Technically that's incorrect as the Team USA boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics, sadly.
Technically that's incorrect as the Team USA boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics, sadly.
Every US woman who has run faster than her 14:58 pr at 5000 meters is an Olympian. So...maybe.
I'd want to see the fastest non-Olympians at steeple, 10k, and marathon, as well as Worlds finishes (her best was 7th in Daegu) to judge.
Also, we'd probably want to look at the men.
I am shocked!!!! I thought the all powerful Dr Alfredson had fixed her after the American Medical system had failed her?
This story makes me want to vomit. Fleshman is ***
Editor's note: The rest of this post was deleted. Grow up. Ms. Fleshman's looks have nothing to do with whether she was the best distance runner to not make the Olympics
Solinsky and others may disagree.
"And now, in announcing her retirement at age 34, Fleshman also carries the wrenching distinction of most likely being the best American distance runner never to make an Olympic team, her competitive career repeatedly impaired by injuries that had her on crutches at the wrong four-year intervals. Foot problems in 2004 and 2008. A knee in 2012."
Possibly the best TUE cheat to never make the Olympics.
WSJ wrote:
Solinsky and others may disagree.
http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/07/24/sports/olympics/lauren-fleshman-retires-but-her-mission-goes-on.html"And now, in announcing her retirement at age 34, Fleshman also carries the wrenching distinction of most likely being the best American distance runner never to make an Olympic team, her competitive career repeatedly impaired by injuries that had her on crutches at the wrong four-year intervals. Foot problems in 2004 and 2008. A knee in 2012."
From a factual standpoint, the article clearly should at a minimum say "fastest women's runner" otherwise it's a total disservice to someone like Chris Solinsky. Flehsman's PBs were never remotely close to medal contention as Solinsky's clearly were.
That being said, I enjoyed the article a great deal and always thought Fleshman was a fascinating interview. A few more comments.
1) Her husband is totally right about the singular focus being rewarded in our sport. The more you are a robot, the better. When I think about Weldon's success, I often think, 'How many people were willing to live in drive 5 hours roundtrip to do speed workouts, were willing to sleep in their car on top of a mountain two days before a race?'
2) I liked the line by Fleshman at the end as well .“I realized you can’t expect people to care just because you’re fast,†she said. “You have to bring them with you.â€
When I was in school, I assumed the teacher liked me because I had good grades. When I taught HS, I realized that wasn't true. Some of my favorite kids were the ones with the worse grades. They were interesting.
I think it would be useful to come up wth a list of "Best Americans never to make an Olympic team" for both men and women. Let's try to come up with 5-10 each.
I'll start with the obvous.
Men
1. Solinksy (He's #1 now as he's the only one on the list)
Women
1. Fleshman (She's #1 as she's the only one on the list)
anon. wrote:
Technically that's incorrect as the Team USA boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics, sadly.
In 1980, the people who got top 3 are still considered have made an Olympic team. They made the US team, they just didn't compete at the Olympics.
I would argue that Lisa Rainsberger was a far better runner than Fleshman based on her Boston Marathon win and 4th in the Olympic trials 3 times. And she missed the Olympics in the pool by 1 spot as well.
bfullem wrote:
I would argue that Lisa Rainsberger was a far better runner than Fleshman based on her Boston Marathon win and 4th in the Olympic trials 3 times. And she missed the Olympics in the pool by 1 spot as well.
http://www.runnersworld.com/tag/lisa-larsen-rainsberger
The author could have avoided this debate by using the word 'fastest' instead of best. It's hard to compare across eras. But I love this discussion. I want a list of the best people not to make a team.
rojo wrote:
I think it would be useful to come up wth a list of "Best Americans never to make an Olympic team" for both men and women. Let's try to come up with 5-10 each.
I'll start with the obvous.
Men
1. Solinksy (He's #1 now as he's the only one on the list)
Women
1. Fleshman (She's #1 as she's the only one on the list)
I think there was a thread within the past 1-2 years that contained a decent list of best Americans that didn't make an Olympic team. Can't find it.
Did Joe Falcon ever make a team? His Wiki doesn't mention anything.
Surely Joe LeMay could sneak on the top 10 list?
2:13:55
28:23
And the article starts, "Lauren Fleshman was the top collegiate distance runner in American history."
Really?
Khalid Khannouchi
Joe Falcon
This highlights the bubble that elite runners live in. This is true in any sport...in Life. Football coaches sleep in their offices to win Super bowls.
rojo wrote:
Some of my favorite kids were the ones with the worse grades. They were interesting.
From one teacher to another (really?): your point is totally valid, but your usage is not. *worst*
Correct on Joe Falcon
Logical song wrote:
This story makes me want to vomit. Fleshman is ***
Editor's note: The rest of this post was deleted. Grow up. Ms. Fleshman's looks have nothing to do with whether she was the best distance runner to not make the Olympics
Why the f*ck did you keep the first part and not just delete the whole thing? That one sentence adds a lot of depth?
Mark Nenow
David Krummenacker
I don't think there are any marathoners other than Khannouchi. We have so few truly world class marathoners, that they all usually make the team. Maybe Beardsley or Greg Meyer?
Provisionally on the list: Ben True (the only faster non-Olympian is Solinski.)