ROLLA, Mo. – Des Linden, the 2018 winner of the Boston Marathon, will speak on campus as part of the Mullin/Elmore Leadership Speaker Series on Saturday, Nov. 13 at 7 p.m., in the Student Recreation Center at Missouri S&T.  Admission to the event will be free of charge, but tickets to the event must be reserved in advance through minertix.universitytickets.com.

There will be a meet and greet with Linden at Allgood-Bailey Stadium at 3:30 p.m., on the day of the event, followed by a group run/walk on the track in the stadium starting at 4 p.m.  The speaking event, "Keep Showing Up: The Importance of Consistency," will start at 7 p.m.

Linden became the first American woman to win the Boston Marathon when she crossed the finish line first in a time of 2:39.55.  She is one of the most accomplished distance runners in American history, as she is also the world record holder in the 50-kilometer run as she became the first to ever complete the race in under three hours earlier this year.

"Des is one of the most accomplished American marathon runners of all time," said Curt Elmore, a former S&T student-athlete in cross country and track & field and current secretary-treasurer of the Academy of Miner Athletics.  "In a sport known for endurance, Des has a reputation as the toughest of the tough.  When rain, wind and cold temperatures cause her competitors to cower, this is when she is at her best."

Linden has posted top times in her career of 2:22.38 in the marathon (26.2 miles), 1:10.34 in the half marathon (13.1 miles) to go along with her world record mark in the 50K.  She finished fourth in the 2020 Olympic Trials in the marathon with a time of 2:29.03.

Linden competed collegiately at Arizona State University and was a two-time All-America performer for the Sun Devils in track and cross country.  Linden graduated from the university in 2005 and when she was being recruited to ASU, her host on the recruiting trip was current S&T head cross country coach Mary Duerbeck.