The NCAA has done a lot of stupid things over the years but this has to to appear near the top of the list. They have stripped all remaining eligibility for NCAA D3 XC runner-up (and 2:12 marathoner) Mohammed Bati, who works a full-time job 5 days a week at an assisted living facility from 11 pm to 7 am while attending school and running track/XC. His sin? The local community came together and raised $6k for him.
Cherish the Memories
This is Disgraceful
Another controversial ban
Art and Linda Kranick built a dynasty at Saratoga Springs as they won 3 national titles and 28 NY state federation titles. Many runners RAVED about them. Many also HATED them. Banning them for life even though one of them is dead seems the definition of administrative over reach. SafeSpot has a policy not to ban dead people. Does USATF even know Art Kranick is dead?
World XC Will Be Happening in 2 Weeks
- Recommended Read: How Bob Braman, Amanda Heidecker (née Quick) and many others turned Tallahassee swamp into a fitting host for World XC The race is supposed to bring Tallahassee $4.3 million to the region through tourism and economic impact. Did you know each FSU football game brings in more than $100 million?
- Daniel Ebenyo says Team Kenya is ready for World XC: "The training has been great, and we have been shown every obstacle that shall be there. The team is ready to compete with discipline, humility and hard work. We urge all Kenyans to pray for us so we can bring it home.” Ebenyo, who won WC silver in the 10,000 in 2023, somehow won the Kenyan Trials just two weeks after running the Chicago Marathon.
- World Athletics Tallahassee 2026 course preview
Marathon News
- Toni Reavis reminisces about the good old days of the 1st running boom when Bill Rodgers was a rock star
- Do marathons damage your heart? Decade-long scientific study finally settles the debate They say for recreational runners the answer is no, but "some studies have found signs of scarring in the heart – called fibrosis – in athletes who have trained at very high volumes for many years."
- Eliud Kipchoge: Kenyan marathoner says he's not retiring, he's evolving
At least 4 T&F athletes make the cut including Gout Gout and Sifan Hassan.
On The Boards
On The Boards
Upcoming Indoor Action
- Doris Lemngole, Jane Hedengren, and Josette Andrews will duke it out over 3000m at the Millrose Games on February 1 Katelyn Tuohy's 8:35.20 collegiate record will definitely be under threat (Hedengren's recent 14:44 5000m is worth an 8:28 on VDOT calculators).
*MB: Doris vs Jane Millrose 3000
- High school national champion Natalie Dumas will run her first 800m of the season at the Armory on December 27 Dumas (2:00.11 PB) will face Abigail Robisky who ran a 600m freshman class record (1:33.6) earlier this month. Quincy Wilson is in the 300m.
- World and European U20 heptathlon champ Jana Koščak is making an attempt at an U20 world indoor pentathlon record on December 28
- The three 2025 European 60m medalists will have a rematch at ISTAF Indoor Berlin on March 6 Switzerland’s Ditaji Kambundji, Netherlands' Nadine Visser and Poland's Pia Skrzyszowska.
- Greece pole vaulter Emmanouil Karalis will open his season at the Orlen Cup on January 25
Distance News
- Two LSU teammates break three-legged mile world record LSU roommates Trenton Sandler and Hugh Carlson ran 5:34.29 to take 4 seconds off the previous record. Sandler has a 3:48 1500m PB and Carlson a 3:53.
- MB: Charlie Lawrence beats Jim Walmsley’s 100k AR by about 2 minutes Lawrence ran 6:07:10 (5:54 pace) to move to #2 on the world all-time list.
- GB's Innes FitzGerald writes about playing Hungry Hippos with Nadia Battocletti and vegan Christmas
- MB: Kenenisa Bekele DNFs Guangzhou Marathon in China
- Lucy Nduta (10k - 31:49) and Margaret Akidor (half-marathon - 67:52) win at Sanyo Ladies Road Race in Japan
- World Athletics 2025 review: Middle and long distance *Steeple *Road Running
Non-Distance News
- Is 15-year-old Celine Obinna-Alo the next British sprint star? She ran 7.34 seconds to break the GB under-17 60m record and her coach, former world indoor 60m champ Richard Kilty, says, "It's not even my opinion, it's a fact - Celine is the most naturally gifted female sprinter that there's ever been in Britain."
- Mondo Duplantis talks about his world record breaking season, the viral World Champs kiss with his fiancée and becoming the next Seb Coe Duplantis also reveals he's an avid golfer with an 11 handicap.
- Citius Mag somehow says Kishane Thompson is its #2 male AOY for 2025 He didn't even WC gold.
- Noah Lyles talks about his future (or lack thereof) in the 400m): "I ran a 400m last year… but I don’t see it happening for me to run a competitive event."
- Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone says she's turned down sponsorship opportunities that don't align with her values "If you would have asked me 10 years ago, I would have probably taken every opportunity out there. Brand deals, partnerships, even um just being in certain rooms with certain people. And uh there's a lot that me and my husband have to discern and say maybe maybe that's not the wisest for us. And just be content with our decisions that we make as a married couple and and standing firm in that."
