Quote Of The Day


"After the Games this year, everyone wanted to know how I felt. I kept saying how ecstatic I was to PR in the final. I mean, I never thought I'd run 1:42. But the truth is, the whole thing was eating me up. This is the thing about running. On the one hand, you want to sit back with your feet up and say, 'I've done it. I've made two Olympic teams. I was part of one of the greatest races in history.' But what you have to understand is that elite athletes are some of the most discontented people you'll ever meet."

"I really, really felt like I should have won a medal with that performance. I went to my sports psychologist and laid this on him, and he said, 'If you'd taken bronze, how would you feel?' And I said, 'Oh man, I'd be so happy that I got bronze.' And he goes, 'But would you be frustrated that you didn't get silver?' And I'm like, 'Of course!' And he goes, 'Well, what if you got silver?' And I said, 'Well, I would have been pissed off that I came that close to gold.' And he goes, 'And if you'd won gold?' That's when I realized that even with a gold medal, I would have always worried that in a different year I would have lost to someone better. It's just the way that elite athletes—in track and field especially—are wired. To always be a little insecure about what you've accomplished. In the big scheme of things, I'm the sixth-fastest man in the world at the 800, and I just feel embarrassed about it."

- Nick Symmonds, talking about his performance at the London Olympic Games where he finished 5th with a PR of 1:42.95, but still walked away not completely satisfied. This comes from a great piece on Steve Prefontaine and why he "still matters". When asked why Pre draws so many people in, Symmonds said, "He was just a guy who wasn't afraid to live his life ... What kid doesn't want to sleep with beautiful women and drink beer?"

That Pre Thing

Recommended Read: "That Pre Thing": Steve Prefontaine Was Far From The Fastest Or Most Decorated American Distance Runner Ever, So Why More Than 30 Years After His Death Does He Still Matter? This is another great article by Michael Heald, the author of "It Should Be Mathematical," the three-part article on Ian Dobson and Julia Lucas at the Trials, which was the LetsRun QOD in the summer. Heald goes to Coos Bay, Oregon for the Prefontaine Memorial Run, connecting with family and friends of Pre and also conducts interviews with Pat Tyson and Nick Symmonds.

Interesting International News

More Post-World XC News

40th World XC *2013 World XC Results *LRC Video Interviews *LRC Course Photos *Mini LRC Arrival Day Photo Gallery *LRC Course Video Tour *LRC 1 Min. Aerial Video Of Course *Race Video Highlights: Senior Men *Senior Women

LRC US Men Stun Kenya And Win Team Silver!!!!! Ronald Reagan was president and none of the US men were alive when the US men last beat Kenya or won silver at the World XC Champs, but thanks to two powerful performances up top and two perfectly executed performances at #3 & #4, the Americans were able to stun Kenya. Ben True led the Americans with a sixth place finish and Chris Derrick was 10th, but Bobby Mack's and Ryan Vail's steady moves through the field sealed the deal for U-S-A. More Later.
*AW General Recap Of All Races
*IAAF Individual Race Recaps: *Sr. Men: Unheralded Kenyan is youngest champ ever. *Sr. Women: Chebet comes from behind to repeat in Poland. *Jr. Men: 12:47 guy wins. *Jr. Women: Kipyegon repeats.
*LRC Ben True Post-Race Video Interview *LRC More Post-Race Interviews On LetsRun's YouTube Channel
*US: USATF: Team USA Men Grab Best Finish Since 1984 It was the first team medal in the 12k event since 2001 and first silver medal since 1984 (when the US was second to Ethiopia).
*Kenya: This Was The First Time The Kenyan Men Finished Outside The Top 2 Since 1984
*Profile On 19-Year-Old Japhet Korir, Who Is Youngest Ever To Win Men's Senior Race, Breaking Kenenisa Bekele's Record Korir was lucky just to make it to the race as he was only 6th at the Trials and selectors debated whether they should bring him. The Trials was only his 2nd race since spending time in the hospital this summer for a bad Achilles injury which he got from being spiked in a race.
*Capital FM Race Recap
*Could You Ever Picture This Happening In The US? Die-Hard Fans In Eldoret, Kenya Crowded Local Hotels And Restaurants To Watch World XC Champs On TV The article reads, "Fans went into a frenzy as world junior 1,500 metres gold medals, Faith Chepng'etich retained the junior women's 6km title. Hotel attendants had a difficult time stopping patrons from climbing on chairs and tables to catch a good view of their idols on television screens."
*Australia: Collis Birmingham Finishes 8th To Get Australia's 3rd-Best Men Individual Finish Ever
*SA:
Elroy Gelant Top Finisher For SA In 20th

Pre-Race: LRC Exclusive Interview With Ben True LRC definitely picked the right guy to interview yesterday.

