Lake Hamilton’s Olivia Pielemeier proves to be Arkansas’ best prep runner
PEARCY, Ark. (BVM) — After Josie Carson won two straight (2016-17 and 2017-18) Gatorade Arkansas Cross Country Gatorade Player of the Year awards, Lake Hamilton wasn’t sure if it would see another winner. But this year, Olivia Pielemeier put all doubts to bed when she was named 2021-22 Gatorade Arkansas Cross Country Player of the Year.
“Winning Gatorade Player of the Year was one of my goals for this year,” Pielemeier said. My goal was to get my name on one of the banners hanging in my coach’s office…“It just goes to show all our hard work. Getting this award didn’t come solely from me. It was my parents, my coach, my teammates. Those people really push me to be able to be better.”
Now, as a junior, Pielemeier is proving to be one of the best prep runners Arkansas has seen. Standing at 5-foot-7, she won the Class 5A state meet with a time of 18:44.61. It was 16 seconds faster than the next-closest runner. The Wolves finished third overall as a team, but Pielemeier wasn’t beaten once.
Super thankful and blessed to have taken home my first individual cross country state title this past Friday! Thank you to everyone who has supported and helped me get to where I am now. pic.twitter.com/aWbwTA3rhn
— Olivia Pielemeier (@OPielemeier) November 9, 2021
“I have watched Olivia with envy for years,” Lakeside High School head cross country coach Jeff Haynes said in a Gatorade press release. “She is one of the most dedicated and talented runners I have seen perform.”
Apart from dominating the state meet, Pielemeier has continued to show she has what it takes to compete at the next level. This time in the indoor track & field scene. Just last week, she set the all-state record of the 1600 with a time of 5:06.96.
⚡️All time Arkansas indoor 1600 state record 5:06.96⚡️@TulsaTrack @ASTATETRACK @armilesplit @RazorbackTF @ArkCoachLance @MizzouTFXC pic.twitter.com/QPyZunD7ha
— Olivia Pielemeier (@OPielemeier) February 27, 2022
Competing at the collegiate level is certainly something Pielemeier has thought about and wants to do too.
“I’m honestly not 100% sure where I’m going to go,” Pielemeier said. “I do know that I want to run Division 1. Just not sure where yet.”
Official offers can’t come in until June of 2022, but Pielemeier is keeping her eyes on the future. And as she continues to look forward to the opportunities that lie ahead, she also has a lot to look back on as well. Especially how she came to be a runner in the first place and how she fell in love with the sport from an early age.
“I started competing in seventh grade,” Pielemeier said. “It [cross country] became an outlet for me, kind of therapeutic [for me]. And just people that are involved in the sport make it why I love it so much. The community that cross country brings [is special].”
With Pielemeier knowing her love for running was growing, Lake Hamilton head cross country coach Brandon Smith knew Pielemeier had something special.
“When she was in eighth grade, she gave off this vibe, that she had the complete package as far as work ethic and attitude,” Smith said. “She asks questions about training that other kids wouldn’t ask. That was the first sign that she could really be this special runner, maybe the best the state has ever had.”
Along with being a fantastic athlete, Pielemeier is also an outstanding person. Not only has she maintained a 3.88 GPA, but she has volunteered time to raise funds for the American Heart Association. She has also donated her time to homeless shelters in Hot Springs, Ark.
As the 2022 school year winds down, Pielemeier will be aiming to better her running skills. But she doesn’t want to keep the spotlight on her. She wants to show that she’s running for others and wants to show she’s been given a gift.
“I’ve been blessed with a gift,” Pielemeier said. “So every day, I want to give it my all because God blessed me with that. And that’s something I don’t want to take for granted. I want to give him all the glory for [that]. There’s not that many people who have that opportunity. Running is my way of ministering his name to people.”
What’s next for Pielemeier beyond high school is not yet known, but as she eyes her future as a runner, she’ll aim to be remembered as one of the best in the state of Arkansas. And Pielemeier will work hard to prove that.
“I’m going to work harder than everybody else,” Pielemeier siad. “That’s something I tell myself all the time. I’m going to be on the track before everyone else and I’m going to be there longer than everyone else. I have a blessed gift from God and I’m thankful for that and I want to put in all the work to maximize that talent.”
