Sam is acting like a man. He is doing what is best for his American family. Finally someone that is associates with Scott Simmons doing the responsible thing and not acting selfish.
Chelimo is a whiny little punk.
Sam is acting like a man. He is doing what is best for his American family. Finally someone that is associates with Scott Simmons doing the responsible thing and not acting selfish.
Chelimo is a whiny little punk.
While I wholeheartedly respect military service, I'm not very happy to hear this. I feel like he is on the cusp of running a really good marathon one of these days, kind of disappointed that we won't ever see that from him. Meb was 38 when he won Boston, imagine if he had retired 5 years before that.
Good for him. Seems to be a trend as Josh McDougal is also in the Army but on the enlisted side I think. Retirement at 53 not bad - depending on the direction he goes deployments may be far fewer but you can never know.
one less wrote:
Not sure why he would retire now, he would have a good shot at making the US olympic marathon team in a few years.
1. The OT is in less than two years.
2. Why spend more time being an also-ran in the sport when you already have 7 years of that same experience? Too many people cling to being a "pro runner" far too long when the writing is on the wall, if you've already had a couple shots at getting on an Olympic team or winning a medal and it didn't work out then move on, already. You're fooling yourself and setting yourself up for a future of overworking for underpay compared with your peers. You're clinging to a lifestyle that won't pay off in earning opportunities. Move on, get on with a real career while you still have youth and energy on your side.
I agree wrote:
I write this a a US citizen born in Colorado to American parents, a current runner, and have a very long family history of US Army service that Sam Chelanga's efforts are much more noble than Paul Chelimo's efforts. In fact, in my mind, they are not even on the same planet within the same solar system, so "to speak".
Yet US Army service is not in your own personal history. Thanks, but you don't get to make the call if you've done nothing yourself. Your opinion carries no weight. Have a nice day.
If he truly goes the officer route it will be much more difficult to make the transition to WCAP. Besides basic training, OCS, basic officer course and any other training like airborne school he could spend 18 months in school. After that he’ll be a platoon leader who will be expected to spend much of his time training with his unit. He might have time to train on his own and run for the local base, but a full time running assignment as an officer is very rare. Of course, he is world class so that might help him if he desired to pursue that path. It would kill a long term military career though. He’d be sacrificing significant leadership time and missing out on crucial experience.
Marauder44 wrote:
If he truly goes the officer route it will be much more difficult to make the transition to WCAP. Besides basic training, OCS, basic officer course and any other training like airborne school he could spend 18 months in school. After that he’ll be a platoon leader who will be expected to spend much of his time training with his unit. He might have time to train on his own and run for the local base, but a full time running assignment as an officer is very rare. Of course, he is world class so that might help him if he desired to pursue that path. It would kill a long term military career though. He’d be sacrificing significant leadership time and missing out on crucial experience.
Disagree. Given his age & kids, I highly doubt he goes combat arms. Hopefully, UNLIKE the rest of the WCAP scam, he deploys to Africa & helps Team US-Kenya take on the terrorist on the Somalia-Kenya border. What MAVNI was really designed to do until Major Dan "The Scam" Browne & Goucher's HS teammate Colonel Sean Ryan began to exploit immigration loopholes at the cost of US distance running.
Did you read the article? He was already training with WCAP/ADP since 2016. If he says he's retired, take his word for it. After his two marathons it makes sense that he would want to retire because his best event is clearly the half and he can't medal in Tokyo. He's walking away with grace. Best to let him do that rather than throw around unfounded assumptions.
mcvred wrote:
Did you read the article? He was already training with WCAP/ADP since 2016. If he says he's retired, take his word for it. After his two marathons it makes sense that he would want to retire because his best event is clearly the half and he can't medal in Tokyo. He's walking away with grace. Best to let him do that rather than throw around unfounded assumptions.
Of course I read the article. I just don't see it happening. That said, I understand the logic.
Now it comes out you are racist. Oh and a complete idiot to boot!
