Nell Rojas, Coached By Her Father, Will Return To Boston Marathon After Debuting As Top American Woman In 2021
BOSTON (CBS) -- For Nell and Ric Rojas, the Boston Marathon is a family affair.
In 2020, Nell finished as the top American woman in sixth place. It was just her fourth marathon -- and she's still getting comfortable with that success.
"When you're going against the best in the world, it's weird to be like, 'yeah I can run with them,' but you have to tell yourself that every morning," said Nell Rojas.
She made a statement in her Boston Marathon running debut last fall and finished with a personal best of two hours, 27 minutes, and 12 seconds.
"I knew she was going to run well but to be as competitive as she was with the international athletes, I was very impressed. very impressed," said dad Ric Rojas.
Her success on the roads has created more demands on her time, or as Nell chooses to see it, more opportunities.
"Running used to be all about just working hard and finding my limits. Now, it really is more about involvement and inspiring a little bit more because I am in the position to inspire other strong, female, and Latina athletes," said Nell.
Growing up, Nell played basketball and soccer; she even tried figure skating. She didn't get serious about running until college.
"My dad was a coach and a runner growing up so I was always around runners," said Nell.
Ric set state high school records in New Mexico, was all-Ivy at Harvard, and competed at the highest levels nationally. But he left it to Nell to choose her own path.
"My dad let me make the decisions," said Nell. "I wasn't pressured into being a runner. That helped me grow into my love for running and do it my own way."
And there was no question that her father would be part of that.
"I was never really concerned about coaching her, as her dad. Nell's very coachable. I think the key thing is with a coach-athlete relationship is the coach has to be firm, on one hand, but the athlete has to be coachable, as well," said Ric.
"There was one point where we coached a team together, he was my dad and my co-worker and my coach, so there's a lot of family time. We make it work pretty well," Nell said.
Ric ran Boston three times. He could barely contain himself when he saw his daughter at the front of the pack last fall.
"Oh my god, my heart went crazy on that. It was so much fun. I can't tell you," he said.
The Rojas team was back on the course last month. Nell is feeling good about her second shot at Boston.
"I'm running faster. My workouts are faster. I'm running more mileage. I've gotten a little bit more experience. I know what the course is like. There are so many reasons for me to come in this year more confident," she explained.
"What I'm hoping now is she beats my best time, which was 2:25 so I think she's got a good shot at it," said Ric.
The coach is all business, but sometimes the dad just spills over.
"I can't even say it, I'm so proud of her I can't stand it. Very proud," Ric said.