Penn Charter’s Alli DeLisi, Haverford’s Olivia Cieslak keep their friendship on track

Best friends Alli DeLisi and Olivia Cieslak have been racing each other for more than a decade. Sunday’s race at New Balance Nationals Outdoor may have been their biggest one yet.

DeLisi and Cieslak — juniors at Penn Charter and Haverford High, respectively — qualified for the girls’ 800-meter championship, running in the final heat at Franklin Field.

Cieslak narrowly trailed the leader, Ali Ince, after one lap and DeLisi sat one second behind her in fifth. Both lost steam in the final 200 meters — Cieslak finished fifth in their heat in 2 minutes, 6.83 seconds, with DeLisi sixth in 2:07.46. Elyse Wilmes of Columbia, Mo., won the championship in 2:04.92.

Cieslak finished ninth overall, DeLisi 11th. It wasn’t their fastest race, but the test is always tougher late in the year.

“It’s the end of the season and it’s tiring,” DeLisi said. “It’s fun having each other there, and cheering each other up no matter what. Our seasons were both amazing.”

Being side by side is a familiar dynamic for DeLisi and Cieslak.

DeLisi and Cieslak have been friends since kindergarten when they met through the Philadelphia Catholic Youth Organization. Both ran cross-country and track and field, racing every Sunday in the fall and spring until high school. They were always at the front of the pack together, and that sprouted a friendship.

“We just made the most of it,” Cieslak said. “It was just so fun to race, but then also have time together and bond — and it just stuck.”

How many times have they raced against each other competitively?

“Maybe 100,” said DeLisi, who has committed to North Carolina.

Pushing each other every year, DeLisi and Cieslak became two of the nation’s best high school runners. Their personal bests in the indoor and outdoor 800 meters rank in the top 10 in state history, and both hold many school records.

As a sophomore at the Pennsylvania Track and Field Coaches Association indoor state championships last season, DeLisi caught Cieslak in the final straight of the 800 meters and leaned forward at the finish line to win the title by one-hundredth of a second. DeLisi won states again in February this year.

But Cieslak has had the upper hand as of late. She placed two spots ahead of DeLisi at the New Balance Nationals 800-meter indoor championship in March, continuing her success into the outdoor season with a win at the Fords Track Classic in April. DeLisi nipped at her heels in that race but ended up second. Most recently before Sunday, the pair finished 0.11 seconds apart at the Brooks PR Invitational 800 last weekend, with Cieslak earning third and DeLisi fourth.

They entered Sunday’s meet butting heads for a chance at national glory, but you wouldn’t have known it watching them interact.

DeLisi and Cieslak were hip-to-hip throughout prerace activities. They stood beside each other in the tunnel before walking out to warm up together, chatting throughout, as they do for every race they run. After crossing the finish line, they sat down in adjacent chairs to catch their breath. No words were exchanged, and none had to be — each other’s company, mixed in with a few cups of water, was enough.

Renee Gunning, DeLisi’s running coach, called them “teammates.” Gunning says the two girls even did handstands before a St. Louis event at the HOKA Festival of Miles in May.

“When there’s photographers there, we’re always around doing something for the pictures,” DeLisi said.

Though they race head-to-head less than they used to, the two are still inseparable off the track. DeLisi and Cieslak FaceTime almost daily, whether before school or while doing homework. Though their relationship started with running and they are nationally renowned for it, it is rarely a topic of conversation between the two. They interact as any two teenage girls would, which includes frequently featuring on each other’s TikTok accounts.

Haverford track coach Ryan Comstock called the dynamic “really healthy,” noting the maturity DeLisi and Cieslak display in handling a relationship that constantly flips between friend and competitor.

“They’re at it neck-and-neck and running the top times in the country, and it could affect their friendship — but I don’t see it at all, which is really amazing at that age,” Comstock said.

No matter what happens between the white lines, DeLisi and Cieslak come out on the other end as proud friends. That will never change.

“We’re so happy for each other and all of our success,” Cieslak said. “I love watching her, she loves watching me. We’ve always just kind of been like that.”

Asked how they can be such close friends — or even friends at all — with how often they race, Cieslak had a simple answer.

“We’re here to have fun.”