Haverford High junior Olivia Cieslak and Penn Charter junior Alli DeLisi have been friends going all the way back to kindergarten.
They’ve also been racing each other for more than a decade, writes Ben Itvan for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
They ran cross-country, and track and field, every Sunday in the fall and spring until high school.
And they always seemed to end up at the front of the pack together.
“We just made the most of it,” Cieslak said. “It was just so fun to race, but then also have time together and bond — and it just stuck.”
DeLisi estimates they’ve run together in 100 races.
They’ve turned into two of the nation’s best high school runners. They rank in the top 10 in Pennsylvania history in the indoor and outdoor 800 meters, and both hold several school records.
They race head-to-head less these days, but still stay close off track.
Haverford track coach Ryan Comstock said the two maturely balance being friends and competitors.
“They’re at it neck-and-neck and running the top times in the country, and it could affect their friendship — but I don’t see it at all, which is really amazing at that age,” Comstock said.
Read more about Olivia Cieslak and Alli DeLisi in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
