The CITIUS MAG Podcast | A Running + Track and Field Show

"I never saw any of this as a way out. I just went through life and just survived. Whatever happens, happens. I never dreamt big. I just wanted to go to college and get a job like the typical college student. But it was never this. This came into the picture when I was 18 years old. After running a 55 in the 400m and then watching the Olympics in 2016, I was like, 'Pshh...I'm only like four seconds away. I can do this.'"

Wadeline Jonathas' story is truly remarkable. She was bullied. She went to three different high schools. She was homeless. She found inspiration to get serious about track by watching the 2016 Olympics on TV which led to her to one of the most successful Division III careers at UMass Boston – where she initially walked onto the team. After sophomore year, she transferred to the University of South Carolina, where she truly blossomed into the star that she is now. She won the 2019 NCAA title, qualified for the U.S. national team and then finished fourth at the World Championships in 49.60. 

She opens up about the struggles of the pandemic and why she had her doubts about making the U.S. Olympic team in 2021. Last summer, she took third at the Trials to accomplish her dream and then reached the semifinals of the 400 in Tokyo. She earned a gold medal as a member of the U.S. 4x400m relay. She's still hungry for that individual medal and at 24 years old, she's got potential. Outside of the track, she also wants to make some big changes. I loved this conversation that we recorded at the Team USA summit ahead of their White House visit.

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GARMIN: Music. Training. Data. The Garmin Forerunner 245 Music is my favorite running partner. You do the running. This GPS running smartwatch does the thinking. It even gets to know you and your body better, mile after mile and song after song. Get one for yourself at Garmin.com

HYDROW: Hydrow is a state-of-the-art rowing experience. Hydrow works 86% of major muscle groups, compared with only 44% from cycling. That’s twice the benefit in half the time! It’s a perfect low-impact workout to add to your training cycle for both endurance and resistance training. Use code CITIUS100 for $100 off of the rower (stackable with any current offerings) >> https://hydrow.com/

OREGON22: We are less than 90 days until the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). The outdoor track season is underway and the journey to Hayward has begun. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

Happy Friday! This is the FOURTH edition of Track Snacks – a mini-series taking you into the weekend where Chris Chavez and a fellow CITIUS MAG staffer share the story of an athlete who they're excited about right now that you can expect to see compete at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 (July 15–24, 2022).

For this episode, Dana Giordano (Host of the 'More Than Running' Podcast) joins me to chat about Sifan Hassan. She is the reigning Olympic champion in the 5000m and the 10,000m and the Olympic bronze medalist in the 1500m. Hassan burst onto the scene in 2014 as she started putting The Netherlands on the podium at European championships. In the last eight years, she's gone on to break world records in the mile, road 5K and one-hour run. She's got some of the best range in the sport and demonstrated it best at the 2019 World Championships in Doha where she became the first person to win gold in the 1500m and 10,000m. At the Tokyo Olympics, she attempted an unprecedented triple. We're excited to see if she can do it all over again in 2022.

Track Snacks is presented by Hayward Magic. Everyone knows how much all of us in the CITIUS MAG family love track & field, and how much we enjoy sharing that love with you all. Well, we’ve got a few big love-sharing ideas in the works and it all takes place in Eugene, Oregon this summer. Hayward Field will be the home to the Prefontaine Classic, the USATF Outdoor Championships and the World Athletics Championships. We'll be there and you should be too. Visit https://citiusmag.com/summerofhayward/ for all the information on dates and tickets.

Track Snacks is sponsored by @HaywardMagic, the Instagram home for the true track & field diehards, dreamers and fans. Sharing the magic of the sport and elevating the athletes that push it forward. Follow them on Instagram @HaywardMagic.

Intro music: "Believe In Yourself" by Norm Cotone

“One of my colleagues said this in a meeting, and I’ve heard this before, but it really had an impact on me during 2020/2021. It’s the Maya Angelou poem where she says, and I’m paraphrasing to a degree here, ‘You may not remember what I said. You may not remember what I did. But you’ll remember how I made you feel.’ That right there is it. That’s what we can all do in our own little space: have people feel amazing, have a great experience, walk away with a smile on their face.”

Last year, Ted Metellus made history when he was named the race director of the New York City Marathon. Not only that, he became the first Black race director of any of the World Marathon Major races. In 2020, New York Road Runners faced criticism and allegations of discrimination and racism and vowed to make changes within its leadership roles and internal structure to make things better. The move with Metellus also came at a time when the running industry was coming back from a year full of cancellations and postponements for major races. New York Road Runners canceled all in-person races from March 2020 to September 2020. In this episode, you’ll learn more about how an event like that comes together but also learn a bit about Ted’s story from growing up as a kid in the Bronx to lessons he learned from the entertainment industry and other sports. He’s so down to earth. 

We recorded this conversation in late February at the Running USA Conference. For this episode, I’m joined by Joshua and Aaron Potts of the 2 Black Runners Podcast. 

SUPPORT THE SPONSORS

FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

BROOKS RUNNING: The Brooks Hyperion Elite 3s were released earlier this month and its Brooks' latest road-running shoe built for speed with ultralight foam and a carbon fiber plate to help propel you forward.

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: We are less than 90 days until the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). The outdoor track season is underway and the journey to Hayward has begun. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

Nell Rojas joins the CITIUS MAG Podcast for the first time after finishing as the top American at the Boston Marathon for the second time in a row. The Boulder-based running coach placed 10th over in a new personal best of 2:25:57 – which took 75 seconds off her time from her sixth place finish last October in Boston. 

In this episode, we go through her build-up to this race which wasn’t perfect and then the decision-making process into leaving her contract with Adidas that she signed in April to run in a pair of Nike VaporFly shoes. 

We touch on the conversation around unsponsored runners since her decision to ditch the contract has been a topic of discussion on Twitter and message boards. Plus: Why representation matters for her as a Latina on the start line of these major races, where she sees herself in the U.S. marathoning scene + much more. Outside of running, she’s a strength and running coach based in Boulder Colorado. 

For this episode, I’m joined by David Melly for a crossover episode with the Run Your Mouth Podcast.

SUPPORT THE SPONSORS

FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

BROOKS RUNNING: The Brooks Hyperion Elite 3s were released earlier this month and its Brooks' latest road-running shoe built for speed with ultralight foam and a carbon fiber plate to help propel you forward.

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: We are less than 90 days until the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). The outdoor track season is underway and the journey to Hayward has begun. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

Happy Friday! This is the third edition of Track Snacks – a mini series taking you into the weekend where Chris Chavez and a fellow CITIUS MAG staffer share the story of an athlete who they're excited about right now that you can expect to see compete at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 (July 15–24, 2022).

In this episode, we're actually joined by the actual athlete. Marcell Jacobs is the reigning Olympic champion in the 100m, the reigning 60m world indoor champion and the European record holder in the men's 100 meters. Jacobs was one of the biggest surprises of the Tokyo Olympics when he ran the race of his life to become the first Olympic champion not named Usain Bolt since 2008. He proved it was no fluke by winning the World Indoor Championships in the 60m in a long-awaited clash against 2019 World Champion Christian Coleman. The fans are in for a real treat because they won't have to wait until July to see them go head-to-head again. This week. Prefontaine Classic race organizers announced Jacobs, Coleman, Olympic silver medalist Fred Kerley, Olympic bronze medalist Andre De Grasse, Noah Lyles, Marvin Bracy, Kenndy Bendarek and Ronnie Baker would be part of the deepest 100m race in history. It's the appetizer before the main course at Worlds.

Track Snacks is presented by Hayward Magic. Everyone knows how much all of us in the CITIUS MAG family love track & field, and how much we enjoy sharing that love with you all. Well, we’ve got a few big love-sharing ideas in the works and it all takes place in Eugene, Oregon this summer. Hayward Field will be the home to the Prefontaine Classic, the USATF Outdoor Championships and the World Athletics Championships. We'll be there and you should be too. Visit https://citiusmag.com/summerofhayward/ for all the information on dates and tickets.

Track Snacks is sponsored by @HaywardMagic, the Instagram home for the true track & field diehards, dreamers and fans. Sharing the magic of the sport and elevating the athletes that push it forward. Follow them on Instagram @HaywardMagic.

Intro music: "Believe In Yourself" by Norm Cotone

"When I pass someone, I think: Poker face and pass them with authority. You don’t want to give someone hope. There are a lot of opportunities to feel sorry for yourself in a marathon. I don’t want someone that I’m going by to have a little something to fight for. I want to put them away immediately.”