The Miracle On Dirt On The Boards:

LRC We Hope To Post Live Coverage From The Course Here

LRC Wejo's Thoughts On Men's Race

LRC New Photo Album Of US Team, Pre-Race Press Conference And Firmer Course Day Before Race

LRC LetsRun.com Gives You A Tour Of The Bad-*** Course The official course tour isn't until Saturday but we didn't travel all the way to Poland just to stay in our hotel room. (Assuming no one gets hurt), we loved the course and think Sunday is going to be full of drama, and think cross-country should replace the 10,000 at the Olympics. One thing is certain - this course wouldn't be certified by uptight NCAA coaches. A turn within the first 100 meters, jumps, a big-*** hill, several near 180 degree turns. Learn all about it.
*LRC Course Photos
*LRC Update: Video Tour Of 2013 World XC Course

LRC
Will Cold Weather Really Help People From Cold Climates?

Previous World XC

Recommended Reads:
Two Guys Who, Like Us, Wish World XC Was Bigger:
Competitor.com's Peter Vigneron: "If I were in charge, there would be only two events in competitive distance running: the mile and cross country, and everything else would be for fun."
US XC Champs Director Ben Rosario: The Future Of World XC - Put It The Day Before A Major Marathon

LRC
6 Thoughts From The World's Greatest Foot Race LRC is now in Poland for the World XC Championships in Bydgoszcz. We'll have extensive coverage starting later on Friday, but first we've got a little world XC history and ponder a few things, including whether it's going to be a long day on Sunday for the Kenyan men and if Galen Rupp (or Mo Farah) could win the junior boys race. Along the way, we remember when their coach Alberto Salazar was a total stud in 1982.

IAAF Men's Preview: Defending Champ Imane Merga The Man To Beat Can he be challenged by surprise Kenyan Trials winner Philemon Rono or 2010 silver and bronze medalists Teklemariam Medhin (Eritrea) or Moses Kipsiro (Uganda). Ethiopian Trials champ and star marathoner Feyisa Lilesa is also in the field.

Women's Preview: Ethiopian Trials Champ Hiwot Ayalew And Kenyan Trials Champ Margaret Muriuki Top List Of Gold Medal Contenders
Ayalew was 11th in 2011 and was 5th in the Olympic steeplechase. Muriuki was 6th in 2010 World XC. Also in the field are 2010 champ Emily Chebet and Ireland's Euro champ Fionnuala Britton.

USA: US #1 Chris Derrick Knows It Won't Be Easy
"It's not going to be in my comfort zone ... 3 years ago, Mo Farah was 21st and he was a 12:57 guy [at the time]."

USATF:
Meet Team USA - Nice USATF Media Guide For Entire Team

Snow Is The Big Story
LRC
What's The Craziest Weather You've Ever Raced In? LRC's Wejo and Rojo have both touched down in Bydgoszcz, Poland to cover this Sunday's World XC Championships and the weather is going to be the story. There is a ton of a snow in Poland and the forecast is for negative to 0 degress Celsius on Sunday. We've got a mini-LRC Poland photo gallery and hope to have much more from Poland on Friday after touring the course and talking to the US teams. In the meantime, we're wondering what's the craziest weather you've raced in?

Previous World XC News

US News

Usain Bolt News: Bolt Vs. Rudisha Over 400m?

Asafa Powell: How To Spot A Gold Digger "Men, be smart about your choices in women. There are some manipulative women out there who are only trying to get close to get what they can out of you, and once you can't fulfil that need, that person will be gone."

After Setting WR And Winning Gold, Ashton Eaton Admits He Suffered Post-Olympic Thoughts Of "What Do I Do Now?" - But He's Motivated Again Eaton may do LJ/Decathlon double in 2016 and just pole vault in 2020.

