{{Short description|American middle-distance runner}} {{Infobox sportsperson |name = Ford Palmer |image = Ford Palmer.jpg |imagesize = |caption = Palmer at the 2018 USATF Indoor Championships | sport = Track | event = 1500 meters, mile | nationality = American |alias = |club = |birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1990|10|6}} |birth_place = Atlantic County, New Jersey |collegeteam = Monmouth |height = |weight = |turnedpro = |retired = |pb = '''1500m''': 3:36.98<ref name="IAAF">{{cite web|url=https://www.iaaf.org/athletes/united-states/ford-palmer-279136|work=IAAF|title=''Ford PALMER - Athlete Profile''}}</ref> <br> '''Mile''': 3:54.92'''i'''<ref name="IAAF"/>{{ref|1|1}} |olympics = |worlds = |highestranking = |coaching = |updated = September 17, 2017 |medaltemplates = }} '''Ford Palmer''' (born October 6, 1990) is a professional middle-distance runner who specializes in the 1500 meters and the mile. He ran in the men's 1500 meters at the 2016 US Olympic Trials.<ref name="Ore">{{cite web|url=https://www.oregonlive.com/trackandfield/index.ssf/2016/07/usual_suspects_advance_in_olym.html|author=Andrew Grief|title=The Oregonian: ''Usual suspects advance in Olympic trials 1,500 prelims, but surprises Wheating, Maton follow, too''|date=July 7, 2016|accessdate=September 17, 2017}}</ref>
==Running career== ===High school=== Palmer attended Absegami High School in Galloway Township, New Jersey, where he played as a linebacker for the school's football team.<ref name="linebacker">{{cite web|url=http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/former-absegami-high-school-runner-ford-palmer-chases--minute/article_9cf91dc2-2c36-5508-97a9-4178c6286f6f.html|author=Michael McGarry|title=Press of Atlantic City: ''Former Absegami High School runner Ford Palmer chases 4-minute mark in mile''|date=July 19, 2014|accessdate=September 17, 2017}}</ref> Outside of football season, Palmer ran on Absegami's track team as an 800 meter runner. However, after suffering a total of four concussions over the course of high school, he gave up football in order to focus on running.<ref name="linebacker"/> At New Jersey's 2009 Meet of Champions, Palmer placed third overall in the boys' 800 meter race in a time of 1:52.24, his best result in high school.<ref name="linebacker"/>
===Collegiate=== Palmer attended and ran track at Monmouth University, where he was coached by Chris Tarello.<ref name="ESPN">{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/sports/endurance/story/_/id/11199186/endurance-sports-ford-palmer-balancing-busy-life-olympic-hopes|author=Christopher Chavez|title=ESPN: ''Palmer making a name in track''|date=July 16, 2014|accessdate=September 17, 2017}}</ref> After graduating from high school, Palmer's weight at one point was as high as 205 pounds.<ref name="linebacker"/> In his first two seasons at Monmouth, his training volume was considerably low at 25 miles of running per week.<ref name="linebacker"/> As a junior, a physical check-up revealed that Palmer had high blood pressure.<ref name="ESPN"/> After the diagnosis, he watched ''Forks Over Knives'', after which he began a pescetarian diet, which he maintained for a year.<ref name="ESPN"/> Subsequently, he tried a vegetarian diet, after which he fully transitioned into a vegan in 2011.<ref name="ESPN"/> By the end of Palmer's senior year at Monmouth, he not only changed his diet but also lost 51 pounds<ref name="linebacker"/> and recorded a mile time of 4:00.4.<ref name="Flotrack">{{cite web|url=https://www.flotrack.org/article/29324-hoka-one-one-signs-ford-palmer#.Wb7PM8iGPIU|author=Taylor Dutch|title=FloTrack: ''Hoka One One Signs Ford Palmer''|date=January 9, 2015|accessdate=September 17, 2017}}</ref>
===Post-collegiate=== After graduating from Monmouth in 2013, Palmer began working as a bartender while training under coach Frank Gagliano with ''New Jersey New York Track Club''.<ref name="ESPN"/> In early 2014, he was close to quitting the sport as he worked some overnight bar shifts in order to support himself.<ref name="ESPN"/> He made a career breakthrough on August 1, 2014, when he won the Sir Walter Miler in 3:57.61, his first ever mile under four minutes.<ref name="sub4">{{cite web|url=http://highschoolsports.nj.com/news/article/7978300536181310882/new-jerseys-ford-palmer-finally-goes-sub-4-in-the-mile-after-many-close-calls/|author=Jim Lambert|title=nj.com: ''New Jersey's Ford Palmer finally goes sub 4 in the mile after several near misses''|date=August 1, 2014|accessdate=September 17, 2017}}</ref> In January 2015, Palmer signed a professional contract with Hoka One One.<ref name="Flotrack"/> The following year, he raced in the men's 1500 meters at the 2016 US Olympic Trials, but did not progress beyond the first heat after tripping on a wet rack.<ref name="Ore"/>
Palmer has divided his time living with his mother in Galloway Township and his father in Upper Township, New Jersey.<ref>McGarry, Michael. [http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/sports/former-absegami-high-school-runner-ford-palmer-chases--minute/article_9cf91dc2-2c36-5508-97a9-4178c6286f6f.html "Former Absegami High School runner Ford Palmer chases 4-minute mark in mile"], ''The Press of Atlantic City'', July 19, 2014. Accessed September 27, 2017. "Palmer's mother, Gina, lives in Galloway Township, while his father lives in Upper Township. He splits his time between both homes."</ref>
==Notes== *{{note|1|1}} The "i" after a result indicates an indoor performance.
==References== {{Reflist|30em}}
== External links == * [https://www.iaaf.org/athletes/united-states/ford-palmer-279136 Profile at IAAF] * {{Twitter|GoFordPalmer}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Palmer, Ford}} Category:Living people Category:1990 births Category:American men middle-distance runners Category:Absegami High School alumni Category:Monmouth Hawks men's track and field athletes Category:People from Galloway Township, New Jersey Category:People from Upper Township, New Jersey Category:Track and field athletes from Atlantic County, New Jersey Category:21st-century American sportsmen