Running News Daily

Pro Runner Rebecca Mehra Dances Her Way to $5,000 on Ellen DeGeneres’s Game Show

On March 28, Mehra, 26, who runs for Oiselle’s Littlewings Athletics, appeared on Ellen DeGeneres’s gameshow, called Ellen’s Game of Games. On the show, contestants participate in four different preliminary games; the four winners then advance to a semifinal and final round for a chance to win $100,000. The middle-distance runner, who based in Bend, Oregon, filmed the episode in August and September.

The Ellen DeGeneres Show reached out to Mehra after she tweeted about helping an elderly couple get groceries at the start of the pandemic, and her experience went viral. Celebrities, including DeGeneres, retweeted Mehra’s tweet. Because of pandemic-induced uncertainty, Mehra didn’t go on DeGeneres’s talk show, but she was instead recommended for the game show.

“I actually grew up watching game shows,” Mehra told Runner’s World. “Game Show Network was on all the time at my house. I don’t want to call this a bucket list iteme because I didn’t know it was on my bucket list. When would I get a chance to meet Ellen, compete on a gameshow, and get into my pro athlete mindset in musical chairs again?”

After a few practice games via Zoom and a quarantine at a Los Angeles hotel, Mehra was whisked away when it was her time to compete. Masked up until the moment before they started filming, Mehra walked in and awaited her fate in front of an empty studio audience.

“Watching it live on Sunday, they did a good job making it feel like people were there,” Mehra said. “It was so quiet when it was going on and on TV it seems like a big party.”

This was noticeable in Mehra’s first challenge: Blindfolded Musical Chairs. Music really did play, but it was actually silent as she crawled, rolled, and boogied her way into a spot in the next round.

“You have to commit and go with it,” Mehra said about her blindfolded dance moves. “Do the dance, crawl on the floor. It looks sillier if you don’t. I went with it, and I got to give Ellen a hug, so it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”

In the semifinals, she and three competitors had to answer a question correctly, or endure what looked like a pretty terrifying fall through a trap door.

Winning on the question, “Where were gummy bears invented” (spoiler alert: Germany), Mehra advanced to the finals. (You can watch this round below.)

“In the show, they cut out two to three questions,” Mehra said. “It was a smart group of people, and we went several rounds before people dropped. I got lucky knowing the answers I did, and within 10 minutes, we were filming the last round.”

Mehra’s final challenge was a speed-question round; each correct answer would increase her winnings. While she struggled to get into a rhythm, she was able to walk away with $5,000. On the show, she stated she hoped to donate a portion of her winnings to Littlewings Athletics, which is giving more opportunities to up-and-coming women in the sport. She plans to follow through on that promise.

Also, Mehra presented DeGeneres with a Oiselle goodie bag.

If you are interested in checking out the full episode, and to see Mehra’s dance moves, you can find it (with commercials) here.

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen pros on our regularly scheduled TV programs. Back in February 2020, Tatyana McFadden and Scout Bassett appeared on an episode of Project Runway.