Squirrel Hill's Jennifer Bigham, one of nation's top masters runners, ready for Liberty Mile

Former Ohio State runner and Winchester Thurston assistant coach Jennifer Bigham of Squirrel Hill has trained diligently for her next big race, Friday’s Fleet Feet Liberty Mile in Pittsburgh.

Bigham turned 40, becoming a masters runner, and she recently won the USA Masters Half Marathon and the USA Masters One Mile championships. The wins were the shortest and the longest distance events for masters runners.

Crossing the finish line at her first masters event was an amazing feeling for Bigham.

“It’s almost like a million things go through your mind,” Bigham said. “And at the same time, my mind was just completely blank. It was just elation. It was really exciting, and my husband was running in the same race, and he was right behind me by 5 seconds. Just knowing he was right there and I was going to give him a hug and give him a high five, it was just really great.”

A qualifier for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials, Bigham has been a runner all her life and comes from a family of runners. She was inspired to run because her father was a runner.

“There are four siblings in my family, and all of us ran growing up,” Bigham said. “My dad paved the way, and he ran with us every day. It was so sad to move away from home because my dad was my training partner.”

Her parents, Teri and Doug Ordway, motivated her throughout her running career. Bigham ran cross country at Holgate High School in northwest Ohio and at Ohio State.

Her older brother, Josh Ordway, ran at Princeton and her younger brother, Jason Ordway, and her younger sister, Jessica Schuette, ran at Southern Illinois.

Bigham met her husband, Jeff, when he was Josh’s teammate at Princeton.

The Bighams have four children, which led to Bigham taking a break from competitive running for eight years.

After a while, Bigham began to think she still had the potential to make an impact in competitive running.

“At the time, I was pregnant, and I started thinking, ‘Maybe I can be good again,’ ” Bigham said. “I just started thinking, ‘What thing in my life do I feel like I haven’t seen through all the way? What could I still improve on?’ And I thought, ‘I think I could be a good runner again, and I don’t think I’ve reached my potential.’ ”

After talking it through, her older brother coached Bigham in her return to running. He eventually convinced her to strive for the Olympic Marathon Trials.

In 2019, Bigham won the Eugene Marathon with a personal record time of 2 hours, 41 minutes, 37 seconds, qualifying for the Olympic Marathon Trials.

“It was really exciting to be lining up with the best people in the United States to see what we got,” Bigham said. “Unfortunately, I got sick before the race in the middle of my training, and so I didn’t get in the best shape that I wanted to be in, but it was still an awesome experience.”

When Bigham isn’t running marathons, she coaches at Winchester Thurston.

Bigham began coaching when she lived Seattle but stepped aside when she had children. She and her family moved from Seattle to Rochester, N.Y., in 2009 and then to Pittsburgh in 2013. She became Winchester Thurston’s assistant coach right after she had her third child in the summer of 2018.

Longtime coach Bruce Frey knew Winchester Thurston needed a coach to help guide the girls. After some hesitancy, Bigham took the job.

Bigham enjoys coaching the girls, and she attributes a lot of her coaching success to the highs and lows she experienced running at Ohio State. She understands what the runners go through, and she makes sure that they train smarter and not harder.

“It’s really life changing,” Bigham said. “I feel like the team, they inspire me in my own running, and they teach me lessons. For as much as I try to impart things I know on them, they teach me so much and they reinvigorate me after all these years.”

Bigham is now preparing for the Fleet Feet Liberty Mile.

“I’ve just been trying to do one track workout a week and a long run,” Bigham said. “Not like marathon training, but trying to get one good effort in on the weekends.”

Bigham said her family has been incredibly supportive throughout her return to running. Her younger brother, Jason, is now coaching her. She also said her husband supports her and understands her passion for the sport.

Most importantly, her training for the Liberty Mile is a lot easier because her kids are there to love and support her.

“I’ll say to them, ‘I’m not gonna do this long run because I’ve been gone a lot,’ and they’re like, ‘No, Mom, if you want to do it, you should do it. We want you to be good, and we want you to be happy,’ ” Bigham said. “They’re just really sweet kids. They’re behind me all the way, and I feel very lucky.”

With her family on her side and her runners at Winchester Thurston inspiring her, Bigham has all the motivation she needs. She wants to achieve one goal in particular at the Liberty Mile.

“I travel all over, but when I can race in Pittsburgh, it’s just really special,” Bigham said. “It would just be a perfect day if I could break five minutes and if I could get the win, crossing that finish line with a smile.”