- Video: Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone does half hour sit-down interview with Forbes
- World decathlon champ Leo Neugebauer crowned German Sportsman of the Year across all sports
- World Athletics 2025 review: Sprints *Hurdles
GST News
- New filings show Grand Slam Track owes more than $31 million GST says it "would be forced to curtail or cease operations within weeks" if the court doesn't approve a high interest $2.9 million from investor Winners Alliance. GST owes
Looking Ahead To The New Year
- Grant Fisher vs Cole Hocker rematch announced for Millrose Games 2 mile At Millrose this year they both finished inside the indoor 3000m WR with Fisher beating Hocker to 7:22.91 to 7:23.14.
- Italy’s Nadia Battocletti will make a homecoming appearance at the Campaccio XC race on January 25 Last year she dominated to become the first Italian winner of the race in 31 years.
- Olympic 100m champ Julien Alfred announced for Millrose Games 60m She'll face US's Aleia Hobbs and GB's Dina Asher-Smith.
News From The BBC
- BBC loses rights to broadcasting the Commonwealth Games for the first time in 72 years The BBC has been broadcasting the GWG since 1954, but was outbid for the 2026 Games by TNT Sports.
- Mondo Duplantis wins BBC Sports Personality's World Sport Star of the Year award for second year in a row The award was selected in a public vote and Duplantis beat out other shortlist contenders Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Spain footballer Mariona Caldentey, US boxer Terence Crawford, Japanese baseball player Shohei Ohtani and Egypt footballer Mohamed Salah.
World XC Is January 10th in Florida
- DyeStat: Florida themed course set to welcome World XC Championships The course is crazy with a 20-foot long knee-deep water pit and 2 to 3 feet high barriers carved in the shape of alligators.
*MB: World XC Champs Organizing Committee Outdid Itself with Coolest Course Features Ever - Jimmy Gressier spearheads strong French team for World XC The team also has 2023 European XC champ Yann Schrub.
- Lame: Belgium is sending literally just one runner to World XC That is European U20 champ Willem Renders.
- Also Lame: Ireland is only sending four total to World XC The team is led by national champions Brian Fay and Fiona Everard.
- Great Britain and Northern Ireland announce World XC team lead by European silver medalist Megan Keith and Rory Leonard
The Marathon Project
The leaders hit 30k on 2:08:05 pace but faded late as the Flavin, the former NC State runner now running for Hansons-Brooks, got the win out of the second pack. 45-year-old Priscah Cherono of Kenya, who won world championship bronze in the 5000 way back in 2007, led the women's race throughout and won in a new pb of 2:25:17.
*MB: Official 2025 Marathon Project Live Discussion Thread
- Pre-Race: LRC Ben Rosario Pod - The Marathon Project 2.0 Ben broke down the elite men’s and women’s fields and talked why any serious runner looking for a PB should run the race. Can you say - super fast course, perfect weather, personal bottle service and free super shoes?
More Weekend Distance Results
- Two-time Olympic champ Joshua Cheptegei wins World Kolkata 25K in 1:11:49 (4:37 pace) India's Gulveer Singh finished 5th in a national record 1:12:06 while Ethiopia’s Degitu Azimeraw won the women’s race in 1:19:36 (5:07 pace).
*MB: Josh MF'ing Cheptegei 25k - France’s Yann Schrub dominates Corrida de Houilles 10K in 27:20 Schrub's time puts him 8th on the European all-time list. Slovenia’s Klara Lukan won the women's race in 31:13.
- Kenyans Brian Kiptoo and Dorcus Chepkwemoi win Venta de Banos XC race in Spain Chepkwemoi won her race by almost a minute over Spain's European U23 XC champ Maria Forero. Kiptoo beat out Morocco's Abderraahmane Aferdi by just a second.
Fast Times From Young Talent
- Quincy Wilson opens up his indoor season with 1:02.05 for 500m at the Armory The time is 11th fastest ever HS 500m (Wilson has ran faster with a 1:01.27). This after he ran a 55m PR earlier in the meet with 6.34.
- MB: New Zealand 16-year-old Sam Ruthe runs 13:40 in 5000m debut He broke the New Zealand U20 record, finishing second at the Daikin Night of 5s behind Sam Tanner (13:36). *Race Recap
- MB: 19-year-old Aussie Cam Myers runs 13:32.11 5000m PB at Albie Thomas Meet His previous best was 13:49 from April.
- Gakuho Ishikawa boys run 2:00:36 course record to win first Japan National High School Ekiden title
- Nagano Higashi girls make it two in a row at Japan National High School Ekiden
Doping / Ban News
- Former US Indoor 60m champion Shania Collins joins the Enhanced Games Collins won 60m gold at the 2019 US Indoor Champs and won 4x100 bronze at the 2019 Pan American Games, but she now competes for Liberia.
