Des Linden Books
Des Linden is an American long-distance runner and Olympian best known for winning the 2018 Boston Marathon, becoming the first American woman to do so in 33 years. She has represented the United States in multiple Olympic Games and is recognized for her perseverance and candid insights into the sport of running.
Known for: Choosing To Run: A Memoir
Books by Des Linden
Choosing To Run: A Memoir
Choosing To Run is more than a sports memoir. It is a clear-eyed, deeply human account of what it means to commit to a difficult path for years, often without applause, certainty, or guarantees. In this book, Des Linden—Boston Marathon champion, Olympian, and one of America’s most respected distance runners—recounts the long road from a movement-loving kid in California to the winner of the brutal 2018 Boston Marathon. Co-written with journalist Bonnie D. Ford, the memoir blends race stories with reflections on discipline, identity, injury, disappointment, and the quiet mental habits that sustain elite performance. What makes the book matter is not just Linden’s historic victory, but the way she interprets it. She shows that success in endurance sports is rarely glamorous. It is built through repetition, self-trust, adaptation, and the willingness to keep showing up when progress feels invisible. Her authority comes not only from medals and major races, but from decades spent living the demands of professional running at the highest level. For athletes, ambitious professionals, and anyone facing a long challenge, Choosing To Run offers an honest, practical portrait of resilience in action.
Read SummaryKey Insights from Des Linden
Early Movement Shapes Lifelong Identity
Long before achievement becomes public, it begins as private fascination. One of the strongest threads in Choosing To Run is Des Linden’s early love of movement—the simple, instinctive joy of speed, effort, and physical freedom. Growing up in California, she was not yet a future marathon champion in...
From Choosing To Run: A Memoir
College Reveals the Cost of Excellence
Talent opens doors, but structure reveals the true price of ambition. At Arizona State University, running became more serious for Des Linden. College was not just a period of development; it was a reality check. Training, classes, travel, recovery, and competition had to coexist, and the romantic i...
From Choosing To Run: A Memoir
Going Pro Means Embracing Uncertainty
The leap from promising performer to professional is less like a coronation and more like entering a storm. In Choosing To Run, Linden’s transition to professional running highlights an often-overlooked truth: turning talent into a career can make life feel less secure, not more. Expectations rise, ...
From Choosing To Run: A Memoir
Olympic Dreams Test Inner Composure
Big stages do not automatically reveal your best self; they reveal how well you have trained your mind. Linden’s Olympic experiences in the memoir show that qualifying for and competing in the Olympics is not just a physical achievement. It is a psychological test involving pressure, national expect...
From Choosing To Run: A Memoir
Setbacks Become Part of the Training
Resilience is not built by avoiding interruption; it is built by learning how to continue through it. Injuries and setbacks occupy a central place in Linden’s story because they reveal the less visible side of elite running. Progress is rarely linear. Bodies break down, plans unravel, and identity g...
From Choosing To Run: A Memoir
Bad Weather Favors Clear Thinking
Extraordinary results often come from ordinary decisions made calmly under extreme conditions. Linden’s 2018 Boston Marathon victory is the defining event of the memoir, but she presents it not as a miracle, but as the outcome of preparation meeting chaos. The weather was brutal—cold, wet, windy, an...
From Choosing To Run: A Memoir
About Des Linden
Des Linden is an American long-distance runner and Olympian best known for winning the 2018 Boston Marathon, becoming the first American woman to do so in 33 years. She has represented the United States in multiple Olympic Games and is recognized for her perseverance and candid insights into the spo...
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Des Linden is an American long-distance runner and Olympian best known for winning the 2018 Boston Marathon, becoming the first American woman to do so in 33 years. She has represented the United States in multiple Olympic Games and is recognized for her perseverance and candid insights into the spo...
Des Linden is an American long-distance runner and Olympian best known for winning the 2018 Boston Marathon, becoming the first American woman to do so in 33 years. She has represented the United States in multiple Olympic Games and is recognized for her perseverance and candid insights into the sport of running.
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Des Linden is an American long-distance runner and Olympian best known for winning the 2018 Boston Marathon, becoming the first American woman to do so in 33 years. She has represented the United States in multiple Olympic Games and is recognized for her perseverance and candid insights into the sport of running.
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