Good News: Cincinnati Men's Track/XC To Get Scholarships Back

Bolt Will Run 100m In Rome On June 6th

Despite Economic Crisis, Juan Antonio Samaranch Says Spain "Cannot Afford Not To Continue" 2020 Olympics Bid

Britain's European Silver 60m Man James Dasaolu (6.48) Says That His 60 Time Converts To Sub-10 For 100m He ran 10.09 back in 2009 as a 21-year-old but then tore "every muscle in my lower body in the last few years."

Calabar Celebrates Its 2nd-Straight Jamaican Champs Victory On Boys Side

More Post-NYC Half Results *LRC Analysis

Proof Sleep The Night Before The Race Doesn't Matter: Dathan Ritzenhein Says He Didn't Sleep The Night Before He Finished 3rd At The NYC Half Marathon "I didn't sleep at all last night. I've never had that happen before."
*NYC Half 3rd Placer Lisa Stublic Always Thought Of Herself As A Steeplechaser Before She Got Some Harsh/Good Advice From Her Coach In Croatia Coach Petrovic told the Columbia alum, "You're a horrible steeplechase runner, get it out of your head."

NYC Half *Results/Splits *Photo Gallery

*Race Recap *Video Highlights

LRC
LetsRun.com Analyzes The 2013 NYC Half/ With Post-Race Athlete Reaction What's the takeaway from Wilson Kipsang's 61:02 win, Ritz's 61:10 3rd place showing, and Bernard Lagat's half marathon debut? What about Caroline Rotich's win on the women's side and former CT state champ and Columbia runner Lisa Stublic, who was a surprising third (and now runs for Croatia) ahead of top American Stephanie Rothstein Bruce, who had a big PR?

LRC Wilson Kipsang And Caroline Rotich Win NYC Half (results and splits only) After a slow start at the NYC Half, Dathan Ritzenhein heated things up and then Wilson Kipsang took over, running to victory in 1:01:02 over Italy's Daniel Meucci and Ritz. Bernard Lagat ran 1:02:33 in his debut as he beat his training partner Abdi2. On the women's side Caroline Rotich led at 5k, 10k, 15k, 20k, and the finish but it was far from easy. Early leader Kim Smith dropped out with a muscle strain and Rotich was caught by Diane Nukuri-Johnson and Lisa Stublic but held on for victory.

*IAAF Recap
*Japan University Runner Kenta Murayama Does Well In NYC Half With A 10th Place Finish (1:02:02)
*NY Times: NYRR Stage Their First Major Road Race Since The Cancellation Of The NYC Marathon
*OTB: LAGAT 1:02:33 for 12th at NYC half!!! Ritz 1:01:10 for 3rd *Jason Hartmann

Weekend Track Action

Jamaican Boys And Girls' Champs

Pre-Race

Previous NYC Half News

LRC Bernard Lagat, Abdi Abdirahman and Dathan Ritzenhein are all running the 2013 NYC Half Marathon on Sunday with different objectives. For Lagat, it's his anticipated half marathon debut. Lagat sounds ready and has been training some with Abdi. For Abdi, the emphasis is on getting ready for the Boston Marathon next month. Abdi sounds off on that and the drug problem in the sport. For Ritz, there is no spring marathon or World XC. Can he regain his 1:00:00 form? Textual recaps coming. Interviews with all 3 below:

Upcoming Action

2013 NCAA Indoor Championships *NCAA Results *Saturday Photo Gallery *Friday Photo Gallery *Men's DMR Photo Gallery *Women's DMR Photo Gallery *LRC Banquet Photos *Friday Photos *LRC Friday Interviews *LRC Post-Race Video Interviews

LRC W3k: The Coronation: Abbey D'Agostino Completes The Double The NCAA has a new queen and American distance running may have its leading face for the next decade as D'Agostino became the first American 5,000 and 3,000 NCAA indoor champion ever, let alone at the same NCAA meet. Jordan Hasay finished second in what she called "probably the best race of my life." as she gave Oregon the points that gave them their 4th-straight team title. Emma Coburn won the mile and Natoya Goule the 800.
*Flash recaps - more later. In the meantime, check out:
*LRC Post-Race Video Interviews With Most Of Saturday's Major Players

Friday Night

LRC 5ks: Abbey D'Agostino And Kennedy Kithuka Dominate In Different Ways The women's 5,000 came down to the final mile between stars Abbey D'Agostino, Betsy Saina and Jordan Hasay - and it was no contest. D'Agostino was clearly best. On the men's side, Kennedy Kithuka put in an early surge and that was all it took despite a game effort by Diego Estrada to keep it honest throughout.

