MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Distance runners at the college level can compete almost year-round throughout the fall, winter and spring NCAA seasons. However, a calendar put in place by the WVU coaching staff has allowed senior Ceili McCabe to reach the pinnacle of international sports.
The native of Vancouver, British Columbia secured a spot in the Summer Olympic Games in Paris by finishing first in the 3,000-meter steeplechase event at the Canadian Athletics Bell Track and Field Championships in Montreal on June 27.
“I am so grateful that the plan that we set down last summer has come full circle and to fruition. We redshirted Ceili in the fall. That hurts when you take your number one out. She ran indoors and worked on the mile speed, trying to increase her speed to get ready for the outdoor season,” said WVU cross country/track head coach Sean Cleary.
“About five weeks ago, she went out to L.A. and won a big international event [USATF Los Angeles Grand Prix] out there to get the automatic performance to the Olympics. This past weekend, she needed to finish in the top three in a race she won quite handily. She checked the second box required. And here we are.”
McCabe has built an impressive NCAA resume since arriving on the Morgantown campus in 2019. She is a three-time First Team All-American in the indoor track season, and a three-time First Team All-American in the outdoor track season. McCabe also is two-time All-American in cross country.
McCabe competed only in the indoor track season during the 2023-2024 academic year to prepare for Olympic qualifying in the steeplechase. McCabe still has a year of eligibility remaining in cross country and both track seasons.
“What I think it shows is that the university, the athletic department and our coaching staff have taken care of Ceili since the day she arrived here. I think it says a lot about everybody that has played a part in this story. We are not just out there to run them off their legs and score a few extra points. We truly can see the big picture and try to help them reach it.
“Let’s put it this way — I was going to mess up if we couldn’t get her directed into the Olympic Games. I felt that strongly that she could do it.”
The steeplechase is an eight-lap race that features 28 barriers and seven jumps over a water pit.
McCabe will train for the race in Morgantown and will travel on July 30, six days before her event.
“Ceili is a creature of habit. She wants to be in Morgantown. She wants to run these streets and sleep in her own bed.”
Qualifiers from the preliminary races will advance to the championship race on August 6. Cleary believes McCabe is in strong position to make the final.
“Ceili would be one of the youngest on the line by a number of years. I would say the average age would be about 27 or 28. Ceili is quite young, she’s 22. She probably has a few more Olympics, knock on wood, including L.A. in four years if she chooses to continue.
“Our number one goal without any hesitation for Ceili is to go there and master the first round and qualify for the finals. At that point, find out where she ranks in the world.”
Following a brief break after the Olympics, the WVU cross country season begins in early-September.
“We start camp a week later when we come back to school and run cross country. I am hoping Ceili gets a chance to come home for a week and visit family.”