Words by Sheridan Wilbur. Photography by Joe Hale and Justin Britton.

Joe Klecker has many hobbies. Running was one of them, until it became his job. Since graduating University of Boulder in 2020, he’s been a professional runner for OAC and he’s had remarkable success: Tokyo Olympian, 10,000m US champion, two-time world qualifier for the 10,000m. It’s perfectly understandable if Klecker craves rest when he’s not chasing another team USA kit. But the 27-year-old’s mind never stays still for long. He loves to learn. Klecker is a biochemistry grad student, an avid bread-baker, amateur pizza chef and dedicated dog lover. He might be known for #Kleckermiles, the byword in the American running scene for high mileage and a speedy pace, but he’s got more gears than consistent intensity. 

“I’ve built a pretty loyal group of people commenting, asking how I’m doing or questions on products every day,” he says about his 16,000 Strava followers. “But most of my training is very boring.” 

What’s a normal training day for Klecker? Two runs. An hour in the morning. 40 minutes in the afternoon. But it’s rare that one of the fastest runners in the world logs it all. Cross-training, Alter-G treadmill runs, gym sessions. He even records walks with his two dogs. “I think that’s funny alongside the hard workouts.” There's nothing he doesn’t put on Strava, he says. When people ask why he’s doing something, he takes it as an opportunity to connect with fans. “I try to educate them or tell them the purpose and why I think something is valuable.” 

Then in March 2024 Klecker went dark online. Preparing for his 10,000m season opener, he felt pressure to update his activities every day. Doing something for performance's sake. “I wanted to focus on what's right for my body to be ready for race day.” Last summer, at the World Championships in Budapest, he felt “banged up” and felt guilty for taking a day off. He says people were upset, asking why he’s not posting. Proactive about his absence, he let his followers know he wouldn’t be online for two weeks, then went to work unseen. “But after [the race], I’ll upload my training,” he confirms. 

Klecker graduated at a tumultuous time during the pandemic. The seven-time All-American and two-time NCAA runner-up wanted to stay in Boulder and go pro. But only one 2020 grad announced a pro deal. The Tokyo Olympics were uncertain. When On approached him about starting a new team in Boulder, they hadn’t proved themselves on the world stage yet. But Klecker saw opportunity in what could be a risk. He became the first athlete to sign. “There's a lot of variables in terms of wanting to pursue your dreams,” he says. “Fortunately, it just worked out perfectly.” 

Klecker took ownership over his future, interviewing potential candidates. He connected immediately with Dathan Ritzenhein, who also ran at Colorado. “Dathan has unlimited stamina. He will be vacuuming the gym or if you have a workout, he'll be literally coaching from 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. if that's what it takes. I'm similar in that way.” 

Klecker and Ritzenhein have a special relationship beyond coaching. They’re also really good friends. “He appreciates I was so on board with having him as my coach from day one.” Klecker says he, along with early OAC members Ollie Hoare, Alicia Monson and George Beamish “have a bit of a closer relationship with him” than newer members, “just knowing from where we started to where we've gotten.” 

This coach-athlete relationship works because they’re both willing to learn and grow. “I believe the stuff Dathan assigns us.” But sometimes Klecker will suggest changes in a workout. “Dathan won’t jump on it right away, but he’ll hear me out and do his research.” Year one under Ritzenhein, Klecker focused on high intensity training, but they’ve since learned he only has a certain number of months to be on top of his game. Now, Klecker focuses on intensity for certain months then “B-level workouts” to build fitness and have a good, long year. 

One of Klecker’s key training partners is Hellen Obiri, two-time Olympic 5,000m silver medalist and two-time winner of the marathon in Boston. It’s mutually beneficial: Klecker banks a hard effort in, Obiri receives extra support. “I can help her when it's windy out or hand her bottles, and she pushes me.” Before Obiri joined the team, Klecker often ran hard long runs alone. “It's really nice to have Hellen to do those with.” 

