Providence's Sisson impresses in 20K debut 

By Mary Albl for DyeStat

NEW HAVEN, CT- During Monday's USATF 20 km Championship, women's leader Aliphine Tuliamuk-Bolton couldn't quite figure out who was running with her. 

She knew she wasn't alone. 

Providence's Emily Sisson, known more for her 3K to10K prowess, made her 20K debut at the New Haven Road Race, displaying a distance range many have not seen to this point.  

"I was trying to look back and be like, 'Who is this?' And then at some point I heard the cyclist guy talking about her, and I'm like, 'Oh, of course it's Emily,'" Tuliamuk said.

Tuliamuk-Bolton and Sisson are familiar foes as they duked it out in early August in the Beach To Beacon 10K, with Sisson edging Tuliamuk in the last 800 meters. Monday, Sisson did her best to stuck with Tuliamuk-Bolton, but couldn't quite hang on for the full 12.4 miles. Tuliamuk-Bolton, a Kenyan native who starred at Wichita State and earned her U.S. citizenship earlier this year, crossed the line in one hour, 5.47 minutes, with Sisson taking runner-up honors in 1:06.03.

"This is the longest distance I've ever run by a lot, so the gameplan was just kind of stay with the lead group, which was really just Aliphine today, and if I was feeling good at the end make a move," Sisson explained. "But my coach (Ray Treacy) just wanted me to feel comfortable through at least seven miles. And I did. I felt comfortable at seven miles, and then Aliphine made a move going up the hill and I just couldn't respond."

Sisson, who finished 10th in the 10K at the Olympic Trials in June, said the 20K is a stepping stone to possible longer distances in the near future. 

"I want to try and do some halfs and in like a year or two a marathon maybe," Sisson explained. "This was like a first real test to see how I handled it. I think it went."

Sisson, who runs for New Balance, trains with Molly Huddle, who is stepping up to the marathon distance. Stanford graduate Aisling Cuffe, recently signed with Saucony, will join the two training under Treacy as well. Sisson said the addition of Cuffe and her speed will be a nice addition. 

"She's really positive and she's got a great attitude about everything," Sisson said.  "It's also nice having someone who hasn't stepped up to the marathon yet to train with."

Next for Sisson might be the CVS Health Downtown 5K (USATF Championship Race) in Providence. But whatever the next longer distance race may be for Sisson, she won't be an unknown.

"I was really impressed because as far as I'm concerned I don't think she's ever ran a 20K," Tuliamuk-Bolton said of Sisson. "So that was amazing. She has a bright future, that's for sure."