DOB: March 10, 1985 In: Plymouth, Indiana

First Running Memory: “The first memory I have of a competitive running situation was not so great. Actually, I didn’t make it to the race. It was at the Blueberry Festival in Plymouth, Indiana. They have a mile race every year on Labor day. My dad (Marty) drove me to the start line – I didn’t want to do it and I started crying, pulling a tantrum. He ended up not making me run. I hated to run back in the day. So that’s my first memory. Not a good one [smiles].”

Last Book Read: “The Winner Stands Alone by Paulo Coelho.”

Running Inspirations: “When I first got into running – my older cousin had run cross country. I loved basketball but as a sixth grader going into junior high, they didn’t offer basketball. So I was like, I might as well do something – cross country – to keep me active. So that’s when I first started doing cross country. I never really liked running that much. I never really had that many role models in running, other than my family.”

Hobbies/Interests: “Pretty boring. I like to play board games, cooking and reading books. I’m really into watching Dexter, the TV show. My female teammates will have Glee nights together. We don’t do things that are super active because we’re always recovering from running or doing things like that.”

Favorite Movies: “I like all the Die Hard movies, the Alien movies. I have two older brothers so I’m more into action movies. Rocky.”

First Job: “For the grounds crew in our school system. I mowed the lawns or weed-whacked, did lines on the fields and all that.”

First Car: “Was my grandmother’s Grand Marquis (beige). Awesome, it had a huge engine. It was a really neat car.”

Current Car: “I have a 2008 Ford Escape (green). My last three vehicles have been green.”

Favorite Meal: “Rice and beans.”

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: “Non-discriminatory [laughs]. I like them all.”

Pre-race Feeling: “I used to get really nervous in high school before races. I feel in control these days. So I don’t get that anxious. I just try to take it all in. I get anxious but not nervous, these days. I look forward to commencing the race. On the start line – I think that’s the worst part. But once the gun goes off, it’s a lot better.”

Greatest Sports Moment: “Winning the U.S. Championship title this year, outdoors.”

Most Painful Moment: “Falling. Being on the track in Daegu and realizing that the race was still going and I wasn’t a part of it.”

Funny Memory: “Kind of random – two years ago in London, there was an 800 race and Anna Pierce, my teammate, and I shared a lane. And we were trying to come up with something when the camera is on us, we should do something funny. We were gonna do this air punch thing. Then the camera got on us and we were both just so nervous, deer in the headlights, we just stood there. It made us laugh. Like, afterwards, Yeah, we had it all planned out. Didn’t do anything [laughs].”

Strangest Race: “There was one year at NCAA in the final, we started the race and came around the corner. They still had all the hurdles on the track from a previous race which was kind of a shock. That was like the only weird thing that happened.”

Embarrassing Career Memory: “I don’t think so, not yet [laughs]. Hopefully not. I’m sure it will happen someday.”

Favorite Sport Outside Track and Field: “Basketball. I like to play basketball a lot.”

Favorite Place To Compete: “Anywhere in Switzerland. The country itself is very beautiful, like every race I’ve gone to – Lausanne, Lucerne, Zurich are all cities with a lake nearby, or a river. Very scenic. Really good chocolate. I’ve run a few PRs there so that helps.”

Funniest Athletes Encountered: “Alistair Cragg. He’s really funny to be around. I make fun of him because he’s such a schmoozer and I’m really not that social. He makes me laugh, he loves pulling lines on people, whether they catch it or not.”

Toughest Competitors Encountered: “There’s a lot. This year’s kind of a weird year. Nancy Langat, Maryam Yusuf Jamal, Jenny Barringer (Simpson). All these women are really great competitors. Jenny has a really great kick, that’s something I never expected from her before. I’m starting to pick up on cues from other athletes and knowing their strengths. Jamal is one of those people who will go to the front and push the pace and make you work for a win.”

Favorite Athletes To Watch: “I love watching Usain Bolt. Such a great athlete, has a great attitude, the charisma he brings is really great for sports. And anyone of my teammates. I see how hard they work, so I like to watch them race.”

Childhood Dream: “Initially I wanted to be a bagger at a grocery store. It seemed so cool to scan stuff which I still like to do at the grocery store. I always have to scan my own stuff [smiles] and put it in the bag. Outside of that, athletically, I wanted to be a WNBA player.”

People Qualities Most Admired: “Honesty. Sense of humor. I think a lot of times in our sport, people take themselves too seriously. It’s funny, especially before a race, and we’re in the call room, I kinda look around: There’s the people that are very confident and sure of themselves. You can tell they’re relaxed. Composed. And then you see the people who are panicking, rushing to try to put their bib numbers on, their shoes. I think having that kind of confidence in yourself. I don’t know the exact word. But being confident in yourself and putting that in your whole package.”

(This Biofile is in the January issue of Track and Field News, page 44.)

DOB: October 16, 1992 In: Annandale, Virginia

Early Tennis Memory: “That would be hitting at my local courts with my mom. I’d go out maybe three times a week; I’d just enjoy hitting the ball. I remember I’d be out there an hour-and-a-half and enjoying whacking the ball around.”

Tennis Inspirations: “Probably Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Just really enjoy watching them compete and how they handle themselves on the court. I think they’re great role models and sportsmen to represent the sport of tennis.”

Nicknames: “Usually Mitch, The Machine, Robo Frank — those are the three.”

Favorite Movies: “Probably Batman: The Dark Knight and Old School.”

Last Book Read: “Right now I’m reading Rafa. I actually like it a lot. Really interesting. I’d recommend it for anyone to read.”

Current Car: “I don’t have a car. My sister and I share a Camry.”