Really hope he does not get caught up in the discharging and potential deportation going on right now in the US military. The program to gain citizenship through military service is on the rocks.
retiredT&FCoach wrote:
Really hope he does not get caught up in the discharging and potential deportation going on right now in the US military. The program to gain citizenship through military service is on the rocks.
https://www.apnews.com/2840d843a42140879f37f2d0927f064b
I could be misinformed, but I believe that those who are experiencing issues are those who are 1. recruits trying to enter the military, and 2. recruits without permanent citizenship. I think Chelenga is already a citizen, so he shouldn't encounter any issues.
Regardless, I wish nothing but the best for Chelenga. We need more leaders with outstanding character and work ethic in the Army, and a guy like Chelenga fills that need.
- He'll have no problem as a LEGALLY naturalized citizen who didn't attempt to exploit immigration loopholes aka WCAP modus operandi.
Likety continues to espouse ill-informed opinions based on his lack of knowledge.
- Chelanga has been training with Paul Chelimo since 2012 as a part of the ADP/WCAP training group.
- Chelanga's and Chelimo's motivations and commitment to the US Army and the United States of America are exacty the same. Service is service. Bookkeepers are as important as gunners are. Military band members are as important as military chaplains are as important as Navy Seals are. They all serve a role that serves the purpose of protecting our freedoms, including Likety's freedom to anonymously bad mouth United States soldiers.
Shame on the BroJo's for allowing anti-military and anti-immigrant posts on their platform. Allowing this is a form of endorsement. And given the lack of site censorship, I suspect Likety is actually one of the Johnson Brothers (not so much Gault as, at the least, he attempts to be an actual journalist)
A big "Thank You For Your Service" to all of our military soldiers, not just the ones whom some people agree with their roles.
Best of luck Sam, Chelanga.
Best of luck, Paul Chelimo.
- Running full-time your entire enlistment like Kipchirchir is military service like the band, bookeepers, Chaplains? The latter enable folks to defend us.
- I am NOT anti-military
- I am anti-illegal immigrant & in WCAP's case .... charge them with enlisting & immigrating these green carders under false pretenses (MAVNI) to only wreak havoc on our already fragile professional sport.
Most likely, since Sam Chelanga immigrated the right way, he's a similar position as Ben True ..... WCAPers parachuted into the fray and crowded them out of international competition which equals "food-on-the-table"!
https://www.wsj.com/articles/for-athletes-its-double-trouble-to-plan-for-retirement-1530792001
Again, Likety's ignorance is blinding.
The MAVNI program is a LEGAL program of the US military. Soldiers who are rewarded with citizenship for their service do so LEGALLY.
You may not like the program, but calling it illegal is just plain ignorant. You take away any credibility from any other argument you make by claiming that the soldiers are not legal.
And any professional sport that is fragile needs a kick in the pants. Replace the weak with the strong.
Make Team USA great again!! Don't settle for mediocrity!
- Lickety has won ... the "LEGAL Loopholes" are being closed: WCAP will die & the good dudes like Chelanga & Ben True will be wearing the USA singlet.
Lickety Split wrote:
- Lickety has won ... the "LEGAL Loopholes" are being closed: WCAP will die & the good dudes like Chelanga & Ben True will be wearing the USA singlet.
You have won nothing but the award for a know it all that knows nothing at all.
Sam has not intention of competing again at prior levels.
None of the athlete in the Army program are illegal immigrants.
Nobody lost a place on a team that they didn't have the talent to make. A watered down US team is just that watered down. They raced to make the team and made it.
Good dudes, you are the judge of their personal character? You clearly are racist and bigoted, look in the mirror, you are not reflective of America now are you.
- Why do you call me names?
- I never claimed that the WCAP Runners were illegal immigrants; however, I do insist that they enlisted to gain citizenship and run versus defending our country as soldiers.
- I'd prefer to go with a "watered down" USA team that did it the right way versus a Qatar/Bahrain look-alike created by WCAP.