Photos from a Historic Women’s Olympic Trials Race

But for many runners, getting to the starting line of the most exclusive marathon in the country was a victory in itself. Two runners in their third trimester of pregnancy, Rachel Hyland (27 weeks) and Lauren Philbrook (33 weeks) ran several miles together before eventually dropping out (as planned). “I think it was a visible way to show that many female runners are balancing multiple priorities (that may impact performance) when they line up to compete,” Hyland, who was running 70 miles a week until the end of January, says of her decision to participate in the Trials. “I was absolutely blown away by all of the encouragement on the course,” she adds. “Those high fives that I shared with other women on the course as they lapped me were some of the most powerful gestures of solidarity that I have ever experienced.”