Greatest Sports Moment (so far): “That’s a tough one… probably getting to compete at all four of the majors in juniors. Getting the chance to see what it’s like to experience the highest level of the sport, not only as a junior but from a professional standpoint.”

Most Painful Moment: “I went to the [2010] Australian Open for juniors and lost in the third round 8-6 in the third set, to the guy who ended up winning (Tiago Fernandes of Brazil). To have that 26-hour flight back to think about the match, that was obviously a tough one to drop.”

Toughest Competitors Encountered: “I would say probably Denis Kudla is one, I mean, he’s a really tough competitor. Second I would say…maybe Jack Sock. I think he competes well. I’ve seen him come back from a lot of tough matches.”

Favorite Sport Outside Tennis: “Definitely football, to watch and play.”

Embarrassing Tennis Memory: “I remember being in Mexico [at the 2008 Yucatan World Cup] and I was playing well, I made a good run to the quarterfinal. I played the No. 1 seed in my first-ever night match. And I really got beat easily by this guy in front of like a thousand people. It was quick. It was on TV. It was pretty embarrassing for me. (Who was the opponent?) Guillaume Rufin. He’s 170 [in the world] now. So maybe he was a good player.”

Best You Ever Felt On Court: “I was playing Evan King in the finals in Carson (2009), and we were both playing well. I felt I could not miss a ball. I felt amazing, really enjoyed that match. That’s the one that sticks out in my mind the most.”

Favorite Players To Watch: “Federer, Nadal. I like watching Murray, I think he constructs the game very well. He plays different than everyone else. He really slows the match down. I probably have a little of that in me, so I really enjoy watching him play. (Women’s player?) It probably was Justine Henin. I felt she played a real all-court game, constantly out there fighting for points. I felt she worked really hard to get her success.”

Strangest Match: “I was in Brazil [at the 2009 Banana Bowl]. My first-ever match on red clay. I was down 6-1 5-1 and 40-15 against this Austrian dirtballer [Tristan-Samuel Weissborn]. I came back and found a way to win. That was the strangest match, just to have everything turn like that. (How did you turn it around?) He was crushing me in the stadium. He had two match points. On the first he tried to hit a winner that missed. Then he tried to kind of toy with me and I ended up passing him. I thought, Okay, there’s no way I’m losing, he’s not even locked in here. I ended up playing really solid. Just got like really locked-in mentally and physically, willing to be out there as long as it took.”

Why Do You Love Playing Tennis: “I really enjoy the sport itself. It has kind of a mystique to it. I just always enjoy hitting the ball, how the players move and compete. There’s a lot of stuff going on with the players. Yet they’re so focused and tunnel-visioned in on the match.”

People Qualities Most Admired: “In general, I like to see toughness… The willingness to learn. I like people who are willing to experience what’s around them, to see what’s out there. People who try to care and help each other. That’s what we’re here for.”

Scoop Malinowski created the Biofile interview in 1992. He is the author of “Marcelo Rios: The Man We Barely Knew” which is now available at Amazon.com.

Ht: 5-10 Wt: 130

DOB: July 11, 1990 In: Odense, Denmark

Tennis Inspirations: “Yeah, Martina Hingis, one of my role models, growing up I was always looking at her game. And I was trying to play like her.”

First Tennis Memory: “Playing with my mom and dad and brother in a small town. And they didn’t want to play with me [smiles] because I was so bad, so I was standing against the wall just hitting for three, four hours every day. One day I beat them and that was so good.”

Favorite Movies: “Titanic, I have so many, Lord Of The Rings, National Treasure, White Chicks, Wedding Crashers. A lot, I have a lot.”

Last Book Read: “The Girl Who Played With A Fire, the writer is Stieg Larsson.”

Favorite TV Shows: “Orange County, Grey’s Anatomy.”

Musical Tastes: “All different kinds, I like Mariah Carey.”

Pre-Match Feeling: “Just relaxed, you know, I like to read a book before. Just to think about anything, just clear my mind.”

Current Car: “No, I don’t have one.”

Favorite Meal: “Tacos [smiles].”

Favorite Ice Cream Flavor: “Cookies.”

Greatest Sports Moment: “Winning New Haven and winning my first WTA and winning junior Wimbledon.”

Most Painful Moment: “I’m trying to think…I don’t know.”

Favorite Tournaments: “All the grand slams. I really like the US Open and I like Wimbledon a lot. I have good memories playing Wimbledon – winning juniors there – so I like going back. And I like the grass and the atmosphere.”

Closest WTA Friends: “Sorana Cirstea, the Polish ones.”

Funniest Players Encountered: “Vince Spadea. I met him at an exhibition in Liverpool and he was just hilarious.”

Toughest Competitors: “I don’t know if there is one that I fear the most. (Toughest to play?) They can all be tough. I just go out and play my best against all opponents.”

Favorite Players To Watch: “I like watching Federer play.”

Funny Tennis Memory: “I think you have to see this point. Chakvetadze, she hits a shot, she gets an easy overhead. The opponent is standing far behind the baseline and not even going for the shot. She hit the overhead – she mis-hit it. And she goes for the backhand and she hits it in. She won the point anyways.”

Embarrassing Tennis Memory: “That’s a tough one. I don’t know. I lost love and one in doubles in French Open (to Sugiyama/Srebotnik). I didn’t think that was fun.”

Last Vacation: “After Wimbledon I went to Copenhagen for a few days my birthday.”

Favorite Sports Outside Tennis: “I like soccer and basketball.”

Best You Ever Felt On Court: “I think my first final in Stockholm last summer. I felt like every ball was just sitting there and then taking the trophy and winning, that was great.”

Personality Qualities Most Admired: “Honesty, polite, nice, smart.”