Taylor Ewert 'carving a new path' with racewalking and running

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Taylor Ewert of Beavercreek OH might only be a sophomore, but she has a two-pronged approach to carving out a successful career in track and field. 

Ewert is one of the top young racewalking talents in the U.S. In fact, she recently won the New Balance Nationals Indoor title in the 1-mile racewalk and just missed her own national high school record by a couple of seconds.

She is also a top flight distance runner. She qualified for Nike Cross Nationals last fall and finished 18th. Last week at New Balance Nationals, she finished 11th overall in the 2-mile, a day after her racewalk win.

“The biggest thing is finding a balance for both,” Ewert said. “Running can benefit my racewalking, and vice versa.”

Ewert’s combination of talents might not be unprecedented, but it is definitely unusual. 

Racewalking is a technical event that requires serious dedication, although it thrives in small pockets around the country. At the high school level, New York is a hub for the event because it is part of the indoor state meet. 

In Ohio, Cameron Haught (Southwest Ohio Track Club) and Ashleigh Resch (Miami Valley Track Club) have both enjoyed recent national success.

For Ewert, the daughter of two Syracuse track alums, exposure to running and racewalking came early. But it also shared time with something else. 

Teri Ewert, Taylor’s mother, can vividly remember her daughter’s excitement over finding a pair of pink Barbie roller skates and bringing them home. Taylor was 3. 

“She is a very driven athlete and has been since she was little,” Teri said.

Taylor put the skates on stood up in the grass, and later moved to the driveway, teaching herself how to skate. 

That led to ice skating lessons and a budding career in figure skating. 

“She was a gorgeous skater,” Teri said. “She was doing double jumps, a flying camel, sit spins, layback spins ... until she had a freak accident.”

In the eighth grade, Taylor was on the ice and went for a double lutz jump but her blade got stuck in the ice and did not spin with the rest of her body. She suffered a Trimalleolar fracture of her left ankle.  

Three screws were used to fix the broken bones. She was unable to run for months. 

She hung up her skates and decided to pour her time and energy into the two activities that she enjoyed more – running and racewalking.

As she recovered from her injury, Ewert was able to racewalk before she was able to run. But she was determined to study both events – she got started in track at age 6 – and find success. 

“I feel like I’m carving a new path,” she said. “You can racewalk and run and be good at both.”

Along the way, she has felt some pressure to from one side of the aisle or the other to focus on one. 

The racewalking crowd is always eager to see a young new star on the rise to keep the flame alive. And runners sometimes scoff at racewalking or view it as unimportant. 

“A lot of people say you can’t be good at two sports, that you have to focus on one,” Ewert said. “I’ve been lucky to do both and continue to succeed.”

Ewert said her primary focus is running because it is the best way to build cardiovascular strength. But she also fits in racewalking workouts to keep up on her technique. She views racewalking as “cross training” during the fall cross country or track seasons. 

Her mother said that racewalking has also had a positive effect on Taylor’s mechanics. A tendency to over-stride has been curbed thanks to practicing movements that emphasize a quicker gait.

At the NYRR Millrose Games in New York, Ewert broke Lauren Harris’ national high school record Feb. 3 in the 1-mile racewalk, clocking 6:45.68. Harris, now a freshman in college at Marist, finished one spot behind her. 

“She’s definitely an amazing athlete and all of her success is well-deserved because you can tell how hard she works at it,” Harris said. “I really like having her there because she’s really pushing me. In high school, I really didn't have anyone to push me, so her being there is just bettering me because I know I have to stick with her.”

Maria Michta-Coffey, a two-time Olympian and 16-time national champion, is also encouraged by Ewert’s progress in racewalking.

“She crushed the (national) record at Millrose and it was so exciting because she started at the USATF grass roots level and going through the (Junior Olympics) system and everybody has known the potential she’s had for a long time,” said Michta-Coffey, who won the mile at Millrose in 6:35.77.

“So while the U.S. might not capture an international medal during my career, I know the future is going to be really bright as long as she continues to improve.”

It’s high praise, but also justified. 

At New Balance Nationals Indoor, Ewert’s time was significantly faster than the winning boys time.

Ewert also has big goals in running. Her father ran the steeplechase in college and her brother, Ben, is a freshman steeplechaser at Louisville. 

Teri Ewert said the dexterity that Taylor learned in figure skating might be helpful. Taylor can hurdle effortlessly over barriers off either leg. 

Taylor Ewert competed in the second-fastest section of the 2-mile at New Balance Nationals Indoor and placed 11th overall in 10:40.37. 

“I think Taylor is showing kids that, ‘Hey, it’s OK to racewalk and I can still run fast,’” Teri said. “But to be able to racewalk fast, you have to be a good athlete.”

Ewert is eager to see what the spring brings in the way of new PRs and racing opportunities. She is considering another run/walk double at the Penn Relays in April. 

Ewert was sixth last summer for the U.S. at the Pan Am U-20 Championships in Peru in the 10,000-meter racewalk. The five athletes in front of her were all two and three years older. 

She’d like to return to a U.S. team this summer for the IAAF World U-20 Championships in Finland. 

Further ahead, she’s got her eyes on 2020. 

“I want to try to go to the Olympics in 2020 (in the 20K racewalk) and the focus be on running in college,” Ewert said. “I can racewalk here and there in college and then return to making U.S. teams when I’m out of college.”

All in due time. So far, she hasn’t racewalked an event longer than 10K.

“I’m still a sophomore. We’re building up slowly. Nothing too crazy yet,” she said.