Scott Fauble makes his return to the CITIUS MAG Podcast after taking seventh at the Boston Marathon in a personal best of 2:08:52, which moves him to No. 10 on the all-time U.S. list. He is the third-fastest active U.S. marathoner. This was a big performance for Scott since he shook things up a bit toward the end of 2020 by leaving his sponsor Hoka and parting ways with coach Ben Rosario and Northern Arizona Elite. He eventually teamed up with coach Joe Bosshard and spent the past few months in Colorado to prepare for Boston.

We catch up on the decision-making process behind that, his brilliant race tactics in Boston, how he’s shifted his thinking after a big performance and what’s got him excited about the future. We also go through a bunch of the listener questions that you submitted on Instagram.

SUPPORT THE SPONSORS

FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

BROOKS RUNNING: The Brooks Hyperion Elite 3s were released earlier this month and its Brooks' latest road-running shoe built for speed with ultralight foam and a carbon fiber plate to help propel you forward.

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: We are less than 90 days until the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). The outdoor track season is underway and the journey to Hayward has begun. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

"There was an academy called the Transcend Running Academy. That’s where I came through. It’s sponsored by (2012 Boston Marathon champion) Wesley Korir. I was working out with Wesley when I was in Kenya during high school. He taught me most of the things about running. I didn’t know I would make it in running but when he started talking to me about the benefits of going to school and continuing running, I started being serious in those two areas.”

Wesley Kiptoo is the 2021 NCAA Indoor 5000m champion and put together a third and second-place finish at the last two NCAA cross country championships. He was a standout star at Iowa State but now it’s time for a new chapter in his career. Wesley has decided to turn professional and sign with Hoka’s NAZ Elite. He will be training under coach Ben Rosario and he will be making his debut tonight in the 5000m at the Mt. SAC Relays. While in college, Wesley shows fierce competitiveness by pushing the pace from the front. He earned himself personal bests of 13:14.74 for the 5K and 27:37 for the 10K. In this episode, you’ll hear about his big goals as a pro but also a dive into his personal history with the sport. This signing is a dream come true as he hoped to be a pro runner while growing up in Kenya running and walking 40 kilometers to and from school most days. I hope you get to learn more about him and keep tabs on his future as a pro.

SUPPORT THE SPONSORS

FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

BROOKS RUNNING: Check out our programming and plans for Boston Marathon weekend.

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: Friends, more than 100,000 tickets have already been sold for this summer’s World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). Some of the sessions have sold out. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

“I want to isolate everyone because I run by myself. If everyone gets isolated and they’re running by themselves, that’s a huge advantage for me. I don’t need a pack to run with. I do 100% of my hard training alone. I want to get people alone. I want to sucker people into going harder on the downhills...You have to have that mentality that I’m coming to mess people up. That’s what I think about in a race – just having that raw competitiveness."

Brooks pro runner CJ Albertson has been a pretty highly-requested guest on this show because people can see some of the untraditional training runs that he throws down on Strava. But if you ask him, he doesn’t think it’s wild.

In this episode, we discuss his rise on the US marathoning scene where he popped off to a lot of people when he led last year’s Boston Marathon for 21 miles and finished 10th. He just ran 2:12 at the Modesto Marathon with three weeks to go until the big race. The catch is that was led off course by the lead bike for a bit. His 26.2 watch split was 2:10. So he’s fit and ready to throw down on marathon Monday.

SUPPORT THE SPONSORS

FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

BROOKS RUNNING: Check out our programming and plans for Boston Marathon weekend.

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: Friends, more than 100,000 tickets have already been sold for this summer’s World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). Some of the sessions have sold out. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG

🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube

"Boston is such a crazy race. I feel like if you can get to the start line feeling healthy and you've run on the course before and I've done that and I know it races, crazy things happen there. If I'm on the starting line, I'm going to give myself a chance. Last fall was really tough because I wasn't fit and I didn't totally want to be on the start line but we said, 'Eh, we'll just go out and try.' I feel like I'm still building back up from just that. I don't love my odds but if I'm healthy on the line, I'm not like, 'I have no shot.' I'm always going to give myself a chance."

I believe this is 2018 Boston Marathon champion and 2x U.S. Olympian Des Linden's third time on the show and the first since 2020 when we may have enjoyed a bit too much whiskey on the air but it was the pandemic so who could blame us. In this episode, we catch up on everything she’s been up to including training for this year’s race, her foray into broadcasting with NBC, our shared love for Formula 1, where she sees her career right now and much more. It’s always a pleasure to kick back with one of U.S. marathoning’s all-time greats.

SUPPORT THE SPONSORS

FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

BROOKS RUNNING: Check out our programming and plans for Boston Marathon weekend. 

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: Friends, more than 100,000 tickets have already been sold for this summer’s World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). Some of the sessions have sold out. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG

🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube

Happy Friday! This is the second edition of Track Snacks – a short show taking you into the weekend where Chris Chavez and a fellow CITIUS MAG staffer share the story of an athlete who they're excited about right now that you can expect to see compete at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 (July 15–24, 2022).

In this episode, The Lap Count editor-in-chief Kyle Merber joins the show to geek out about the stardom of Uganda's Joshua Cheptegei. He is the reigning Olympic champion in the 5000m, the reigning 10,000m world champion and the world record holder in the men's 5000m and 10000m. Just two years ago, Cheptegei boosted his international profile by breaking Kenenisa Bekele's world records in the 5000m and 10000m in 2020. He has already stated his intention that he will be looking to lower his 5000m world record at the Prefontaine Classic. We dive into how his progression has also lifted up Ugandan distance running and why we think we may be seeing the greatest distance runner of all-time in his prime.

Track Snacks is presented by Hayward Magic. Everyone knows how much all of us in the CITIUS MAG family love track & field, and how much we enjoy sharing that love with you all. Well, we’ve got a few big love-sharing ideas in the works and it all takes place in Eugene, Oregon this summer. Hayward Field will be the home to the Prefontaine Classic, the USATF Outdoor Championships and the World Athletics Championships. We'll be there and you should be too. Visit https://citiusmag.com/summerofhayward/ for all the information on dates and tickets.

Intro music: "Believe In Yourself" by Norm Cotone

"It's almost criminal these days how little the shot put gets coverage-wise. You can say it's arguably the best it's ever been all-time...What I'm trying to do is to bring people to watch and think that guy is not only really good at what he's doing but looks really good doing it...I also think that shot putters – when it comes to the people that I've met around the world – are some of the best personalities. I think we have some of the funniest guys out there."

Nick Ponzio is a shot putter who represents Italy on the global championship stage. He just took seventh at the World Indoor Championships. He is an electric follow on Instagram – @chubbydiamonds on there. He just recently threw a 21.83m personal best at the European Winter Throws Cup to open his outdoor season. He is originally from San Diego, grew up in Temecula, went to the University of Florida before transferring to USC. He also spent some time training post-collegiately in Arizona with Ryan Whiting but is now based in Nashville and coaching at Belmont. We go through his career trajectory up until this point,  talk about his decision to compete for Italy, examine the depth of U.S. shot put, what he hopes to see improved around the coverage of the throws and much more.

SUPPORT THE SPONSORS

FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: Friends, more than 100,000 tickets have already been sold for this summer’s World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). Some of the sessions have sold out. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG

🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube

Happy Friday! This is the first edition of Track Snacks – a short show taking you into the weekend where Chris Chavez and a fellow CITIUS MAG staffer share the story of an athlete who they're excited about right now that you can expect to see compete at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 (July 15–24, 2022).

In this episode, David Melly joins the show to geek out about the brilliance of Venezuela's Yulimar Rojas. She is the reigning Olympic champion, world champion and indoor and outdoor world record holder in the women's triple jump. She most recently recorded the farthest jump in any setting ever by leaping 15.74 meters to win the World Indoor Championship triple jump gold medal in Belgrade, Serbia. She's been undefeated at every global championship since taking silver at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. We unpack other mind-blowing stats and share a little bit about her upbringing and coaching set-up.

Track Snacks is presented by Hayward Magic. Everyone knows how much all of us in the CITIUS MAG family love track & field, and how much we enjoy sharing that love with you all. Well, we’ve got a few big love-sharing ideas in the works and it all takes place in Eugene, Oregon this summer. Hayward Field will be the home to the Prefontaine Classic, the USATF Outdoor Championships and the World Athletics Championships. We'll be there and you should be too. Visit https://citiusmag.com/summerofhayward/ for all the information on dates and tickets.

Intro music: "Believe In Yourself" by Norm Cotone

"I think that's why we're running so well. We just all push each other to be the best. We realize that none of us will be the one star. We're all going to share this together. I think that's what makes it really special. They just push me to be a better athlete. I'm just glad that we're all willing to race each other all the time and push each other and break the limits of high school running."

