will finally be complete on Feb 3 in Orlando. I chose this journey because I knew it could be the hardest chapter yet and I would grow and learn a lot about myself and my team in the process. I grew up in Oviedo just down the road from Orlando and the culmination of the most challenging chapter of my career yet will take me back to where it all started. That feels really special, after an already-long career that has delivered so many special moments all along the way.
Favorite Book
The Right Stuff
Favorite Movie
The Truman Show
Favorite TV Show/Series
Seinfeld
Favorite Post-race Indulgence
Blue Bell Ice Cream
Favorite Breakfast
All breakfast is my favorite breakfast
Favorite Motivational Quote
"It's hard to beat a person who never gives up." - Babe Ruth
Favorite Running Memory
Too many to nail down an exact favorite. But one super special: I was still in a college uniform in 2009 when I raced the Pre Classic and broke 4 minutes in the 1,500m for the first time. In my cool-down after that race, I had so so so many incredible professional athletes I admired coming up to me just absolutely slack-jawed at what they witnessed. The race was incredible but it was seeing the reaction from the pros I looked up to that was the more out-of-body experience. I'll never forget running around the field that afternoon and kind of realizing nothing would be the same moving forward.