Laurie Barton

Laurie's Road to Atlanta Track Club Elite

Laurie grew up in Clemson, S.C., where she started out in gymnastics at the age of 5. After bouncing between that and soccer until eighth grade, she decided to try a different sport because her high school soccer team "was just not good." That sport was track and field, in which she became a seven-time South Carolina state champion and still holds the 800m state record (2:06.10). After graduating in 2016, Laurie spent two years at Virginia Tech before transferring to Clemson but soon was diagnosed with a kidney disease that kept her out of the sport for a year. In 2020, she had just started her comeback by winning the ACC indoor title when COVID-19 shut everything down. Overcoming that, as well, she came within one spot of winning an NCAA title in 2021.

Parley-Vous Français?

After her father was transferred there for work when she was a fifth grader, Laurie lived for three years in Clermont-Ferrand, France, about four hours south of Paris. There, she became temporarily fluent in French and permanently more curious about exploring. "It definitely opened my eyes that the whole world was not Clemson," she says.

A Scary Setback

Laurie dealt with injuries and constant fatigue during her two years at Virginia Tech, but even though running wasn't fun anymore she also knew she wasn't ready to quit. She transferred to Clemson but was diagnosed shortly thereafter with a kidney disease that caused her body to excrete all its protein. Eventually, she was barely able to function on her own, gaining 40 pounds of fluid and losing 30 pounds of muscle mass. Although the illness forced her out of the sport for a year, she was determined that life wasn't going to stop entirely and remained in school, often staying with her parents because she needed so much help. Eventually, after repeated relapses, the right medication was found and the disease was brought under control. She is now medication-free.

What She Learned

Before her illness, Laurie says, "I had the illusion of control in my life; I think that's what gave me a lot of anxiety" and perhaps, she believes, helped bring on the disease, called MCD, on top of the several auto-immune conditions she was already dealing with. "I had to come to a point after my second relapse of being like, 'this could be my life forever and I can't get torn up every time this happens.' Once I was able to accept my condition as possibly lifelong, I got a lot more peace." Moreover, before Laurie became ill she had found her self-worth in running, but when it was taken away "I had to come to terms with who I was and my worth aside from running and I really found that in Jesus, thankfully. Ironically, being able to root myself in God made me more excited for running because it made running more of an opportunity, a gift. If I fail, I'm fine."

And a Dramatic Comeback

At the 2020 ACC Championships, Laurie surprised herself with a victory. "I felt like it was such a gift," she says. "I haven't been training as hard as these girls. This is where God has me; he's blessing me. I'm going to go with it and see what happens." Within weeks, COVID-19 shut everything down. "I'd just spent a year in isolation," Laurie remembers thinking. "Why couldn't I have gotten sick now? But it was honestly just really good practice: It's not the end of the world that my life looks completely different and unpredictable. I just have to be patient." Once competitions resumed, she picked up pretty much where she left off - actually leading in the 2021 NCAA Outdoor Championships 800m in the last 100m before finishing as runner-up.

Going Pro

Although she still had eligibility because of COVID, Laurie decided to look at turning professional after the 2021 season. She ended up with the Brooks Beasts but two years later she reached out again to Atlanta Track Club, with whom she had also spoken originally. "I really love Tommy [Nohilly, the coach] and I really love the team and people I've met at the track club. It's been really special. I'm thankful to be here."

A New Distance

Laurie says she's 100 percent focused on the 1,500m now. "Right before USAs last year, I just jumped into a 15 for fun and ran 4:08 and was like, "that was easy." Her coach suggested she run the 1,500 at the USATF Outdoor Championships; she did and made the final. "I was hitting my head against the wall in the 800, running 2-flat, 2-flat-2-flat. So, I thought, let's change things up."

How She Knows She's Ready to Race

"When my coach says so."