A year into pro running, Klecker felt restless. “I felt like there was more I could be doing in my day.” He missed learning in school and wanted to push his mind as much as his body. Klecker, who earned his bachelor’s degree in biochemistry, applied for a scholarship through the Olympic Committee to get his master’s. Now in his sixth class, he’s completing an online program in biotechnology at the University of Madison. “It’s a balance,” he says about navigating coursework and running. “Just trying to make sure I don’t have too much going on. Because running is the main thing. I don’t want to compromise that.” 

Klecker’s surrounded by nature in Boulder, but he resists the temptation to hike or climb fourteeners every day. “The recovery aspect [of running] is so important.” What’s a daily hobby he can do? Bake bread. “It keeps me occupied,” he says. “My first year as a pro, I was pretty bored. I'd sit around, not do anything else. It's been good to find hobbies that go well with the lifestyle we live.” Klecker taught himself about bread-baking using cookbooks and watching YouTube videos. “It's been a fun journey to try and perfect.” 

Recently, he’s raised his bread to the next level. His wife, Sage Hurta-Klecker, bought him a pizza oven for his birthday. The couple developed a taste for Neapolitan pizza while traveling in Florence for the Diamond League last summer. “I’ve set a really high standard,” he says. “I was a bit worried if I couldn't make a good pizza, it'd be a waste of her money.” Motivated for mastery, he began experimenting with sourdough pizza crust. Almost half of his meals were pizza for a couple of weeks. But day after day, he tweaked the recipe until he made Instagram-worthy puffy pizza.

Klecker and Sage met on the cross-country team at Colorado, bonding during team trips. “It was really fun to go to these new cities and travel together,” he says. Now they’re still traveling for races together, but all over the world. Does the OAC couple always talk about running? “Not really, no,” he says. “It’s nice that we understand we’re both pursuing these goals. We don’t need to bring it home.” 

A few years ago, the couple went for a run in the pouring rain, and they ended up bringing a furry friend home. They had spotted “this really old, blind, 16-year-old dog” in the middle of the road. Klecker was sure he would get hit. The two gave the ragged pup a bath, then house-hunted until they found his owner. Learning the dog’s name was Tucker, they were also invited to visit anytime. But Klecker, who grew up with three dogs, couldn’t shake the feeling of wanting his own. 

Soon after, they got a cockapoo. They named him Tucker, in honor of the first one. Then Klecker convinced his wife to add Minnie, a cavapoo, to the mix. “They just sleep all the time but love playing Frisbee, going for walks or shakeout runs,” he says. “We love them.” 

Something else Klecker can’t live without: caffeine. Ritzenhein often gets the team shots of espresso from Starbucks before workouts and races, but he got to the point where “I would be drinking Gatorade beside caffeine shots.” Klecker discovered how to combine these drinks into one. “Red Bull tastes much better and I enjoy it more.” He handles the carbonation during workouts fine. “Luckily my stomach is pretty strong. I’m just drinking tons of it.” He doesn’t actually care for the classic Red Bull. His favorite flavor is Coca-Cola. “They have some flavors in Europe I got hooked on.”

This summer, Klecker’s looking forward to returning to Europe to buy regional flavors, but wants to return for a more important reason too. “Growing up, with my mom running in the ‘92 Olympics, it was a big influence and something that was a big goal of mine,” he says. “But it always seemed out of reach. Throughout high school and college, I was never the top runner.” Klecker described earning his spot in Tokyo, during his first year of being a pro, as “surreal.”

Placing 16th at Tokyo left more to be desired. Klecker returned to the world stage in Eugene the following year, making improvements. “I was with the lead pack until maybe 800m to go,” he says, finishing ninth in the 2022 World Championship 10,000m. “Since Eugene, being so close to those leaders, kicking for those medals, I have unfinished business in the distance.” 

After taking indoor seriously, Klecker noticed he felt burned out by outdoor or “not totally on top of it.” In 2023, he felt pressure to qualify for the Diamond League final, then was injured on the line at the World Championships in Budapest. “Having too many goals, being spread a little bit too thin, just caused me to fizzle out by the end of the year.” Now he’s simplified his strategy. “I’m going all in on the 10,000m,” he says. “Everything has to contribute to getting to the biggest stages and being ready to perform my best.”