In this episode, we speak with Roisin Willis. She is a senior at Stevens Point Area High School in Wisconsin. That’s the same high school that has produced track and field greats like Chris Solinsky and Suzy Favor Hamilton. Roisin is already one of the next big stars. Last year, she qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials when she ran 2:00.78 at the Trials of Miles NYC meet and then ended up reaching the semifinals in Eugene. The fast times continued this indoor season as she ran 2:00.06 to break the high school girls indoor 800m record. The previous record was 2:01.78 set in 2017 by Sammy Watson. She capped her indoor season with a win in the 800 at New Balance Nationals. Next year she’s taking her talent to Stanford so there’s plenty of excitement about that.

SUPPORT THE SPONSORS

FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as  the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: Friends, more than 100,000 tickets have already been sold for this summer’s World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). Some of the sessions have sold out. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG

🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube

"Every time we race, records are looking to be broken or new records are looking to be set. Just like us being out there competing against each other, there's definitely a chance of us getting a record each time we go out there."

In this episode, we speak with Sophia Gorriaran. She is a junior at Moses Brown School in Providence, Rhode Island. She’s truly a special athlete who comes from a family of runners yet showcases even more athleticism by being a star on her school’s lacrosse team as well. Last summer, she qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials and ran her outdoor personal best of 2:02.26 in the first round of the Olympic Trials just five days after she turned 16 years old. This winter, she ran 2:00.58 and finished fourth in the same race against pros and collegiate athletes that Roisin Willis broke the high school record. Sophia also got under Sammy Watson’s previous record from 2017 to put herself at No. 2 on the all-time high school girls 800m list. At New Balance Nationals, she raced the 400, the 800 (where she finished second to Roisin) and mile so she can do it all and the best part is that there’s still an extra year to chase the record.

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THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as  the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: Friends, more than 100,000 tickets have already been sold for this summer’s World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). Some of the sessions have sold out. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

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"I would rather race them and get pulled along to a fast time and possibly get second or third instead of going and running on my own and maybe having to do a bit of extra work to get a faster time or maybe not even get that fast of a time. My mind is set on not really caring so much about winning and losing but getting a fast time."

In this episode, we speak with Juliette Whittaker. She is a senior at Mount de Sales Academy in Catonsville, Maryland. Juliette is a super talented athlete who isn’t one to back away from competition and throw herself in the mix for some fast times in the process. Last year, she ran an 800m personal best of 2:01.15 in Westchester, Pennsylvania and then reached the semifinal of the U.S. Olympic Trials at 17 years old. This indoor season, she ran the high school indoor 1000m record with a 2:39.41 and clocked the third-fastest high school indoor 800m time in 2:01.69. At New Balance Nationals, she led the mile wire-to-wire to run a personal best of 4:37.23, which is the fourth-fastest by a high school girl in U.S. history. She is committed to Stanford next year and as you’ll hear in this episode, her sense of humor will quickly make her an athlete whose career you’ll want to follow.

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FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as  the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: Friends, more than 100,000 tickets have already been sold for this summer’s World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). Some of the sessions have sold out. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

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"I was never in it for the money or the fame. But if you really think about it, I had more gold medals than Allyson Felix individually. I have more medals – if I'm not mistaken – than Usain Bolt individually. Yeah, it sucks but it all goes back to how the track takes over the field. It's just unfortunate but again, I feel like I was put on this earth to inspire and not to be that person. That's just not who I was put on this earth to be. I never really dwelled on it. Do I feel like I was underappreciated? Yeah, of course. It's track and field. I'm definitely underappreciated if we're talking real talk. I'm not on that type of time or type of level. I just never really cared about things like that. But, I am the MJ of long jump though. I feel like I am that."

My guest for this episode is one of the greatest track and field athletes of all-time. She doesn’t get the credit she deserves. It’s the one and only Brittney Reese aka B Reese aka Da Beast. She is the Michael Jordan of the long jump. She was the 2012 Olympic champion and the Olympic silver medalist in 2016 and 2021. She won four world outdoor titles (2009, 2011, 2013 and 2017). She won three world indoor titles (2010, 2012 and 2016). She is a 13x U.S. champion. She was a two-time NCAA champion at the University of Mississippi. 

With all of those accomplishments, you’d think her face would be plastered on billboards or commercials in the leadup to the world championships or Olympics but it rarely was. After her silver at last year’s Tokyo Olympics, she decided to retire…or so we think. As you’ll hear in this episode, the door might be open for a possible comeback. My cohost, Jasmine Todd, and I  touch on what can be done better to market and showcase the jumps + what’s next for Da Beast as a coach and mother.

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FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as  the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: Friends, more than 100,000 tickets have already been sold for this summer’s World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). Some of the sessions have sold out. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

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Deena Kastor is one of the greatest American distance runners of all-time. Up until recently, she was the American record holder in the marathon with a personal best of 2:19:36 from 2006. It withstood the test of time until Keira D’Amato broke it in Houston in January. Deena has held American records from 5K to the marathon. She is the 2004 Olympic bronze medalist in the marathon She is a two-time world cross country championship silver medalist. She has won the London Marathon and Chicago Marathon. The best part is that she’s not done.

 In this episode, you’ll hear a bit more about her plans for the year, what excites her about the sport as a fan, coach, athlete, fan and commentator and what she makes of everyone running so dang fast. It was a blast to record this episode with Deena at the Running USA Conference in Orlando, Florida.

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FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

THERABODY: Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of its kind as  the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin' great. For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius

OREGON22: Friends, more than 100,000 tickets have already been sold for this summer’s World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon (7/15-24). Some of the sessions have sold out. Don’t miss out. Buy your tickets today to see the world’s best athletes in action at the first-ever world outdoor championships being held on U.S. soil. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets

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“To be able to have a race where we’re focusing fast and really see the culmination of the hard work and the progress made – both in training and my mentality and my approach to training/racing – was really cool to see come to fruition.”

Bowerman Track Club star Elise Cranny returns to the show for the first time in two years. The last time she was on was in 2020 after she ran 14:48 for the 5000m, which was a major breakout performance. We went through her high school, college and early pro years but ever since then, she’s ramped it up to the next level. In 2021, she won the U.S. Olympic Trials in the 5000 meters and then finished 13th at the Tokyo Olympics. She was also fourth in the 10000 meters at the Trials. Last month, she ran 14:33.17 to break the 5000m indoor American record. Less than two weeks ago, she hit the track outdoors in California at Sound Running’s The Ten and ran 30:14.66 for the second-fastest 10000 meter time by an American woman. Only Molly Huddle’s American record is faster. I got the chance to catch up with her about all those major runs and where she thinks she can take things from here. 

Listen to Elise Cranny's first appearance on the show here.

Watch our highlight reel of her 10K on The CITIUS MAG YouTube Channel.

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FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings.

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Kyle Merber and Chris Chavez host After The Final Lap live from The Armory in New York City for the 2022 New Balance Indoor Nationals.  We are joined by special guest host Trayvon Bromell.

– On the final day of the championship meet, we saw Cade Flatt of Benton, Kentucky run the No. 3 U.S. HS boys all-time 800m mark in 1:48.86. He joined us to share why he isn't afraid to talk about going for the high school record. 

– Roisin Willis of Stevens Point, Wisconsin continued her incredible indoor season by adding a national title to go along with her indoor 800m record.

– Juliette Whittaker of Mt. De Sales (Maryland) ran the fourth-fastest girls high school mile in 4:37.23 by leading the race wire-to-wire.

– Gary Martin of Archbishop Wood High School (Pennsylvania) won the boys mile in 4:02.34 along with three other boys under 4:03. He's not afraid to talk about sub-four minute mile aspirations.

+ Much more

New Balance Nationals Indoors 2022: You can find live results, entries and a schedule of events here:

https://results.armorytrack.com/meets/11230

For more information on the meet and race videos visit NBNationals.com

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings.

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Kyle Merber and Chris Chavez host After The Final Lap live from The Armory in New York City for the 2022 New Balance Indoor Nationals.  We are joined by special guest hosts Emma Coburn and Cory McGee.

Newbury Park High School destroyed the U.S. HS Boys 4 x Mile record in 16:29.31. We're joined by Aaron Sahlman (4:11.37 split), Leo Young (4:06.86 split), Lex Young (4:07.35 split) and Colin Sahlman (4:03.74 split).

Flower Mound High School (TX) broke the U.S. HS Girls 4 x Mile record in 19:37.78. We're joined by Nichole Humphries (4:56.23), Alexandra Fox (5:01.36), Samantha Humphries (4:56.47) and Natalie Cook (4:43.73). 

