INDIANAPOLIS – She effectively retired three years ago. Now, at 27, she is arguably the best middle-distance runner in college track and field. She is on course to represent her home country at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
She is not at a national power such as Arkansas, Colorado, Stanford or Wisconsin. She is not even in NCAA Division I.
French runner Berenice Cleyet-Merle recommitted herself upon arrival at the University of Indianapolis. She would come full circle if the Circle City ends up being the pathway to Paris.
“It’s hard to believe,” she said. “It would be, I think, a dream.