Alexi Pappas

Alexi Pappas or Alexia Pappa (Greek Αλεξία Παππά; born 28 March 1990) is a Greek-American long distance athlete, filmmaker, actor, and writer. As a long distance runner, Alexi has been most successful in the 10km, but has also been a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) All-American at indoor 3,000 metres, 5,000 metres, and the steeplechase as well as the Ivy League champion in the steeplechase. In the 2016 Summer Olympics Women's 10km, Pappas represented Greece and set a national Greek record. As a filmmaker, Alexi directed, co-wrote and starred in Tracktown. As a writer, Alexi wrote "Bravey: Chasing Dreams, Befriending Pain, and Other Big Ideas".

Alexi Pappas
Personal information
NationalityGreek-American
Born (1990-03-28) 28 March 1990
Berkeley, California, U.S.
Home townAlameda, California, U.S.
Height5 ft 5 in (165 cm)
Sport
Country Greece
 United States
SportTrack and field
Event(s)10,000 metres
5,000 metres
College teamDartmouth College (2008-2012)
Oregon Ducks (2012-13)
Achievements and titles
Olympic finals2016
10,000 m, 17th
Personal best(s)

Early life and education

Pappas was born on 28 March 1990, to a Greek-American father who has roots from Rhodes and an American mother, and grew up in Alameda, California. Her mother died by suicide when Alexi was four years old, an experience that she has said impacted her in major ways.[1] She has a brother who is 4 years older.[2]

Pappas graduated with a Bachelor of Arts magna cum laude in creative writing and English at Dartmouth College in 2012.[2]

Pappas graduated with a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing at University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences in 2013.

In 2020 she published a video about her struggle with depression, calling for better care of elite athletes' mental health.[3]

She is married to her long-term partner and film-making collaborator, Jeremy Teicher.

Athletic career

Bishop O'Dowd High School California Interscholastic Federation

As a sophomore at Oakland's Bishop O'Dowd High School, Alexi placed fourth in the Division III girl's race at the California Interscholastic Federation State Cross Country Championships on 26 November 2005. She covered the 5K course in 18 minutes, 19 seconds leading the girls' team to place 13th at the 2005 CIF D3 State meet.[4]

She was a soccer midfielder at Bishop O'Dowd '08, where she went by the name Lexi Pappas.[5][6]

Pappas has said that her high school coach refused to let her participate in multiple sports, even though boys at the same high school were permitted to do so, and that this affected her physical development.[7]

NCAA

Pappas is a Dartmouth '12 who was a two-time NCAA all-American and one of nine finalists for the 2012 NCAA Woman of the Year award.[8] She also won the 2012 season's Ivy League title in the steeplechase (9:58.80) and qualified for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene.

Pappas is an Oregon Masters Fine Arts Creative Writing grad '13 where she earned three NCAA Division I All-American awards. Alexi finished eighth individually at the 2012 NCAA Cross Country Championships with a time of 19:43.9 (6,000 meters) helping the Oregon Ducks women's cross country team win the national title.[9]

2016 Olympics

Pappas became a Greek citizen on 8 January 2016 and on 1 May that year she broke the 10,000 m Greek national record, which had been in place since 2002. She then represented Greece at the 2016 Summer Olympics.[10] At the Olympic finals, she improved her national record when she finished 17th in 31:36.16.[11]

Track and road running

2011 World Youth Championships medalist Caroline Chepkoech,[12] Buze Diriba and Alexi Pappas earned top three podium spots at 2016 Silicon Valley Turkey trot in 15:18 15:42 and 15:44 respectively on Thanksgiving morning.[13]

Personal bests

Her personal best times are: 1500 metres 4:14:08, 3000 metres 9:05:12, 5000 metres 15:28:38, and 10000 metres 31:36:16 at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, and marathon 2:34:26.

Honours
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
Representing  Greece
2016 European Championships Amsterdam, Netherlands 11th 10,000 m 32:27.80
11th 5,000 m 15:56.75
Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 17th 10,000 m 31:36.16 NR

Filmmaking

Pappas is a writer, actor, and producer, known for Tall as the Baobab Tree (2012), Speed Goggles (2016), Tracktown (2017),[14] and Olympic Dreams (2019), which was the first fictional movie ever filmed in an Olympic village.[15]

Television

In 2019, Alexi moved to Los Angeles with Teicher.[16]

Author

Pappas's first book, Bravey: Chasing Dreams, Befriending Pain, and Other Big Ideas, with a foreword by Maya Rudolph,[17][18] was published on 12 January 2021.[19]

References
  1. "Filmmaker and elite marathon runner, Alexi Pappas wants to make sure 'the complete person is happening'". CNN.
  2. Alexi Pappas, Dartmouth College: 2012 Woman of the Year Top 9 Finalists NCAA youtube
  3. Pappas, Alexi (7 December 2020). "I Achieved My Wildest Dreams. Then Depression Hit". The New York Times.
  4. The Catholic Voice Oakland December 12, 2005
  5. "State Finals - 2005". lynbrooksports.prepcaltrack.com.
  6. "Alexi Pappas' High School Girls Soccer Stats". MaxPreps.com.
  7. Pappas, Alexi (10 January 2021). "Female Athletes Need to See Puberty as a Power, Not a Weakness". The Atlantic.
  8. Dartmouth College Athletics (11 December 2011). "Alexi Pappas Dartmouth profile". dartmouth sports. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  9. University of Oregon Athletics (11 June 2013). "Alexi Pappas 2012 cross country University of Oregon profile". goducks.com. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  10. Martinelli, Michelle R. (7 June 2016). "Alexi Pappas makes her family proud by making Greek team for Rio". USA Today. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
  11. Morse, Parker (12 August 2016). "Report: women's 10,000m – Rio 2016 Olympic Games". World Athletics. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
  12. "Caroline Chepkoech Kipkirui profile". IAAF. 22 May 2017. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  13. "Silicon Valley Turkey Trot 2016 Elite Pacific Assoc Women 5km". runraceresults.com. 24 November 2016. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  14. "tracktown". Rotten Tomatoes. 22 May 2017. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  15. George Ramsay. "Filmmaker and elite marathon runner, Alexi Pappas wants to make sure 'the complete person is happening'". CNN. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
  16. Olympian Alexi Pappas on her New Memoir 'Bravey' KTLA
  17. Bravey Heart With her memoir of heartbreak and hilarity, Olympian and movie-maker Alexi Pappas ’12 stays on track dartmouthalumnimagazine.com
  18. Filmmaker and elite marathon runner, Alexi Pappas wants to make sure 'the complete person is happening' George Ramsay, CNN July 26, 2020
  19. What's New With You with Alexi Pappas Ali on the Run Show OCT 25, 2020
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