With the NFL, NBA or MLB, you tune in to the game and afterward, you hear more from the athletes and coaches and get some fresh takes and thoughts from analysts about what you just saw. We’re bringing that to you in a fun show after some of the best action from these high school stars. 

Kick back for a fun hour of banter! Be sure to join the conversation on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram using #NBNationals.

New Balance Nationals Indoors 2022 You can find live results, entries and a schedule of events here:

https://results.armorytrack.com/meets/11230

For more information on the meet visit NBNationals.com

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings.

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"If you’re not having fun with it, I think you’re going to look back in a few years once you retire and be like, ‘You know what, maybe I didn’t handle it the right way. I was too serious with it.’ You can have fun with it, enjoy it and still do well. Everybody was talking about how Molly wasn’t taking it seriously – No. We were taking it super seriously in Sapporo and Tokyo in everything we were doing. Having fun is also super important and I think that improves their performance at the end of the day. People can look at it and be like, ‘Oh they’re joking around and having fun.’ But yeah, we joke around, we have fun but we perform, which is what matters at the end of the day.”

Jon Green is a former All-American from Georgetown who ran professionally for a brief time after college but now he’s most known for his coaching credentials. At 27 years old, he’s coached someone to an Olympic team and an Olympic bronze medal in Tokyo. That someone is Molly Seidel, who used to be his teammate but then they teamed up together in October 2019 and it’s been history ever since. Jon was the coach for Mary Cain’s professional women’s running team in New York City called Atalanta NYC but just recently passed the torch to Julia Lucas since he’s decided to move to Flagstaff, Arizona to coach Molly and former Bowerman Track Club runner and 10K world championship bronze medalist Emily Infeld. His squad is going by Verde Track Club – a super creative name. In this episode, hear more about his plans for the team and his coaching offerings for everyone from post-collegiate runners to everyday joggers like me or possibly you. We also touched on how Jon keeps everything fun and that’s at the heart of Verde Track Club’s ethos.

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FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

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"In this sport, it's always about what have you done for me lately. All I can do is control what I can control moving forward. That's: Running fast, making teams and getting medals...This is my fifth indoor USAs and my third team. It meant so much to get positive feedback from people who are actually fans of track and saw that after the Olympics I was able to put together more races and show I'm still here."

My guest for this episode is Marvin Bracy, who just finished second in the 60-meter dash at the U.S. Indoor Track and Field Championships. He tied his personal best of 6.48. Last year, he ran a 100m personal best of 9.85. He was an Olympian in 2016 in Rio and there's a chance that he was going to make the team again last year but hurt himself in the semifinal. The years between Rio and 2021 are fascinating to observe. You don't see any results on his World Athletics profile from 2017 to 2019 because he took a break to play pro football in the AAF. He was a high school star in track and football, spent time with the FSU football team in college before focusing on track. We dive into his background and much more. 

The sprints are such short races that it's hard to get some of these athletes' stories across. My hope is that after hearing Marvin's story here, you've got an extra reason or two to root for him. Yes...we also discuss these hypothetical races being floated against Tyreek Hill and NFL players. If there's any active pro track star who has an understanding of NFL speed and track speed, it's Marvin.

SUPPORT THE SPONSORS

FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings.

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“I’m no superstar like LeBron James or Tom Brady. There are occasions when people come up to me and say certain things and they’re flattering. I walk away just saying, ‘You have a mission. You were put on this earth and you have an opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives.’ I know that.”

My guest for this episode is Boston Marathon race director Dave McGillivray, who is an absolute legend. While that title may be what he's best known for, he’s also quite the philanthropist through his work organizing and managing events through DMSE Sports and now through the Dave McGillivray Finish Strong Foundation. Next month, he will be running his 50th Boston Marathon. Many people may have heard of his story about how he runs the race at night as the last finisher. This time, he’s going to try to make it special for the final mile. You will walk away inspired by his story. The crazy part is that Dave has run more or organized more than 1,000 mass participatory events so we haven’t even scratched the surface of the stories and insights he’s had in life.

We recorded this episode in-person at the Running USA Conference in Orlando, Florida. Thank you to Christine Bowen and her team for inviting us.

His fundraising page: https://www.givengain.com/cause/62379/campaigns/23790/

SUPPORT THE SPONSORS

FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings.

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"I'm looking forward to competing against those guys. They may be world championship qualifiers and Olympians but if I enter these events scared of them, then I'm not doing myself any favors and I'm not really living up to my mantra of finding my limits. If I can compete with them, I can obviously and hopefully surpass them. I'm looking forward to the competition and getting to know them as competitors and fellow U.S. athletes aspiring for the same dream."

My guest for this episode is Atlanta Track Club Elite middle distance star and new 1000m American record holder Shane Streich. A few weeks ago, Shane took people by surprise when he ran 2:16.16 at the American Track League’s Eastern Indoors meet to break Bryce Hoppel’s previous record by .11 seconds. Shane is having a solid indoor campaign with three wins in his four races so consider him someone to watch at the upcoming USATF Indoor Championships. In this episode, get to learn a bit more about the former Minnesota Gopher and Lipscomb Bison, why he chose those schools, how he flew under the radar after being an Olympic Trials semifinalist and much more. He has an 800m personal best of 1:46.07 and 3:57 for the mile. Things are going right for him and the Atlanta Track Club this season so get a behind-the-scenes look at why.

SUPPORT THE SPONSORS

FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings.

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"I think if I can be in 3:27 shape again and just be stronger to maybe be able to run 3:28.5 in the final, that's the best I can do. If they keep getting better and run 3:25 or 3:26 in the final of a major championship, I've got to be honest with myself and say, 'Well I'm not there yet.' Because I'm not. I can run 3:27-high in a major championship this year. I know I can. If that wins, it wins. But it was the same conversation back in 2020: We can run 3:29 in the Olympic final and we just have to be happy with what that comes out with. We're chasing to be the best in the world. I want to be world champion this year. Everything that I can do to make that happen, I'm going to try. At the end of the day, if I cross the line running my best race as I did in 2021, I'll shake everyone's hand and be happy with my performance and how I represented myself and my brand at that major championships."

My guest for today’s episode is Brooks Beasts star and 2021 Olympic 1500m bronze medalist Josh Kerr. This man is entertaining to watch. Last summer with 5000 to 1 odds, he finished third in Tokyo with a 3:29.05 personal best. He was just shy of Mo Farah’s outdoor 1500m British record. Just a few weeks ago, he ran 3:52.27 for the mile at the Millrose Games and finished second to Olli Hoare, who many heard in the After The Final Lap episode. So we get a little bit of a response from Josh on Olli’s comments that he was outclassed by Olli in the final 100m of the race. It’s setting up to be a solid rivalry with some head-to-head matchups to come at the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon and also at the Commonwealth Games. Before all of that, Josh wants to be a British record holder so this weekend he’s heading to Boston University to try and break Peter Elliott’s indoor 1500m and mile British record. We talk a bit about his plans for that but also his plans and hopes to make this an entertaining season. Josh chooses his races wisely and he wants to make it appointment viewing. He’s a great showman for the sport.

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FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings.

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"I didn't know if I wanted to go pro after the Olympic trials. I actually had a job lined up. I had accepted a job offer in South Carolina to start in the fall starting August. And I called them when I qualified for the Trials and I'm like, “Hey, I'm not going to be there. I'm going back to school, I'm going to be in East Lansing.” Having the opportunity to come in for a sixth year and get a free master's degree was pretty big...I knew that competing more and getting my name out there a little bit more would be really advantageous. So I decided to come back as a collegiate and maybe get a maybe a better deal or get with a team that hadn't been looking at me that I was a better fit for after the trials. I didn't get a whole lot of attention from pro teams or even agents immediately after the Trials. It wasn't until the fall...Now I have the time to look at all of the options and see what's what and where I could go while not making any super rash decisions – all while still getting a master's degree."

My guest for this episode is Michigan State sixth-year star Morgan Beadlescomb. This past weekend at the Windy City Invitational, most people’s attention was on Cooper Teare and Cole Hocker’s attempt to break Bernard Lagat’s indoor mile American record of 3:49.89. They fell just shy as they lowered their personal bests to 3:50.17 for Cooper and 3:50.35 for Cole. Behind them was one of the biggest surprises from the weekend. Beadlescomb not only broke four minutes for the first time in his career but he ran 3:52.03 for the fourth-fastest time in NCAA history. Beadlescomb also ran 7:43.22 last month to be the top collegian in the Millrose Games men’s 3,000m which was stacked with pro talent. In this episode, we discuss his breakout, why he was overlooked despite being 6th place at last year’s Olympic Trials 5,000m final, his early thoughts and plans for the NCAA indoor championships and coming from a small town of 4,000 people in Michigan.

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"I jokingly told my wife, 'I bet if just had a decent bunch of kids, I bet I could win a state meet and be a national-caliber team.' She was like, 'Yeah...yeah...' I emailed all the coaches in the area. I decided to go back to school to get my credentials and maybe I'd teach in high school. Nobody got back to me but Newbury Park. The coach was like, 'Hey, I'm retiring in a couple of years. We need someone to take over the program.' That's kind of how it happened. I just walked into the program, sat down with the guys and we were not very good at the time. I just started setting the standards high. It made some people mad at first. I might have lost one or two kids mentally wanting to put that work in. It turned around pretty quickly. We won a state championship in three years. We won a couple more and then a national championship. My girls won the state championship. It's just been snowballing since. The biggest thing I say is that we don't set boundaries. We really don't. We just go after what we want."

I got to meet Newbury Park High School coach Sean Brosnan earlier this month when three members of his boys team came into NYC for the Dr. Sander Invitational and ran the second and fourth fastest times in history for the high school indoor 3K and then Colin Sahlman became the 13th US high school boy to break four minutes for the mile when he ran 3:58 and beat a field of collegiate and pro runners. During the cross country season, this team established itself as arguably the greatest of all time. At the RunningLane Cross Country Championships in December, they scored 28 points as they went 1-2-3 with Colin Sahlman, Leo Young and Lex Young running the three fastest times by US High Schoolers on a 5K cross country course. Sahlman led the way with a 14:03. As you’ll hear in this episode, this group gets swarmed by fans at meets. They have a YouTube vlog. They’re rising stars right now. So how did Sean Brosnan stumble upon this program after years of running post-collegiately and as a professional just trying to break 4 minutes for the mile into his 30s? And then how did he take it over and make them so good. Consider this a little bit of an insight into his training philosophy mixed with a How I Built This around the program.

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"There are over 600,000 dreamers in America. When I think about my situation at the Olympics, out of the 600,000 Dreamers, imagine if there was someone else in the same exact situation higher than Olympics or even better than the Olympics – something better than that and they can’t get the opportunity to go to their event or do this or that. That’s why my whole movement when it started it was really big for all the Dreamers in the U.S. It was an inspiration I think to say if I could do it, they can do it. It’s really difficult to be in the situation we are in because there are a lot of obstacles we have to go through. It’s really hard to leave the country in the first place. Imagine if you’re somebody who wants to travel and see the world, you might not ever have the opportunity to do that because if you leave you can’t get back in. I think I kind of started something and got more recognition for what DACA is and what Dreamers are.”

Luis Grijalva was an Olympian for Guatemala at the Tokyo Olympics and finished 12th in the 5,000 meter final. His road to get to the Games was not easy. In his final race as an NAU Lumberjack, he qualified for Tokyo when he ran 13:13 for the Olympic standard when he finished second at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Shortly after that performance, he had to figure out a way to get to Tokyo because his status as a beneficiary of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals prevented him from leaving the United States without being able to return to the United States. He hired a lawyer and through the support of many members of the running community and mounting media pressure, he was able to get permission from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to leave. You’ll hear his backstory going back to moving to the United States as a one-year-old, the opportunities that sports and his education presented him and the lasting legacy that he hopes being able to compete at the Olympics was able to provide inspiration to many of the other Dreamers in America.

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FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM

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“For me, that American record has been on my mind since I’ve been at Oregon. I know that I can hit that American record. The fact that I went to the Olympic Trials and came in eighth off of four weeks of training, that’s what did it for me. In 2021, I was not as fast as I had been in 2015 due to my hamstring injury. After last year and being at the Olympic Trials and finishing eighth, that was the moment. These girls were jumping. It’s not like you weren’t out there competing. This is something you can do. That American record can happen. All you need is your speed back. You’re at a great facility. You can’t deny your jumps coach. You can’t deny your training group. You’re learning from this amazing training group. Your coaches believe in you. Your family believes in you. There’s no reason to not have set in stone to myself: You’re the future American record holder. That’s my goal. That’s what I want to do.”

Please give her a warm welcome as Jasmine Todd is joining the CITIUS MAG team to help bolster our coverage of the sprints and jumps in 2022. 

Jasmine is a world championship silver medalist from 2015 in the 4x100m relay. She also competed in the long jump at the 2019 world championships in Doha. Last year, she finished eighth at the U.S. Olympic Trials in the women’s long jump. She trains in California and has her sights set on making this year’s world championship team in Eugene, Oregon. However, the road there isn’t all that glamorous. In this episode, she also peels back the curtain of why she recently went public with a GoFundMe looking for assistance in funding her housing before she makes it Hayward. On the page, she says: “I know I can break the American Record in long jump. I know I can make this World Championship Team and I know I can Medal. I just need Proper resources again.” 

It’s very candid and maybe you can consider supporting her on her journey whether it’s as a backer or as a general fan. She’ll have CITIUS MAG behind her in 2022.

Follow Jasmine: Instagram | Twitter

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FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM

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Kyle Merber and Chris Chavez return to host our first CITIUS MAG Live postgame show called After The Final Lap.  With the NFL, NBA or MLB, you tune in to the game and afterward, you hear more from the athletes and coaches and get some fresh takes and thoughts from analysts about what you just saw. We’re bringing that to you in a fun show.

For the Millrose Games, we were joined by a surprise guest host: 2016 Olympic gold medalist Matthew Centrowitz. Guests for the show include On Athletics coach Dathan Ritzenhein, men's Wanamaker mile champion Olli Hoare, men's 3000m winner Geordie Beamish, women's Wanamaker mile runner-up Josette Norris and NCAA cross country champion Conner Mantz.

Kick back for a fun hour of banter! 

(For those listening in the car or at home with their kids, there is some explicit language in this episode. Thanks for that Olli.)

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"I need to have a good 'why' for why I'm doing it and what drives me. For me, it's never been money before with college running... I want to do it for the love of the sport and the fulfillment it brings me. Just Keep my 'Why' in a good place."

Whittni Orton Morgan is the reigning NCAA cross country out of BYU who joins us to share some news that she has signed her first professional contract and will be running for Adidas. She talks to me and my co-host Kyle Merber about the process and what it means for her training set up in Utah. Sneakily, there might be a real strong group forming there. We talk through her career up until this point which included playing multiple sports in high school with her favorite being basketball. So how’d she end up running and got so good at it? We touch on her mindset and motivation to win an NCAA title – which was interrupted by injuries throughout her career for the Cougars and just when things were going right, COVID strikes. A real fun conversation before she makes her debut in the women’s 3,000 meters at the Millrose Games this weekend.

WATCH THE MILLROSE GAMES POSTGAME SHOW ON SATURDAY: https://youtu.be/0qH6Au6yOQk

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Alicia Monson is a professional runner for the On Athletics Club and a 2021 Olympian in the 10,000 meters. Before turning pro, she was a star at the University of Wisconsin. Just a few weeks ago, she won her first national title with a win at the USATF Cross Country Championships in San Diego. In this episode, we touch on a bit more of her personality and dive into why so many things have been going right for her in the past two years. She’s got big goals to make the U.S. national team in the 10,000 meters again for this summer’s world championships. I think she does a great job providing insight into her mindset during races and when she makes her move to break the competition. Stick around for her recap of the super hot Olympic Trials 10,000m race and her funniest drug testing story.

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"I didn't feel like I had it. I had no idea. With a mile to go, I looked at my watch and I think I saw 2:12. It's hard to do math when you're so tired. So I was like, 'What does that mean? I think I can do this but I need to keep going.' It's funny because when I get in really good shape, my husband calls me The Buzzsaw. Don't stand in my way because Keira is just coming through. In the last mile, I don't know what it was but I was clinging to that. I was physically saying aloud to myself, "Buzzsaw. Buzzsaw. Buzzsaw." as 'Keep going! Keep hanging on!'...I kept looking for the banner. I knew I was going to be able to see it. I was a little like, 'Please just make this soon because I don't know how much further I can go.' When I made the turn and seeing the banner, that's when I was like. 'This is going to happen for me today.'"

