Female In Focus: Brie Oakley Expands On Important Issues

Five years ago, Brie Oakley's rise in the sport of cross country and outdoor track and field came quicker than she expected. 

And within two years, after deciding to go all-in on XC and track and field in 2015-2016, she blossomed into a four-time Colorado state champion, a Team XC Nationals individual champion and the 2017 Gatorade National Cross Country Runner of the Year. That success eventually led to a scholarship to the University of California, Berkley. 

But under the surface, many wouldn't have known the challenges she faced, including issues around body imaging and nutrition, in large part beacuse she was so successful.

But looking back, Oakley says, she's reflected on that time and now wants to send a special message girls of all ages, in high school and in middle school, and especially in her home state: