Olympic Runner Elle St. Pierre Milks Cows Away From The Track

Runner Elle St. Pierre has the kind of Olympic story you can't help but root for. The 29-year-old is competing in her second Summer Games this year and has a shot at a medal on Saturday.

The 29-year-old, who finished 10th in the 1500m during the Tokyo Olympics back in 2021, placed third on Thursday in the 1500m semifinal to advance to this weekend's finals.

When the Vermont mom isn't training or competing on the track, she's back on the farm milking cows with her husband. Something she's been around most of her life.

St. Pierre explained last week while in Belgium, "Doesn’t matter where I go, I’ll always find the cows! Fun fact my family raises this same breed of cow at home in VT. They are a beef breed named Belgian blue and are known for their docile temperament as well as their double muscles (aka their big butts)."

"We started raising them alongside our dairy cows as a fun hobby almost 30 years ago. Now the dairy cows are gone but we still have a few Belgians," she continued. "As you can imagine it’s pretty special for me to see Belgian cows in Belgium, since they are so unique and special to my family."

I'm not sure how milking cows translates to St. Pierre's success on the track, but I imagine the grit and determination that go along with farm life plays a role.

All she's done since competing in Tokyo is put her career on hold to have a child, which she did in 2023. 

She told Time,"It was a hard decision to have a baby and put my career on pause. And so now that I have done that, I just feel like this piece of me that was missing is now here. I feel more complete and so I'm more level-headed and happy. That’s just all around good for my career."

Putting your career on hold to have a baby, then returning right back