Keira D'Amato is a friend of the podcast and just this past weekend set the American record for the marathon with her win at the Houston Marathon in 2:19:12. She took 24 seconds off Deena Kastor's previous mark which had stood since 2006. At 37 years old, she's one of the most inspiring stories in the sport. If you haven't heard her episode with me from November 2020, she talks in detail about her decade of hobby jogging after running at American University. She got married. Got into Real Estate. Had two kids. Started competing well on the national level at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials and her Cinderella story continues to this day. She went on the Today Show on Tuesday morning and then joined me for this longer conversation where we basically are processing her run in real-time.

Listen to her previous episode on the CITIUS MAG Podcast from Nov. 2020.

Listen to her Dec. 2020 appearance on More Than Running.

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“For some reason, I think everyone on this team is kind of an underdog. Everyone has that same killer mentality. We want to be at the top and we want to have that respect we deserve. Even Danny as a coach has been an underdog. Time after time, people are starting to understand these guys are legit. Josh is the best example of that. I think over the next couple of years, there will be more people winning medals.”

Isaiah Harris is taking his 1:44.42 personal best for 800m and 3:42.63 personal best for 1,500m to the Brooks Beasts. In this episode, he tells CITIUS MAG why he decided to make the move after a year where he finished fourth in the 800 meters at the U.S. Olympic Trials and recorded a victory at the British Grand Prix at Gateshead. He takes us through his early roots in finding success in track as a high schooler in Lewiston, Maine. By the end of his high school career, he held the Maine state record in every event from 200 meters through 800 meters. Riley Masters considers him the greatest athlete to come out of Maine. Now, Isaiah wants to give back to his community at home as a professional because Lewiston ranks as Maine's poorest city so you'll get to hear a bit about those plans. Consider Isaiah someone to watch in the 800 in 2022.

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"I was planning to go to the marathon last year but this injury came up. I still have unfinished business on the track so after world champs, I’m going to try to debut at a fall marathon. Hopefully New York or something. That was my main thing. Once I switch my focus and I’m doing the marathon, I’m going to do some damage there."

Shadrack Kipchirchir is the newly-crowned 2022 USATF cross country champion. He is a 2016 Olympian and has not missed a U.S. world outdoor championship team since he switched allegiances from Kenya to America in 2014. After he kicked to the win on Saturday, I tried doing a little bit of research into his upbringing and his career path and honestly couldn’t find much. This is someone who has the 4th-fastest U.S. 10,000 meter time and has won six U.S. titles. So I reached out to him and invited him onto the show. This is his first-ever podcast interview and we went through his early days in Kenya growing up as one of nine kids, why he came to America to run for Western Kentucky and then Oklahoma State, why he enlisted in the Army before even thinking of the opportunity of being able to run for Team USA and how he’s found success. Last year, he suffered the first major injury of his career with a torn calf that knocked him out of making his second Olympic team. He cross-trained his butt off and roared back with the cross country victory in his first race in 294 days.

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At 20 years old, Cole Hocker has put himself atop the United States middle distance scene. I profiled him for Sports Illustrated last July after he outkicked reigning Olympic champion Matthew Centrowitz for the win in the men’s 1,500 meter final at the U.S. Olympic Trials – which was one of my favorite races to watch of the whole trials. Hocker’s finishing speed is world-class. He went on to run 3:31.40 for sixth place in the Olympic 1,500 meter final. 

In September, he signed a professional contract with Nike and now sets his sights on his first professional indoor season, which includes headlining the men’s 3,000 meters at the Millrose Games. In this episode, we discuss his plans for the new year, the decision to turn professional after just one full NCAA campaign at Oregon, thoughts on American records and much more.

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"I never thought I would inspire anybody in life. I quit everything. I was never an inspiring person. To see me now, by just sharing my story of going from really sad to really glad and that being able to inspire somebody is a dream come true. I love making videos. I love sharing my story. I love oversharing, as my husband would say. The fact that it can help people is like, 'Are you kidding this is amazing?!" It is just more motivation to keep going, keep making videos and keep running because there are so many benefits that it's brought to me. Seeing the change that it brings other people is addicting and it never gets old."

We welcome Erin Azar – also known as Mrs. Space Cadet. She’s a rapidly-growing social media star with 720,000 TikTok followers and 70,000 Instagram followers. She describes herself as an "expert struggle runner and struggle lifer making running more approachable for beginners." I first learned of her in Dec. 2020 when she was a guest on Dana’s podcast. She is one of the people who really picked up the sport during the pandemic and chronicled her journey on Tiktok to millions of viewers. The sport is growing right now and there are thousands of people like Erin. In this episode, we recap her experience in this running journey including running the NYC Marathon and also how we can get someone like her to connect with track and field since there’s typically that disconnect. This is a fun conversation and I hope you all enjoy it as we wrap up the year and start an epic 2022.

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TRACKSMITH has launched the Tracksmith Foundation. If you’re not able to attend the Midnight Mile but would like to make a donation to the foundation, you can do so through the Tracksmith website. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

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“I've been cutting it close in training every week like, ‘Am I going to be able to get sharp in time and build up enough endurance to handle it.’ I did a workout the other week that gave me a lot more confidence that we’ve got a really strong shot at it. But a shot is still the idea. I think the range I could run is a 3:58 to a 4:02. If I were to predict my time, I’d say a 3:59.7 so that’s only just getting under.”

Unfortunately, due to the rising COVID-19 cases in New York City, Tracksmith and race organizers have made the decision to cancel the upcoming Midnight Mile Gala on December 31st at the Armory. Our guest for today’s episode is recurring fan favorite and guest Nick Willis. He was supposed to try and break four minutes for the mile at the strike of midnight at the Armory but now instead, he will still be going for it in a private setting without any spectators. 

I chatted with Nick a few weeks back while I was in town for the Chicago Marathon and we did a live show but this still hasn’t been announced. My co-host, Kyle Merber, joins this conversation for a bit of a mini Masterclass on the mile from Willis since he’s one of the best to ever do it and 20 years of breaking four minutes for the mile is truly remarkable.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS

TRACKSMITH has launched the Tracksmith Foundation. If you’re not able to attend the Midnight Mile but would like to make a donation to the foundation, you can do so through the Tracksmith website. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

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"We have to understand the changing nature of broadcasts and how people consume our sport. I want it to be as accessible as possible, as exciting as possible, as understandable as possible and that does mean getting rid of some rules and regs that slow us down...It's multifaceted. I just want noisy, passionate, young fans in a stadium who when they're grandparents, they've still got their grandchildren wanting to be there."

We welcome four-time Olympic medalist, former 800 meter and 1,500 meter world record holder and current World Athletics President Seb Coe to the show. We got the chance to pick his brain on his vision for this current moment that the sport is in with two World Championships and an Olympics ahead of us and why it’s crucial. 

We talk about changes and improvements that can be made in the sport’s presentation and accessibility, especially for athletes and fans. Of course, I bring up Formula 1’s rapid growth and what pages he may be taking from that sport’s playbook. 

Plus some fun questions at the end like what he thinks he’d run in super spikes and much more.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS

TRACKSMITH has come up with a very creative way to celebrate our sport by hosting a New Years’ Eve spectacular in New York City. All proceeds from the Midnight Mile at the New Balance Track & Field Center at The Armory will go to support the Tracksmith Foundation. If you’re not able to attend the Midnight Mile but would like to make a donation to the foundation, you can do so through the Tracksmith website. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

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“I really want to develop more of that 1,500-meter/mile speed. Hopefully, after that, we’ll have another crack at a quick mile like we did last year at Arkansas – who knows, maybe go for an American record there. We were pretty close last year so hopefully if things keep trending the right way, we’ll have a shot at that. USAs indoors obviously but not sure what we’ll do there yet. Cole is trying to maybe look toward some of that higher-end stuff like 3K-5K so maybe he’ll give me a shot at taking the mile title and he’ll go for the 3K. We haven’t figured out everything yet but it’s all geared toward making that World team. That’s the biggest thing to do. I know what I have to do now after getting fourth at Trials.”

Cooper Teare just announced his decision to turn professional and signed a contract with Nike. We hear some insights into what that means for his future plans. He put together a really great last 12 months. He ran 3:50.39 for the mile and 7:46 indoors for the 3,000m. Outdoors, he ran 3:35 for 1,500 meters, broke the long-standing Oregon school record in the 5,000 meters with a 13:12.27 and claimed the NCAA outdoor title in the 5,000 meters to go along with the Oregon DMR and team title from indoor season. He was also fourth in the 5,000 meters at the U.S. Olympic Trials.

In high school, Cooper ran 4:00.16 and just narrowly missed out on getting under the four-minute barrier. He eventually got it done as a freshman at Oregon but then really takes a step back to look at why the progression to becoming a 3:50 guy and NCAA champion worked out almost flawlessly.

