By Chris Chavez
January 21, 2025
"I'm just going to run with this free feeling because I've accomplished what I wanted to, but obviously I have other goals too. I'm super excited to get after them."
Rising star Sadie Engelhardt has officially confirmed her participation in the 2025 New Balance National Indoor this March, where she is expected to go for her third consecutive indoor mile national title.
Engelhardt, a senior at Ventura High School in California, is coming off a stellar 2024 season, during which she ran a 4:28.46 mile at the end of the outdoor season—the fastest mile ever run by a U.S. high schooler outdoors—and qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials in the 1500 meters with a personal best of 4:08.86.
This indoor season, Engelhardt’s focus has been on building momentum for her final high school campaign.
In 2024, she claimed the New Balance Nationals indoor mile title with a 4:36.36 and followed it up outdoors to sweep the mile crowns in 4:37.07.
With her commitment to NC State set, Engelhardt decided to stop competing for Ventura for the upcoming indoor and outdoor seasons and focus on racing unattached in meets of her choice. We caught up with Engelhardt to preview her indoor season and discuss what she wants to accomplish in the final months of her high school career. The following has been edited lightly for clarity.
Johnny Zhang / @jzsnapz
CITIUS MAG: Last year was an incredible year for you with setting records, getting to compete against pros multiple times, and then on top of that, making an appearance at the U.S. Olympic track trials. What did you make of that whole experience?
SADIE ENGELHARDT: After New Balance [Nationals] Outdoor, I went home and then we went to Eugene. I was pretty starstruck on the line. It was surreal lining up next to pros that I've watched on YouTube and TV for however many years. It was definitely exciting. That summer was so fun. I think 2024 was one of my favorite years by far. I went to the ESPYs for Gatorade and then I hung out with my friends for pretty much the rest of the summer and visited some family. It was super great!
At the Trials, you were in the heat with the likes of Heather MacLean and Sinclaire Johnson. How did you keep your cool? What was that experience like in the call room and getting out onto the track?
In the call room, I was kind of psyching myself out a little bit. But once we did our stride out onto the track through the little gateway at Hayward, it was literally insane. I hadn't been at Hayward with that many people before. That was definitely my favorite moment. Probably not the actual race because it was just a long season. I was super grateful for the experience.
Kevin Morris / @kevmofoto
How much time did you take off during the summer before getting back to training? You just completed a full cross country season. What were the biggest learnings from the season?
I feel like I accomplished some of the goals that I wanted to. Definitely not all of them, but I think it made me stronger in general. I dealt with my first injury–it wasn't that crazy, just a little Achilles issue. I think it taught me a lot about how to deal with [injuries], when to shut down, and when to rehab and strengthen. I was trying to soak it all in, despite the injury, just having my last high school cross country season.
What were the changes that you made going into this indoor and outdoor season? You won't be competing for Ventura High School, but you'll still be able to compete this outdoor season against pros. Clear things up for me.
I'm still in high school. I did not go pro. Mainly, I just wanted the freedom to do the meets that I wanted to do. The CIF [California Interscholastic Federation] process is grueling just to get to the state meet. There are a lot of meets within that five-week period that I was watching online, and even some in person like at Oxy, that I really wanted to be a part of. It was nothing against Ventura at all. They've helped me so much.
I just wanted to take this next step to really get better and improve. I have a lot of goals that are pretty lofty. I want to meet those and then also get ready for college. Last year, I figured out that there is a whole other realm of racing and using different strategies. I just want to come into my freshman year at NC State super prepared to make an impact.
What’s been the biggest thing you learned from racing against pros?
I ran my first pro race as a freshman at the Portland Track Festival. I loved it because I could just turn my brain off, go with the moves, race, and be strategic and smart. Last season, a big part of all the races I ran was that last 400m. We were closing in 61 or 63 for all those races. I figured that another year of getting used to that and strengthening that point could benefit me in the NCAA. It's something different just to go with the pros when they make that big move towards the end. It just feels real and it's super fun.
As we look towards your upcoming schedule, you've got New Balance Nationals as one of the big meets highlighted on your calendar. What excites you about coming back?
It's kind of crazy how fast it went by. I'm super excited to go back. I think the first time that I went to New Balance Indoor, it was at the Armory. Things have changed throughout the years and there's something different every time. I just love coming back and the atmosphere is on point every single time. I'm super stoked to come back to try to defend that title.
Johnny Zhang / @jzsnapz
How have your nerves changed over time?
It's funny. Last season for indoor [Nationals], I think that was the most nervous I'd ever been–the mile at New Balance Indoor. Then the next week it was The Ten put on by Sound Running. I literally stepped on the line with serenity and was like, ‘Why am I nervous for the high school meet and not the pro meet?’ I guess there's more pressure on high school meets since there's an expectation to do something, whereas at pro meets I can kind of let loose and have fun. I don't think the nerves will change. I think it just means you care. I don't really want them to go away because I think that's part of the racing experience. I think everything about it is fun.
You discussed the atmosphere of New Balance Nationals. What’s your favorite part of being in such a party atmosphere?
The intros are just something else. We have the pace lights and the crowd is so invested in every single race. It's not like it’s just one race that the crowd is favoring and going super crazy for. It's literally every single race. Everyone in there just gets encapsulated in the moment. It's super exciting and I think the crowd just adds to that ecstatic vibe that New Balance Indoor has.
Last year, you broke the high school mile record, then it got broken by Allie Zealand, and then you took it back. How do you think about records now as you enter your senior year? Do you want to put the record out of reach so that doesn’t happen again?
That's actually exactly how it is. There's nothing to lose. A huge goal of mine was to get under 4:30. With [achieving] that, a bunch of weight has been relieved and taken off my shoulders. I'm just going to run with this free feeling because I've accomplished what I want to, but obviously I have other goals too. I'm super excited to get after them.
What are your goals? What's the New Year's resolution that you have written down?
I think Mary Cain has run just milliseconds faster in the outdoor mile. We’ve both run 4:28. In the 1500m though, she ran 4:04. The dream goal would be to get under that. I'm super excited. I think I have all the tools that I need. It's just a matter of if I can do it on that day.
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Chris Chavez
Chris Chavez launched CITIUS MAG in 2016 as a passion project while working full-time for Sports Illustrated. He covered the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and grew his humble blog into a multi-pronged media company. He completed all six World Marathon Majors and is an aspiring sub-five-minute miler.
