BOSTON—Even Olympic medalists wish they could have a do-over when it comes to racing. 

Hours before the adidas Dream Mile competitors toe the line at Dilboy Stadium today, Robby Andrews, Nick Willis, and Emily Lipari each shared one race where they regretted their strategy, but learned from the experience.

They hope their years of wisdom will help the high school runners ahead of the adidas BOOST Boston Games. Andrews, Willis and Lipari encouraged the young athletes to take advantage of Friday’s opportunity by learning from their mistakes. 

Robby Andrews

Andrews said he regretted his pre-race anxiety ahead of the 2012 Olympic Trials 1500m final. At the time, Andrews recently made the decision to turn pro after winning two NCAA 800m titles at Virginia. He was 21 at the time, and had only competed at one senior national championship prior to the Trials. 

Days before the 1500m final, Andrews said his nerves took over—to the point where he could barely eat or sleep. Under-nourished and stressed, Andrews ended up fifth in the race and missed making the Olympic team by just over a second. 

“My coach tells me I was one sandwich and a Gatorade away from making the Olympic team [laughs],” Andrews said. 



Four years later, Andrews has learned from the mishap. He finished fourth in the 1500m at the World Indoor Championships in March. 

“I’ve never not eaten on race day again because it’s not worth it to worry that much about a race,” Andrews said. “I do this because I love it and I do it because it’s what I want to do, not because I have to.”

Nick Willis

Willis shared his disappointing experience of finishing ninth in the 2012 Olympic 1500m final following a silver medal at the 2008 Games in Beijing.

The New Zealand athlete chalked it up to peaking too early and getting distracted by the national pressures ahead of the Games. He was chosen as the flag bearer for his country that year, and got caught up in the "fanfare."

Willis remembered his legs feeling like “quicksand” in the homestretch of final. 



“It felt like I was a spectator in the race, watching the Olympic final down on the track and watching the others participate and I just couldn’t do anything,” Willis said. “I shouldn’t have been thinking about how they [fans] were judging me as I’m tying up in the last 200m, that only cripples you more.

“I love to compete—ultimately, that’s why I chose this sport—and I love to win,” Willis said. “I wish I had gone back to that mindset, because who cares what other people are thinking. You end up running the most freely when you’re in that mindset.”

Looking back, Willis can pinpoint what went wrong in the weeks leading up to the Games. Seven weeks prior, he had what he still considers the best workout of his life. But he now knows that should have been cause for concern so far out from the championship. 

He ran 400m, 800m, 1200m in 58 seconds, 1:57, and 2:57, respectively. He put on spikes and followed the three initial intervals with two 200s in 26, two 300s in 39 and one all-out 400m in 50 seconds. 

“Rather than seeing that as an indicator that I peaked too early, we thought, ‘Well, I have to be running these times if I want to keep progressing,” Willis said. “We got caught up in what other people were doing rather than focusing how how to get myself in peak shape at the right time."

Four years later, Willis earned a bronze medal at the 2016 World Indoor Championships and improved his all-time best to 3:29.66 at 32 years old. 

Emily Lipari

Villanova graduate and Boston Athletic Association standout Lipari shared her last college championship experience of finishing fourth in the 2014 NCAA Outdoor 1500m final.  

At the time, Lipari was a senior who had yet to lose an outdoor 1500m race and was returning from winning an NCAA title in the indoor mile. 

But in the NCAA outdoor final, Lipari failed to run her consistent race strategy. She went to the back of the pack immediately, and began to panic. With 100 meters to go, Lipari was in eighth, but managed to use her signature kick to take fourth overall. 



“If I could re-do it, then I would run the race that I was running all year and not worry about every other person that might be better than me,” Lipari said. “You’re going to be racing good people all the time, but you can’t stop being you and you have to take the opportunity that you’re given.”