Julie Culley is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 athlete

Track and field

Track and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...

, who competes in middle distance track event

Middle distance track event

Middle distance running events are track races longer than sprints, up to 3000 metres. The standard middle distances are the 800 metres, 1500 metres and mile run, although the 3000 metres may also be classified as a middle distance event. The 880 yard run, or half mile, was the forebear to the...

s. Culley represented the United States at the 2009 World Championships

2009 World Championships in Athletics

The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics were held in Berlin, Germany from 15–23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenburg Gate....

 in the 5000 m.

While competing for Rutgers University

Rutgers University

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...

, Culley was an All-American in Cross Country

Cross country running

Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...

 her senior year. Despite often battling injuries, she set school records in the 3000 m, 5000 m, and Distance Medley Relay

Distance Medley Relay

The distance medley relay is an athletic event in which four athletes compete as part of a relay. Unlike most track relays, each member of the team runs a different distance. A distance medley relay is made up of a 1200 meter leg, or three laps on a standard 400 meter track; a 400 meter leg, or one...

, and was a Big East Scholar Athlete of the Year. Culley went on to coach at Loyola College

Loyola College in Maryland

Loyola University Maryland is a Roman Catholic, Jesuit private university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Established as Loyola College in Maryland by John Early and eight other members of the Society of Jesus in 1852, it is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges...

 in Baltimore

Baltimore

Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...

, before deciding to focus on running professionally.

At the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials, Culley finished 7th in the 5000 m, with a time of 15:34.43. She was the first American finisher at the 2009 World Cross Country Championships

2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships

The 37th IAAF World Cross Country Championships were held in the Al Bisharat Golf Course at Amman, Jordan on 28 March 2009. Four races took place, one for men, women, junior men and junior women respectively. All races encompassed both individual and team competition...

, finishing 21st with a time of 28:08.

Culley finished fourth at the 2009 USA Championships in the 5000 m. She earned a spot on the U.S. 2009 World Championship team

United States at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics

United States compete at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics from 15–23 August. A team of over 100 athletes was announced in preparation for the competition. Team USA athletes honoured Jessie Owens' memory by displaying the letters JO on their competition singlets. Selected athletes achieved...

 by attaining the "B" standard with a time of 15:20.53 at the 5000 m in Liege, Belgium

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

.

At the 2009 World Championships, Culley finished seventh in the first heat of the 5000 m in 15:32.33 and did not advance.

Raised in Lebanon

Lebanon, New Jersey

Lebanon is a Borough in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the borough population was 1,358.Lebanon was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 26, 1926, from portions of Clinton Township, based on the results of a...

, New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

, she lived in Arlington, Virginia and trained under Olympic runner and current American University

American University

American University is a private, Methodist, liberal arts, and research university in Washington, D.C. The university was chartered by an Act of Congress on December 5, 1892 as "The American University", which was approved by President Benjamin Harrison on February 24, 1893...

 coach Matt Centrowitz

Matt Centrowitz

Matthew Centrowitz is a two-time Olympic distance runner, a four-time United States champion, a collegiate All-American, a nationally renowned high school athlete, and a collegiate cross country and track coach....

, training with fellow American middle distance runner Lindsey Gallo

Lindsey Gallo

Lindsey Gallo is an American track middle distance athlete.-High school:Gallo grew up in Freehold Township, New Jersey and attended Howell High School in Howell Township, New Jersey from 1996 to 2000. During this time, she competed in both cross country and track...

. She returned to New Jersey in 2010, where she trains with coach Frank Gagliano.

Personal bests

Track	Event	Time (min Minute A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units... )	Venue	Date
Outdoor
	1500 m	4:13.18	Ghent Ghent Ghent is a city and a municipality located in the Flemish region of Belgium. It is the capital and biggest city of the East Flanders province. The city started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Lys and in the Middle Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of... , Belgium	July 21, 2009
	One mile	4:34.80	Falmouth, Massachusetts Falmouth, Massachusetts Falmouth is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States; Barnstable County is coextensive with Cape Cod. The population was 31,531 at the 2010 census.... , United States	August 8, 2008
	5000 m	15:21.18	Eugene, Oregon Eugene, Oregon Eugene is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, at the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast.As of the 2010 U.S...	June 24, 2011
Indoor
	1500 m	4:17.68	New York City New York City New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and... , New York New York New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...	February 9, 2008
	3000 m	8:55.62	Boston, Massachusetts, United States	February 28, 2009

• All information taken from IAAF profile.

External links

• Julie Culley videos on Flotrack