Massachusetts Distance Project

The Story Behind MDP

My name is Ethan Barossi, and I recently graduated from Walpole High School, where I was a distance runner, and now compete for Roger Williams University. For me, running has never just been about getting faster or becoming more fit. I love this sport because it gives people a place to belong. During my senior year, my high school team went through a season I’ll never forget. We lost four of our top six returning runners before the season really got going, and on paper, we weren’t supposed to be very good. Instead, we built something better. Through hard work, friendship, and genuinely caring about one another, we created a culture stronger than the team we thought we were going to have. We ran times we never dreamed of and accomplished things that once seemed impossible, because we weren’t just running for ourselves—we were running for each other. That experience is a huge part of why I created the Massachusetts Distance Project. MDP isn’t meant to only highlight the fastest runners or the biggest programs. It’s about telling the stories of the people who work hard, care about their teammates, and love this sport just as much as I do. It’s about the runners and teams who turn nothing into something. Because being a distance runner isn't cool—and that's the entire point of being a distance runner.