Brenna Detra, a Wisconsin graduate and fourth-place finisher in the women's 800 meters in February at the USATF Indoor Championships in Albuquerque, N.M., who is one of nine American female athletes to eclipse the 2-minute barrier during the outdoor season, joins DyeStat editor Erik Boal to discuss her pursuit of making the July 9 final at the Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. Detra, 27, ran a lifetime-best 1:59.57 on June 3 at the Music City Track Carnival at Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tenn., improving on her 1:59.94 performance from last year at Icahn Stadium on Randall's Island in New York. She explains the challenges of competing as an unsponsored athlete and balancing a full-time job in Boston and still being able to remain one of the elite middle-distance performers in the United States. Detra shares the valuable experience she has gained racing in both domestic and international one-day events, as well as the strategy of advancing through rounds at both indoor and outdoor championship meets. She revisits having to overcome left knee pain in March that sidelined her early in the outdoor season, a result of a 2017 injury while competing for Wisconsin and surgery after Detra tore her ACL, MCL, LCL and meniscus, in addition to dislocating her kneecap, from which she returned to make the NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Championships at Hayward Field again the following year. Detra examines how valuable coach Anna Grenier Willard has been during this chapter of her career, and how having a female coach has benefited her on and off the track. She also speaks about how significant the insight, perspective and support of a sports psychologist has been following her surgery and rehabilitation. Detra also explains how much she is inspired by her family, including her brother who has Down Syndrome, and how they have continued to provide support from where she grew up in Peoria, Ill. She analyzes the potential to make the U.S. roster, both for the World Championships in August in Budapest, Hungary, as well as the Pan American Games in October in Santiago, Chile, and how meaningful it would be to continue to overcome the odds to represent her country internationally this year. Detra also shares her added motivation after missing out on advancing to the semifinals at last year's U.S. outdoor meet by one spot, and her potential for a breakthrough in Oregon, with her aspirations to run sub-1:59 for the first time.