Imagine competing against someone who will soon win a gold medal at the Olympics in both the 800-meter run and 1,500-meter run.

That’s what ISU cross country runner Jenny Mockler did this July at the British Olympic trials in Manchester, England.

Mockler ran in the 800-meter trials for her native country against gold medalist Kelly Holmes.

Mockler said when school ended last spring, she stayed in the United States with former ISU distance runner Jessica Huff, who was training for nationals.

Mockler said she was planning to go back to England to run for her club team when her coach, Dick Lee, received her invitation.

“I was going to pace-make for the 1,500 [meter run],” Mockler said. “Then coach got my invite for the 800-meter run.”

Pace-making would have meant Mockler would have run the first 600 meters to set the pace for the runners that were there to go on to the Olympics.

She said the top 24 runners in Britain for each event were invited. About three weeks after she got her invitation, she went home for the trials.

Mockler was familiar with the track in Manchester because it is the one her club team uses.

At the trials, Mockler took fifth place in the 800 and spoke with Holmes after their race about what Mockler could have done differently to do better.

“She told me, ‘Don’t worry about it. You’re really young,'” Mockler said. “When someone in your event [wins an Olympic medal], you believe in a lot more of what she [says],” Mockler said.

Distance runners peak at an older age than sprinters do, Mockler said.

“[Holmes] has 12 years on me. That’s another three Olympics,” she said.

She said that fact made her feel a lot better about her future.

“[Holmes] told me she was just going to do the 1,500 and had no intention of doing the 800,” Mockler said. “She did well in the trials, so she ended up doing the 800 also.”

Mockler said she expected Holmes to win a medal, but admitted she was shocked to see her win two golds.

“I have a lot of faith in Kelly Holmes,” she said. “She wasn’t a gold medal prospect. She kind of surprised a lot of people. She had no pressure on her.”

A few years ago, when Mockler finished high school, she began looking at schools in America.

“I had a lot of injuries [back then] and I wanted to come to America for a fresh start,” Mockler said. “Coach Lee called me and told me how he would help me. [Talking to him on the phone], I felt a lot more comfortable because I was really nervous about leaving England. I didn’t even visit other schools.”

When Mockler arrived in Ames, she said the city reminded her a lot of her native country and said she really liked the “homey atmosphere” that Iowa State offered.

Her biggest adjustment was to the weather, she said.

“It was really hot. The humidity was ridiculous [when I got here],” Mockler said. “For the first three months, I could hardly run.”

Another big adjustment for Mockler was her diet.

“I have strict nutrition,” she said. “There were things at home I couldn’t buy here. But, I’m used to it now.”

For this cross country season, Mockler’s main goal is to help her team and prepare for the track season in the spring.

“I’ll mostly use cross country to build up my fitness for the winter,” she said.

Despite not being a veteran course runner, she says she enjoys being with the other runners.