German Fernandez is Injured...Proof in attached article from OSU coach Dave Smith.

I think both he and his Coach need to decide what's best for German long term. What can be gained from running in Amman and Outdoor if it proves to set him back a lot longer? We know the kid has enormous talent and he should train with caution. I believe this is going to be a precursur to German's career. He is very talented but injury prone and I don't believe for a second he is "ducking" the competition; he ran 3:55.02 for the indoor mile I believe he is scared of no one in the NCAA. Not even the mighty Rupp. Now, whether or not he can beat Rupp or finish top 5 at Worlds is different all together. Let's not forget, being fearless does not mean you are unbeatable. I believe German is the former, but not neccesarily the latter.

Damn it.

If only there were some type of certification that could be used to determine if the course was too rough to risk running on.

You know, something that would be approved by a guy like Galen Rupp who has a lot to lose with an injury.

Unfortunately, no such Rupp certification exists to my knowledge.

The next Ritzenheim? Monster talent battered throughout college?

As of a few days ago...on his Facebook page it read "GERMAN is depressed" for his status. I was wondering if he may have gotten hurt. Major, major bummer if this kid can't run...or has a repeat of NCAA XC Nats.

UH OH

he has an ALTER G treadnill!!!??!?!??!?

ADVANTAGES!!!!!

he can't be amatuer....

Lets hope not. This is his first season running high mileage so hopefully he does it right and gets a solid base to prevent injuries going forward. Really don't want to see him turn into a runner like Ritz who shows flashes of brilliance but can't train uninterrupted for more than a few months.

uh_no wrote:

UH OH

he has an ALTER G treadnill!!!??!?!??!?

ADVANTAGES!!!!!

he can't be amatuer....

Haha. I saw that, too, and went, "Oh no. Now we're gonna get a whole string of absurd comments comparing his privilege to Rupp's and griping about how much German's changed since high school, how he's abandoned his simple roots."

Haha.

As for the OP's question: if the chance that German sustains a serious injury by running Worlds is at all heightened - and clearly it is - I don't think German should even be in Jordan right now. It just doesn't make sense to me. By competing this weekend, Smith and Fernandez could be knowingly risking German's health. Similar to skipping NCAAs, there is nothing to really be gained by running this race injured. Not in comparison to the magnitude of his long-term goals.

I have been in his same situation and I must say most of the posters prob dont realize the pressure the USATF puts on you when you travel to a world championship or national team event and claim that you are hurt. They get pissed and try everything to push you into competing. I feel sorry for German because I know they must really be pressing him as he is much better than most USA runners senior or junior. All I gotta say is do it for yourself if you feel like doing it German, dont do it because they pressure you.

you realize a bunch of high end D1 programs have them right? Baylor has a few, as does Oregon obviously. Not OSU? I am sure more programs than is know, have them. It shouldn't be looked at as a big deal.

RunnersWorld Article. wrote:

Any opinions, big decisions..does he run and risk possible serious long term injury, possibly not even performing that well or finishing the race.

Khalid Khannouchi was never the same after he battered his foot to pieces...

It doesn't make sense that a stress "reaction" should be causing problems like this; they must be treating it bass ackwards and making it worse.

Well, it depends on what you mean as "problems." Smith says German was "asymptomatic" after using the Alter-G for a few days. It may not be a huge problem ...but after Jordan, if he does run, at least some rest is probably warranted.

Does the decision of German running have anything to do with a pro contract? It seems odd to me that Dave Smith is allowing German to race here (especially for a coach who seems so conservative). The only reason I feel like Smith could justify German running is if he's done with Ok St. anyways. I mean, why would a program run a kid who is injured (causing him to miss the whole outdoor season potentially and every NCAA track championship he could have run) for a shot at a World Jr. Championship? That doesn't seem to benefit the College in any way in terms of NCAA competition.

OSU is on the map because of German Fernandez. Strictly looking at this from a money standpoint as some of you do, they have gotten their money's worth.

It would make sense to me for German to skip the outdoor college season, which would give him the desirable option of a 5th year at OSU, even though that would be the 2012 season. More importantly, he could still run at Stanford on May 02, compete at the World Championship qualifying and possibly the World Champs in the summer. Perhaps those bigger fish are what he is aiming for.

Does anyone here know the location of the injury?

Smith did not want to specify that. I think the PR department told him not to.

This kid is fragile. Redshirting won't be the end of the world. Better to cut training now than to suffer a fracture and be out for a longer time.

Sometimes a minor stress fracture is hard to detect. It won't show up on xrays; You need a bone scan or MRI and even then sometimes it's hard to find.

It could be that he's got mostly a case of shinsplints and trying to tough it out. Could also be that they're looking for an excuse to bypass NCAA outdoors to compete in WC/World Juniors. It does not make sense to me to be running in WXC if there is a true diagnosis of a stress fracture.

I have no doubt that if German had run in USATF Indoors, he'd be going to Worlds (and Webb wouldn't), and in my mind that's what they should have done.

German is in Jordan.. oh my!

Coach D wrote:

I have no doubt that if German had run in USATF Indoors, he'd be going to Worlds (and Webb wouldn't), and in my mind that's what they should have done.

There's no world indoors this year.