– We also did a video where we pulled up some of Cooper’s old Instagram posts and had him tell us the stories behind them so that’s only on YouTube so go ahead and subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel for more cool content.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS

TRACKSMITH has come up with a very creative way to celebrate our sport by hosting a New Years’ Eve spectacular in New York City. All proceeds from the Midnight Mile at the New Balance Track & Field Center at The Armory will go to support the Tracksmith Foundation. If you’re not able to attend the Midnight Mile but would like to make a donation to the foundation, you can do so through the Tracksmith website. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

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Olli Hoare is an Australian Olympic finalist in the 1,500 meters who runs professionally for the On Athletics Club under coach Dathan Ritzenhein in Boulder. Before turning pro, he was a stud at Wisconsin where he won the 2018 NCAA title in the 1,500 meters. In 2021, he set personal bests of 3:32 for the 1,500 meters both indoors and outdoors. He ran 3:51 for the mile and 3:50 for the mile on the roads. He ran 13:22 for the 5K outdoors and then just ran 13:09 this past weekend in Boston. He finished 11th in the Olympic 1,500 meter final. We touch on that race, his run at BU, what’s his view for how the 1,500 meters has evolved and much more. 

Olli is also the host of the Coffee Club Podcast that he co-hosts with his teammates and training partners so be sure to check that out. We talk podcaster-to-podcaster a bit at the start before my co-host Mac Fleet chimes in to talk athlete-to-former athlete. All of that plus, your listener questions.

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TRACKSMITH has come up with a very creative way to celebrate our sport by hosting a New Years’ Eve spectacular in New York City. All proceeds from the Midnight Mile at the New Balance Track & Field Center at The Armory will go to support the Tracksmith Foundation. If you’re not able to attend the Midnight Mile but would like to make a donation to the foundation, you can do so through the Tracksmith website. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

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"In the huddle, that's kind of what I ended with: At the end of the day, you don't know going into a season like this if everything is going to work out. We are here with an opportunity to be successful...We said it at the regional meet – because you could kind of feel it building and our Top 5 were really dialed in and running well. I said, 'Take the time and appreciate what you're doing right now. There's no guarantee of it. All you can ask for is an opportunity.' And they really took advantage of that. I'm thankful for these people I'm surrounded by. This staff is awesome. This team is awesome."

North Carolina State coach Laurie Henes joins the show just days after the Wolfpack won the team’s first-ever NCAA cross country title. 

Early on in the conversation, you’ll be quick to hear Coach Henes point out that NC State won AIAW Cross Country titles in 1979 and 1980 before the NCAA. She knows her NC State history because as an athlete, she was an NCAA champion and a six-time All-American for them and then went on to have a professional career that included representing the U.S. at the World Track & Field Championships in Sweden in 1995. She finished just two spots away from making the Olympic team the following year. By that point, she had already been a member of the NC State coaching staff for four years. Now, she’s been the women’s head coach for 16 years.

In this conversation with me and my co-host Mac Fleet, you’ll hear more about how she’s fostered and created such a successful team and atmosphere and a bit about her thoughts on the success of female coaches within the NCAA. Right after we got off the call with her, she was named the Southeast Regional Coach of the Year and I’m sure that’s not the last honor that’s going to come from this remarkable year for her and the team.

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TRACKSMITH is a Boston-based running brand, who crafts performance apparel for training, racing and rest days. Gear up for going far with their fall running essentials and check out the Tracksmith Journal for some marathon tips from the Tracksmith team. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

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"Running became this focal point for me, especially these last few years...The stigma is real. People don't want to talk about this kind of stuff, especially in the military. You're trained as much you can to be emotionless because that can be a liability."

Joey Maiocco is a lead editor at Newsy and a veteran of the U.S. Army. His work at Newsy encompasses the entertainment industry as well as national news but it has all come full circle for him with his most recent project: In Real Life: Post-Trauma.

It is a 22-minute special that shares his personal story on treating post-traumatic stress and how other war veterans cope and find their own treatment upon returning home. For Joey, running has played a major role in it and he just recently ran the Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati. I connected with him back in December through a mutual friend and sensed his excitement about what the sport has brought him and we decided to talk about it on this podcast because that’s also part of his healing and way of helping others – through sharing his experience. 

You can watch the special on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayvuCeeAheU

Happy to share this episode just a little after Veteran’s Day when we pay our respects to those who have served this country.

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TRACKSMITH is a Boston-based running brand, who crafts performance apparel for training, racing and rest days. Gear up for going far with their fall running essentials and check out the Tracksmith Journal for some marathon tips from the Tracksmith team. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

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Tinman Elite’s Drew Hunter is making his fourth appearance on the podcast. I first had him on the show after his first pro season back in 2017 and then we did a live show in Boston in 2018. A lot has happened in his life since then...

He’s run personal bests of 3:35.90 for 1,500 meters, 7:39.85 for 3,000 meters and 13:17.55 for the 5,000 meters. However, the past year was fairly difficult for him. He raced just once indoors in February and then tore his plantar, which forced him to miss the U.S. Olympic Trials. Tinman Elite also went through a very public breakup with coach Tom Schwartz and now the team is coached by his mother, Joan Hunter. We unpack all of those changes, the comeback from injury and what it was like to stamp his return with a win at the USATF 5K Championships in New York City, where he captured his second national title.

My co-host for this episode is Mac Fleet, who has been working hard behind the scenes to also now bring you some of these conversations and other fun video content on The CITIUS MAG YouTube channel. Subscribe, like and comment – do everything the typical YouTubers say. We’re hoping to really grow that channel out in 2022.

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TRACKSMITH is a Boston-based running brand, who crafts performance apparel for training, racing and rest days. Gear up for going far with their fall running essentials and check out the Tracksmith Journal for some marathon tips from the Tracksmith team. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

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🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

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“I truly believe in my heart that if it wasn’t for my recovery journey, I wouldn’t have been able to do any of this. I kept thinking of that during the marathon. I kept thinking about all the hard times and trials and tribulations. All the stuff that I got through and I thought, ‘If I can do that, then why can I do this?’”

My guest for today’s episode is Mario Diurno. Just a few days ago, you got to hear the story of Molly Seidel who finished fourth in the elite women’s race. I want to share with you the story of a friend of mine and one of the last people across the finish line. 

While many of the people who ran on Sunday were getting ready for bed, Mario was working his way through Central Park and crossed the finish line just before 11 pm – 10 hours and 55 minutes after he started in Staten Island. 

Mario is a client support specialist at Release Recovery. You’ve heard me speak about Release Recovery in previous episodes. I interviewed the founder and my friend, Zac Clark, after he was on The Bachelorette and before we did the Goggins Challenge in April. Mario works to get people treatment for addiction and substance abuse and sometimes that means he travels out to meet people and get them the help they need. He’s one who speaks openly about his recovery story and message in order to inspire others. 

He is a bigger fella with not much of a running background or consistent training so when he said he was doing the marathon, many of us had our doubts he’d be able to do it. We did these Monday night community runs in Central Park and Mario would be there every week pushing himself to make it through two miles, four miles, six miles no matter how long it took. The journey to the starting line was enough of a win. When I Facetimed him at 4 pm on Sunday from a restaurant and the Release Recovery afterparty, he was only at the halfway point but all smiles and he made a new friend along the way named Freddi that helped him get to the finish line. 

He just kept going and truly shifted my perspective on the power of what setting your mind on a goal can accomplish.

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TRACKSMITH is a Boston-based running brand, who crafts performance apparel for training, racing and rest days. Gear up for going far with their fall running essentials and check out the Tracksmith Journal for some marathon tips from the Tracksmith team. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

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"Despite everything, somehow this race turned out so much better than I could’ve imagined. I am so excited about how New York went because there were so many times throughout the build-up where we didn’t even know if I was going to make it to the line."

We welcome back Molly Seidel to the podcast and I get to introduce her as the 2021 Olympic bronze medalist in the marathon and also now the fastest American woman to ever run the New York City Marathon. This past weekend, she ran 2:24:42 and finished fourth overall. The previous record was 2:25:53 set by Kara Goucher in 2008. The race was won by Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir of Kenya in 2:22:39.

Molly is now four for four in her marathons. Makes the Olympics in her first. Runs a PR and places high in London amid the pandemic. Earns a bronze medal at the Olympics and now breaks a record at the New York City Marathon.

We touch on Molly’s run in Sapporo and New York City but also get some more details on the less-than-ideal build-up that somehow led to this incredible performance. Molly opens up about the two broken ribs she had and some of the mental struggles coming off the Games. Thanks to everyone who submitted listener questions, we got to as many as we could in the time we had with Molly. 