US News: Stanford Invitational And Texas Relays Are This Weekend

More Dopers Hopefully Going Down: Spanish Anti-Doping Agency Demand Doctor In ‘Operacion Puerto’ Doping Scandal (Eufemiano Fuentes) Hands Over Doping Evidence They want to have his entire client list which includes athletes form track and field, cycling and other sports.

IAAF: 3-Time 800m World Champion Wilson Kipketer Gives Class To Russian Youth At Youth Spike Event Talking about his career (which he didn't start until he was 20) he said, "It took me seven years of training and learning to fulfill my dream of becoming a champion."

This Weekend: Six Jamaican Youths Will Try And Defend Their Titles At The Carifta Games

Former Japan Marathon NR Holder Atsushi Fujita To Retire After April 21st Nagano Marathon

EA Obituary For 1950 GB's 1950 European 4x100 And LJ Champion No British athlete, before or since, has won European gold both on the track and in the field.

US Elites (Current, Former And Sub) In The News

Top International News

The 40th World XC Championships *2013 World XC Results *LRC Video Interviews *LRC Course Photos *LRC Course Video Tour *LRC Post-Race Interviews *Race Video Highlights: Senior Men *Senior Women

LRC Women's Race: Emily Chebet Is Back And The US Gets Fourth We break down the women's action for you and give some love to Chebet, Neely Spence Gracey, Emily Infeld, Mattie Suver and the ageless Deena Kastor.

*Kenya: Junior Champ Faith Kipyegon Says She'll Be Stepping Down To Focus On The 1,500 Again For Track Last year she won World Junior Champs and went to the London Games, but didn't make it past the heats.
*
Capital FM Looks At Kenyan Women's Team Finish
*GB: GB's Emilia Gorecka Leads Junior Women To A 3rd Place Team Finish This was the first time a GB junior team has made the podium and the the first medal for any GB team since 2004.

LRC
Flash World XC Photo Gallery

SA Ultra Runner Ludwick Mamabolo, Who Was Suspended When He Failed A Drug Test After Winning The 2012 Comrades Marathon, Is Racing Two Oceans Marathon On Saturday He obtained an interdict to resume his career while his doping case was being finalized. So if he loses his case he will lose whatever title he earns at Two Oceans.

UK News

Bolt/Sprinting News

More Non-World XC Weekend Results: Edna Kiplagat Wins Lisbon Half

Other Random Non-World XC News

Pre-Race

Random Non-World XC News

Studies Looking At Foot Strike

Previous Pre-World XC News

More Non-LRC World XC News:

Drug News

Haile Gebrselassie Will Try To Win His 6th Bupa Great Manchester Run 10k Title On May 26th He had a great race last year, setting a then world-leading 27:39 and beating Patrick Makau and Stephen Kiprotich.

US Stuff

Interesting: The Guardian Looks At The Asics Running Lab's New "Running Ability Measurement" Test, Which Looks At Multiple Factors To Predict Your Time "The assessment looks at everything from cardiorespiratory fitness to flexibility and strength, limb alignment, body composition and running form before estimating your marathon and half-marathon potential." Another test looks at your DNA to predict whether you're a high or low responder to aerobic training.

Random International News

More Kenyan News: Two More Kenyan Drug Busts

Doctor In Operación Puerto Drug Scandal Says He May Name Names

He's Got Our Vote: Ato Boldon Gets Emmy Nomination For Event Analysis

Leyton Orient Soccer Club Chairman Says He Expects To Lose Judicial Review Case Against West Ham In Olympic Stadium Occupancy Dispute "But we will have to move for survival [if West Ham get sole occupancy of the Olympic Stadium]. If I stay, I get crushed."

