Minnetonka freshman has excelled in her own time trials in NSAF x AthleticNET Virtual Nationals, in addition to organizing 5K race in April that raised $12,000 for United Way’s COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund

By Mary Albl of DyeStat

Without a race to run or a test to study for, Maya Mor needed something to do.

In addition to being an active participant in the NSAF x AthleticNET Virtual National meets, the 15-year-old Mor felt the urge to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic in some way.

So, the freshman distance runner from Minnetonka, Minn., decided to organize a virtual 5K this spring to help raise funds to assist her community during the challenging and uncertain times.

“It was right when the whole pandemic was kind of reaching Minnesota and school had just been cancelled and things kind of took a turn for the worse,” Mor said. “I kept hearing stories about other people doing things to help out, and so I wanted to do something too.”

Inspired by the Virtual 5K Elk Run organized by 2017 World Championship gold medalist Emma Coburn – an annual event that raises money for the non-profit organization Living Journeys in Colorado – Mor came up with the idea of the “Stronger Together Virtual 5K” with the funds of the April 18 race going directly to the Greater Twin Cities United Way’s COVID-19 Response and Recovery Fund.

“I thought it would be a great way to use my love for the sport to raise money for a good cause,” Mor said.

With in-person classes cancelled and her online courses yet to begin at Minnetonka High, Mor had a block of free time this spring that she devoted to making sure her idea came to fruition. From finding a local charity that resonated with her, emailing nearly 150 coaches in the Twin Cities area, and partnering with local businesses for prizes for participants, Mor was the impressive and inspirational go-getter to make the 5K not only happen, but make it wildly successful.

“Knowing (Maya) and after working with her this fall, it doesn’t surprise me,” long-time Minnetonka High cross country and track coach Jane Reimer-Morgan said. “She’s very, very mature for her age, as far as she does really well in school and her thought processes and being kind to others and giving back. And it’s obviously it’s an amazing thing that she did, but overall it doesn't surprise me, just knowing her as an individual.”

Mor also found a company in Colorado called Boulder Bibs that printed out bibs for the event for every individual that donated $10.

“My mom definitely helped deliver bibs around the area because I still can’t drive,” Mor said with a smile. “And my mom helped with the smaller stuff, but it was mostly just me.”

Nearly 500 people from Minnesota and across the country took part in the event last month, walking or running 3.1 miles from the location of their choosing.

Mor said a majority of the participants completed their mileage April 18, but people had  a week-long window to submit their results to the Web site.

Mor, who described the event as more of a “fun run” and a way to bring the community together, made sure to have health and safety precautions in place and urged people to post photos to social media with the hashtag #STRONGERTOGETHERVIRTUAL5K for a chance at a $100 gift card to The Lakes Running Company in Excelsior, Minn.

With an initial goal of raising $5,000, the total far exceeded the original target with an incredible $12,000 raised for the Greater Twin Cities United Way.

“Never did I imagine that we would over double it,” Mor said. “It was just an idea I had, and I had no clue from the start how big it would get.”

An outgoing and driven person, Mor said not having a track season and training with her teammates this spring has taken its toll. But putting efforts into a greater cause, like the 5K, has helped fuel her passion during the pandemic.

“It’s been hard to find motivation lately, the balance between working hard now, but not working so hard when I’m not racing until August at the earliest, and what am I even training for? Is cross county even going to happen? It’s definitely been hard,” Mor said. “But that 5K especially, really just seeing runners and getting to know runners from other schools and reconnect with my team, and seeing everyone is going through the same stuff, and we can still run as distance runners, that was kind of inspirational for me.”

During the first week of the NSAF x AthleticNET Virtual National meets, Mor posted the fastest time May 16 in the 3,200 meters by running 10:35.6. Three days later, she ran the second-fastest 1,600 time at 4:55.1, with both marks significant personal bests.

“It was definitely exciting (and) it gave me a little bit of a glimpse of how hopefully my track season would have been,” Mor said.

After a somewhat disappointing cross country season this past fall, Mor found out her ferritin levels were extremely low. Still relatively new to the sport, the former soccer player said she worked on fixing her ferritin levels and after a few indoor meets, including a 9:55.66 3,000-meter effort in February, she was looking forward to a strong and healthy outdoor season.

“I thought she was going to have a great track season, I did,” Reimer-Morgan said. “Those times are fantastic. I thought it might take her a little bit longer to get to that level of time, but I knew she had it in her.”

While Reimer-Morgan and her staff can’t physically coach Mor and her teammates, or require workouts this spring, she has been able to post workouts online for Mor and the rest of her teammates, and offer words of wisdom and inspiration during this time of uncertainty.

“I understand where they can lose their motivation after three months of this,” Reimer-Morgan said. “(But Mor) she’s obviously self-motivated and very driven. I am loving the fact that she is loving running.”