Dakotah Popehn: “Why Not Me?” From D2 Walk-On to Olympian

On this episode of Road to the Trials, Olympian Dakotah Popehn shares her journey from Division II walk-on to placing third at the 2024 Olympic Trials and finishing 12th in Paris. She talks about the belief and consistency that carried her rise, the heat prep that made Orlando feel almost routine, and the big goals she’s chasing next—including a PR attempt in Chicago this fall and another shot at the Olympic team in 2028. Still coached by Chris Lundstrom, Popehn brings a mix of hard mileage, purpose-driven racing (plus her now-iconic shades), and a personal mission to raise funds for the American Cancer Society in honor of her mom.

Link to Dakotah's fundraiser here.

Sponsor

Big shout-out to the best coaching platform in the business - V.O2.

V.O2 was built from the foundation of a scientifically-validated training methodology. Based on former Olympian, author, and legendary running coach Jack Daniels’ exercise science principles, the methodology not only benefits runners of all ages and abilities when it comes to improving their running fitness but it also serves as the best measure of running economy. Visit ⁠⁠⁠https://vdoto2.com⁠⁠⁠ today for more information.