My co-host for this episode is David Melly, the host of Run Your Mouth which is also on the CITIUS MAG Podcast Network. 

There’s some good insight in this episode and a little bit of breaking news at the very end.

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TRACKSMITH is a Boston-based running brand, who crafts performance apparel for training, racing and rest days. With fall races quickly approaching they know race day is as much about reaching the finish line as it is about the consistency and determination it takes to get to the start. Gear up for going far with their fall running essentials and check out the Tracksmith Journal for some marathon tips from the Tracksmith team. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG

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"When you guide somebody, there is a bond that is formed that is undeniable to know that they couldn't have done it without you and also that you're doing it because of them as well."

Dr. Joe Park is a good friend of mine and some of you might know of him from his time on Tayshia Adams’ season of The Bachelorette or his brief stint on the latest season of Bachelor In Paradise. But he’s more than just a reality TV show contestant. He’s a full-time anesthesiologist and interventional pain specialist in New York City. He’s one of the nicest guys out there and you’ll hear a couple of stories of why that’s the case. He and I will be running the NYC Marathon together next weekend and hoping to run under 3 hours and 30 minutes. He is fundraising for Achilles International, whose mission is to transform the lives of people with disabilities through athletic programs and social connections. There are 28 chapters in 19 states. Joe has been a guide for the New York City chapter before and in this episode, you’ll learn a lot about the power a guide can have on an athlete living with a disability.

Dr. Joe's fundraiser: https://give.achillesinternational.org/DrJoe

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TRACKSMITH is a Boston-based running brand, who crafts performance apparel for training, racing and rest days. With fall races quickly approaching they know race day is as much about reaching the finish line as it is about the consistency and determination it takes to get to the start. Gear up for going far with their fall running essentials and check out the Tracksmith Journal for some marathon tips from the Tracksmith team. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG

👕 Pick up merch from the CITIUS MAG store to show your support for the podcast and website.

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“Everyone processes things differently. We hoped that it wouldn’t take away from the rest of my year but you never know in those moments. To bounce back with a 3:59 (for 1,500m) was like, ‘Hell yeah! I deserve to be doing this and racing at this level and competing. This is what we trained for all year.’ It was almost like a rewarding moment coming back from that disappointment...Our conversations were really positive. It was about what you could be excited about ahead. There are world champs the next two years and then an Olympic team. This sport moves quickly and there’s a lot more to be excited for right away. That definitely helped turning around on the trials.”

Josette Norris is a professional runner for the Reebok Boston Track Club. If track and field had a breakout star of the year award, Josette would be a strong candidate for that. She came into the year with personal bests of 4:10.82 for 1,500 meters and 15:29.34 for 5,000 meters. Now, she’s at 3:59.72 for 1,500 meters which is No. 9 on the all-time U.S. list and 14:51.32 for 5,000 meters which is No. 10 on the all-time U.S. list. She also ran 4:22.71 for the mile this year. Her best races came after she finished 8th in the Olympic Trials final for the 5,000 meters despite having the fastest time of the year going into the race. She candidly discusses what it was like to overcome that disappointment and then go on an absolute tear, which included a third-place finish in the Diamond League final. Her trip to Europe was the first time she left the country. You’ll also get to enjoy plenty of fun New Jersey banter. 

So if you’re in the Jersey or Pennsylvania area, get yourself a cup of Wawa coffee and enjoy this chat which I’d love to dedicate to Josette’s mom, who is a huge fan of the pod.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS

TRACKSMITH is a Boston-based running brand, who crafts performance apparel for training, racing and rest days. With fall races quickly approaching they know race day is as much about reaching the finish line as it is about the consistency and determination it takes to get to the start. Gear up for going far with their Marathon Collection full of running essentials and check out the Tracksmith Journal for some marathon tips from the Tracksmith team. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

HUSTLE CLEAN is a mission-driven self-care brand for the active lifestyle. It was created by athletes for high performers that want to do more and be more without compromise. The Hustle Clean Body Wipe is an extra-large, durable, full-body wipe designed to remove sweat, dirt, and body odor in moments when a shower is optimal but not possible. CITIUS MAG Podcast listeners get a deal and get 10% off all their products, if you visit HustleClean.com and use discount code CITIUS at checkout.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG

👕 Pick up merch from the CITIUS MAG store to show your support for the podcast and website.

Nick Willis returns to the podcast for this episode, which was recorded live in front of an audience at the Tracksmith pop-up shop during Chicago Marathon weekend. Nick was first a guest on this show back in February 2020 before the Millrose Games when we went over his entire career up until that point. So this conversation picks up with 2021. This season, he broke four minutes for the 19th consecutive year and then qualified for his 5th Olympic Games for New Zealand. It didn’t come easy though. He squeaked into the Games via his World Athletics ranking. He tells us why his wife was a major factor in motivating him to get there and in shape within six weeks. He gives us insight ito what his experience was like in Tokyo, where he made it to the semifinals and ran a season’s best of 3:35.41. Plus, what’s next for him? He’s been playing lots of basketball and skateboarding in the meantime.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS

TRACKSMITH is a Boston-based running brand, who crafts performance apparel for training, racing and rest days. With fall races quickly approaching they know race day is as much about reaching the finish line as it is about the consistency and determination it takes to get to the start. Gear up for going far with their Marathon Collection full of running essentials and check out the Tracksmith Journal for some marathon tips from the Tracksmith team. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

HUSTLE CLEAN is a mission-driven self-care brand for the active lifestyle. It was created by athletes for high performers that want to do more and be more without compromise. The Hustle Clean Body Wipe is an extra-large, durable, full-body wipe designed to remove sweat, dirt, and body odor in moments when a shower is optimal but not possible. CITIUS MAG Podcast listeners get a deal and get 10% off all their products, if you visit HustleClean.com and use discount code CITIUS at checkout.

HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST

🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG

👕 Pick up merch from the CITIUS MAG store to show your support for the podcast and website.

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"It takes a lot to get out of your comfort zone, especially in the pole vault. Because it is scary and because there is a fear element, you want to hold onto your comfort zone so badly...Changing things really is not easy. There were a lot of tears. I always bought in. My gut led me to Ashland. My gut sent me to Brad (Walker). It hasn’t been wrong yet. I knew that I was in the right place because of the way he described it. He made it so simple. I’m in control of what I’m doing so if I focus on X, Y and Z, the heights will come. He totally changed the mental game for me, which then allowed me to change the technical things. It took all of that time to make that happen. Especially in this generation, people want immediate gratification and results. I’m very much like that. I don’t like waiting for things. I’m really happy that I didn’t make the team in 2016 because I would not have done that. I would not have gone that far out of my comfort zone. I wouldn’t have let someone else challenge me that way. I’m grateful that I took the leap and my gut led me to where it is.”

Katie Nageotte is the Olympic gold medalist in the pole vault. She is one of three American women to take gold in the event at the Games. In this episode, there's plenty of Ohio talk because if you've followed her on social media she's been parading around the medal all over Cleveland. The Olmsted Falls native has thrown out the first pitch at the Indians game, given a pep talk at the Browns practice and been honored by state officials. We discuss her journey and success at Ashland University at the Division II level and what pushed her to keep going as a professional pole vaulter. As a pro, she finished 5th at the U.S. Olympic Trials in 2016 which led her to make a change and team up with Brad Walker as her coach. Over the past five years, she saw major improvement under the 2007 world champion's guidance. She made the 2018 World Indoor and 2019 World outdoor teams. A breakthrough in 2020 and 2021 suddenly made her the Olympic gold medal favorite. She discusses how that all happened and how she managed the pressure. At the 2020 Games, she missed on her first two tries at 4.5 meters so there was added pressure there. Then, she managed to turn it around. Listening to her recounting her experience in Tokyo is pretty thrilling so I hope you enjoy it.

SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS

TRACKSMITH is a Boston-based running brand, who crafts performance apparel for training, racing and rest days. With fall races quickly approaching they know race day is as much about reaching the finish line as it is about the consistency and determination it takes to get to the start. Gear up for going far with their Marathon Collection full of running essentials and check out the Tracksmith Journal for some marathon tips from the Tracksmith team. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today.

HUSTLE CLEAN is a mission-driven self-care brand for the active lifestyle. It was created by athletes for high performers that want to do more and be more without compromise. The Hustle Clean Body Wipe is an extra-large, durable, full-body wipe designed to remove sweat, dirt, and body odor in moments when a shower is optimal but not possible. CITIUS MAG Podcast listeners get a deal and get 10% off all their products, if you visit HustleClean.com and use discount code CITIUS at checkout.