Previous World XC News

Today's Top Headlines: Ethiopian 10k Trials At Pre, Caster Semenya Engaged?

More From Jamaican Boys And Girls Champs

LA Marathon *Full Results

More Results On The Roads: Kawauchi PRs Again

Lolo Jones' Passion For Bobsled: Lolo Jones: "If I won a freakin' medal - if I won any medal - I would not be a bobsledder. Absolutely not. Are you kidding me? No. No!" "I'm so desperate. Desperate. It absolutely doesn't matter (whether she wins in the Winter or Summer Games.)"

RE:RUN San-Diego Is A Cool Event Coming In May That Will Try And Promote The Sport By Combining A Local Road Race With An Elite Track Meet Participants will finish the local 5k/10k and be treated to a short-and-sweet elite track meet only 5 events. A long list of elites competing includes Duane Solomon, Ryan Gregson, David Torrence, Nate Brannen, Mark Wieczorek, AJ Acosta, Geena Gall, Brenda Martinez, Alysia Montano and Brie Felnagle.

World XC Is This Weekend

Learn From The Pros

LRC Ten Training Tips From Bernard Lagat, Dathan Ritzenhein And Abdi Abdirahman The American men took center stage at the NYC Half on Thursday. You can watch video interviews with the top American men (Lagat here, Ritz here and Abdi here) and we will have more on their race preparations on Friday, but in the meantime we compiled ten training tips from Bernard, Dathan, and Abdi that you can use in your own training.

English Are Still Really Upset The Commonwealth Games Standards Are Stiffer Than The Olympics

NY Times: "After The Mile: The Tim Danielson Story"

2013 NCAAs *NCAA Results *Saturday Photo Gallery *Friday Photo Gallery *Men's DMR Photo Gallery *Women's DMR Photo Gallery *LRC Banquet Photos *Friday Photos *LRC Friday Interviews *LRC Post-Race Video Interviews

LRC M Mile/3k: What A Double - The Great Lawi Lalang Is Back Lalang, who up until this time last year was viewed as unbeatable at the NCAA level, got his mojo back with some major style points thrown in as he had one of the greatest nights in NCAA history, as he won both the mile (3:54) and 3,000 (7:45) in meet records. The Arkansas Razororbacks won NCAA title #41.

LRC 800s/W Mile: Elijah Greer Outduels Cas Loxsom; Emma Coburn Adds The Mile Title To Her Résumé And Natoya Goule Wins NCAA Title #1 The men's 800 ended up being the mano vs. mano battle between the two American seniors that everyone wanted to see - Greer and PSU's Casimir Loxsom with Greer coming out on top.

AP Recap:
Arkansas Gets Its 20th Indoor Title And 1st Under Coach Chris Bucknam It's NCAA title #41 for the program as legend John McDonnell won 40.
*LRC Coach Chris Bucknam And John McDonnell Talk About Bucknam's NCAA Title #1
*Oregonian: Oregon Wins Its 4th Straight Women's Indoor Title

More:

Ben True: Beast

Chris Derrick On 10th Place And Silver

Watch Bronze Turn To Silver

Man Suing Federal Government For Being Tased By A National Park Service Ranger While Running With His Dogs In Golden Gate National Recreation Area

2020 Games: Carl Lewis Backs Tokyo's Bid To Host 2020 Olympic Games
*Video: IOC In Turkey To Assess Istanbul's 2020 Olympic Bid

Doper #1 Suing Doper #2: Turkey's Former 1,500 Euro Champ Süreyya Ayhan Kop Suing Olympic 1,500 Champ Aslı Çakır Alptekin For Part Of Her Winnings, Claiming She Gave Her Doping Coaching Advice The biggest joke is the last line of the article saying how both athletes (one serving a lifetime ban the other about to) "have been role models for young Turkish sports people, particularly girls."

Non-World XC Weekend Action

Non-World XC News

Bizarre News

A Good "What About The Sport?" The Four Olympic Gold Medallists In Alabama's History Will All Be Signing Autographs On Saturday For Free At 5pm

RIP Former 200m WR Holder Pietro Mennea

Weekly Recap

LRC Yuki Kawauchi PRs (Again), Ryan Hall Withdraws (Again), Deena Doesn't Break 2:30 (Again) Ryan Hall's Boston DNS isn't all bad, as we try to give you some good training advice from him as a result. We also tell you why hammer throwers are the most entertaining people in the sport and repeat, "Free Jenkins." We also ponder if Deena will ever break 2:30 again and are pleased to see Julia Lucas back competing.

