My name is Holly Zimmermann and I was born in Providence, RI, USA with the maiden name Morrison…yes, the fierce Scottish clan! All my life I have participated in sports. During school and while attending university, I was active in team sports including soccer, softball, gymnastics, basketball, field hockey, lacrosse and even cross-country running (although I hated it then!) Who knew what life had in store for me!
My higher education includes a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering with a concentration in Aerospace Engineering at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, a Master’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering concentrating in the thermal sciences from The University of Rhode Island, and finally a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) at The College of William & Mary. I worked for several years in research and development for military applications including antenna and radar jamming systems for tactical fighter aircraft (F14s, F15s) and later acoustic damping for submarines.
Working part-time in the technical industry while raising my four children, I spent nearly every free minute running to maintain mental and physical balance. My passion is taking part in races of all distances but especially those that have an adventurous nature bordering on the extremes.
Notable Athletic Achievements
2014-2017 Four-time winner of Regensburg Landkreislauf Ultramarathon
2016 Marathon des Sables Finisher, 257 km Sahara Desert, Morocco (short-listed favourite to win)
2016 6th place Polar Circle Marathon, Greenland
2018 International Women’s 1st place, Mount Everest Marathon, Nepal
2021 Expedition-length Adventure Racing European Championships, German Team, Denmark
2021 Adventure Racing World Championships, German Team, Galicia, Spain
2022 One of only 20 international trail runners worldwide to be invited to run the inaugural Snowman Race in Bhutan
2024 First place overall winner (last one standing) of the 1st Heppl Backyard Ultramarathon
Many long-distance mountain races in Austria, Germany, Switzerland, South Africa and the USA
Other: Winner of the International Cooking Show ,Das perfekte Dinner’ Regensburg episode September 2023
Qualifications
Certified Trainer for Endurance Sports
Speaker at numerous events in companies, schools, and sporting clubs (in German and English)
Author of two running books: Ultramarathon Mom; and Running Everest
Trainer for Elementary school sports special programs
Captain of the Armin Wolf Running Team since 2016