Bob and Sandy Cranny did not book their tickets to Paris until Wednesday night, a wee bit late, as the 2024 Olympic Games open in the City of Light in less than a month. The Crannys were waiting to see if their daughter, Elise, would be competing in Paris.
Turns out, she will be, after a thrilling 5000 meter final that saw Cranny outleaned at the tape by World Championship indoor 3000 meter gold medalist Elle Purrier St. Pierre in a photo finish that showed that yes, Elise Cranny is indeed back and ready to take the next jump in an already stellar career that began with eight state titles back at Niwot High School. (She was also racing in the Olympic trials 1500 meters; the final was Sunday evening).
“It was not looking too good six weeks ago,” said Bob Cranny, a long-time Boulder physical therapist, in a Thursday phone interview from Eugene, Ore., where the U.S. Olympic Trials were taking place. “She was still coming back.”
Elise Cranny, 28, was coming back from some major disruptions in her life, including a move from Oregon back to her parents’ home, not one but two coaching changes and a shift to training on her own after being part of a team since her freshman year at Niwot. Cranny had an All-American collegiate career at Stanford, made the finals of the Tokyo Olympic 5000 meters and set the American indoor 5000 meter record of 14:33.17 as a professional runner competing for Nike.
Last October, Cranny moved back in with her parents, where she was comfortable and found unconditional and “unlimited” support from her family. She took on a new coach, Jarred Cornfield of Northern Arizona, after a short stint with Boulder-based Team Boss and recently moved into her own place in Gunbarrel. She’s back working out on well-trod, familiar trails and her high school track, accompanied not by a bevy of other elites and a videographer but rather cheered on and timed by her mom and two younger sisters, Emily and Lauren.
Returning to Boulder has worked, her dad explained. “Elise had struggled the past few months, changing coaches and changing locations. It was a great comeback; her confidence level is strong. It’s nice to see as a parent. Results are fine, but as a dad, it’s good to see her enjoying the process, embracing and enjoying it.”
Fans enjoyed it as well, as the final lap of the 5000 meters was “unbelievable,” with the entire crowd at a packed Hayward Field on its feet cheering, Bob Cranny said of a finish that saw Elise and Purrier St. Pierre separated by just 0.02 seconds, “about the thickness of a T-shirt.” Even many 100-meter sprints do not have finishes that close, he pointed out.
Said Elise Cranny in a post-race interview, “The energy of the crowd was incredible, and it made for a real fun race.”
Others with local ties “punching their ticket” to Paris — a sportswriting line I picked up from Troy Renk of the Denver Post — were American mile record holder Yared Nuguse, second in the 1500 meters, and trials winners Valerie Allman, a Silver Creek high grad, in the discus, and Val Constien in the steeplechase. Racing over the weekend were Tokyo Olympian Cory McGee, Sage Hurta-Klecker and Cranny in the 1500 meters and Katie Camarena, Marggie Montoya and Carrie Verdon in the women’s 10,000 meters.
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