Despite The Cold Conditions, 5 National Records Went Down At The NYC Half Last Weekend They were all on the women's side and included the runner-up Diane Nukuri-Johnson's 1:09:12, which broke her own Burundi NR and 3rd placer/Columbia alum Lisa Stublic, whose 1:09:18 broke her own Croatia NR.

10-Year-Old Who's Trying To Become The Youngest To Run A Marathon On All 7 Continents Was Deterred By Bad Weather In Antarctica He was 18 miles in when the runners were stopped because of bad weather and forced to leave. He ended up completing the rest of the marathon when he landed back in Chile which, according to the rules of the "The Official 7 Continents Marathon Club," still counts.

NYC Photo Gallery (Updated On 3/20)

NYC Half Video Highlights

Common Trend: 4 Russian Swimmers Caught Doping; Russian Swimming Almost Gets A 24-Month Suspension From International Swimming Federation The rules say that "4 positives from one nation within a 12 month period results in the FINA member federation being suspended in its entirety for 24 months." However, Russia got out of it on a loophole. 3 of the 4 were suspended while the 4th, who is only 14 years old, was given a warning.

Tuesday In South Africa: SA 400H NR Holder LJ van Zyl Will Compete Against Botswana's Olympic 800 Silver Medalist Njel Amos Over 400m

NCAA Admin News

"Brilliant Video Interview" (Those Aren't Our Words): Lagat Making His Half Marathon Debut (More Here)

Ritz At The NYC Half (More Here)

Three Cheers For Abdi Sounding Off On Drug Cheats (Abdi Talks His Training Here)

Abbey D'Agostino: Double NCAA Champion

NCAA Photo Gallery

WWLD (What Would Lance Do?) In Wake Of Embarrassing Number Of Doping Offenses, Russia Offers To Donate An Extra $390,000 A Year To WADA

Interesting Read: Pat Butcher Looks At The History Of Sexism In The World Of Running Over The Years Muslim clerics not wanting women to run now is just the latest in a long line of insults thrown at women in athletics during the last 100+ years.

Week That Was

LRC WTW Forget About Jenn Suhr, Lopez And Mary Cain: The Best Closes In Track History, Meet Brannon Kidder, Erik Sowinski's HS Coach, Praise From Nick Willis, And An Apology To Kara Goucher On a week that saw Lopez Lomong's AR on Friday, Jenn Suhr's world record on Saturday and Mary Cain making history on Sunday, we cover everything else making news in the running world.

Jenn Suhr World Record *Photos

Jenn Suhr Breaks World Record Suhr was perfect all day until she broke the world record at 5.02 meters. She then attempted 3 times at 5.07 (the highest vault indoors or out).
*Video Of World Record Vault
*Reuters: "Gritty Suhr Happy To Finally Reach New Heights"

Jerry's Boys Take On The Big Apple
LRC
Lopez Lomong Sets New American Indoor 5,000 Record - Runs 13:07.00!!!
We recap the historic night in NYC that saw Lomong get the AR, Chris Derrick get the "A" at 13:12.00 and the rest of Jerry's boys struggle a bit at the end as the pace was super hot. Includes exclusive post-race interviews that include Teg, Lomong, and Derrick, who talks about German Fernandez and Alan Webb.
*
Photo Gallery *Race Video *Post-Race Interviews *Race Results Weekly

*Great News From Another Schumacher Stud:
Chris Solinsky's 1st Track Race In Nearly Two Years Is Successful - Dominant 8:05 Win At UW

USATF Sunday Gallery: Mary Cain, Ajee Wilson Get USATF Titles #1

Lopez Lomong 13:07.00 American Record Photos

Saturday USATF Photos, Jenn Suhr World Record

Crazy Finish Of Women's 3k (More Here)

Usain Bolt Does The Harlem Shake

Beautiful People: NCAA Banquet Photos (Click On Photo)

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