prerace

adjective

pre·​race ˌprē-ˈrās 

variants or pre-race

: of, occurring in, or done in the time before a race

prerace training

beat the prerace favorite

… I have to admit that I've got a case of prerace jitters right now. I want to win. After all, I've trained my whole career for this.

—Matt Biondi

Word History

First Known Use

1912, in the meaning defined above