- Japan-based Kenyan Emmanuel Kiprop Kipruto suspended by World Athletics Interestingly, not for doping, but related to a financial dispute with his agent. World Athletics says he's suspended until he reimburses his agent for expenses.
- AIU releases anti-doping testing figures from ahead of Tokyo Worlds Testing by national anti-doping organizations was up 49% for Tokyo 2025 compared to back at London 2017 and out-of-competition testing is way up, increased by 71%.
The Bowerman
- Doris Lemngole wins the Bowerman It's had to believe but she' the first Kenyan, male or female, to win the award.
*The top moments from Bowerman winner Doris Lemngole's 2025 season How about an 8:58 steeple at NCAAs. - Jordan Anthony wins The Bowerman for 2025 Arkansas now is the 1st program to have 3 men's winners as it went to the man who won the 60m indoors and 100m outdoors.
*The top moments from Bowerman winner Jordan Anthony's 2025 season - How Canadian hurdler Savannah Sutherland put herself in mix for prestigious NCAA award On Thursday night, the now 22-year-old Sutherland’s year in athletics could end with her being named the first Canadian female recipient of The Bowerman, U.S. collegiate track and field’s highest individual honor.
Marathon News
- Recommended Read: How Laura Thweatt quickly became the marathon coach for On in Boulder after retirement Her first build of being the boots on the the ground for On's marathoners went incredibly well as Obiri broke the NYC course record and Klecker ran 2:10. "I got to be at the finish line with Dathan and I was crying both when Hellen came across and also when Joe finished. It's four months where you and the athletes pour everything into this singular focus, but it's still a marathon and so much can happen out of your control over 26 miles."
- NN Group to step back from being title sponsor of NN Running Team. New Title Sponsor will be announced in January. Predictions? - LetsRun.com NN still will be a sponsor but not the name of the group - they are switching to Founding Sponsor role.
- Malindi Elmore podcast appearance The 45-year-old is still breaking records. Earlier this month, she set the ouright Canadian record for 45+, meaning she broke the men's and women's records. Incredible.
- Champion jockey AP McCoy to run London Marathon to support charity He will act as a support runner for former England rugby player Matt Hampson who was paralyzed from the neck down in rugby scrum.
- Japan's Olympic 6th placer Yuka Suzuki leaves Daiichi Seimei corporate team to join her husband Akira Akasaki at Kraftia Did you know the newlyweds both were 6th in the Paris Olympic marathon?
Inside Scoop On Quincy Wilson's College Choice
The story as to how Maryland, which is a doormat in the Big 10 track standings, landed the star 400m recruit is on the front page of the Baltimore Sun sports page.
Links That Passed Our Human Editor
- Reuters' year in review for Athletics: It was an amazing year and the track and in terms of doping busts as well SML, MJW, Mondo, Chebet, Kipyegon and many others were sensational as was the entire Worlds in Tokyo but so was the doping as Ruth Chepngetich, Fred Kerley, Marvin Bracy, Erriyon Knighton were all banned.
- MB: Kerry O'Brien - Australian steeplechaser who set World Record in 1970 - has died at 79 O"Brien ran 8:21.98 in steeple in 1970 and also ran an indoor WR for 2 miles in San Diego of 8:19.2 in 1971. *MB: Unluckiest runner you never heard of? 8 years ago, someone wondered if it was O'Brien as he was 4th at the '68 Olympics and fell in '72.
- Recommended Read Great Q&A with Dr. Jim Barahal, president of the Honolulu Marathon which attracted 43,000 participants this year for all its races - "We can’t be a World Marathon Major, but our mile can be one of the greatest road miles in the world." “So if someone comes out to Honolulu or wherever, and does a 5K or 10K, or even in our case a mile, the economic impact’s the same as in the marathon. They’re on an airplane, they’re renting a hotel room, they’re eating meals, maybe renting a car. It’s exactly the same no matter which event they compete in....we’ve moved into the top 3 or 4 events in the country with nearly 43,000 entrants through our three events. I mean, we’re happy to be judged on our marathon finishers, but that’s not really the whole story here.”
- Ireland's 16-yr old Emma Hickey was the country's 1st ever medallist in U20 race at Euro xc: ‘Running helped me through everything’ – Emma Hickey talks about how the death of her mother last Xmas shaped her journey
- NY Times: 6 mobility excercises (with videos) for runners
- Australian Athletics (AA) and Little Athletics Australia (LAA) have today announced a significant step for the sport with agreement-in-principle to unify athletics at a national level.
Race For An NIL Deal
Diadora is offering a $40,000 NIL to the first high school boy to go sub-4 in its spikes and the first high school girl to go sub-4:35.
The Latest LRC Exclusive
Nuguse, who set a (since-broken) WR of 3:46.63 last year, will go for a 4th straight Wanamaker mile title and will be up against Hobbs Kessler and Australian teen sensation Cameron Myers. He also reveals he's going to take a crack at a hot 5000 this year and maybe the outdoor mile WR.
Coe Speaks
The nomination of Femke Bol as a finalist in 2025 over Beatrice Chebet and Melissa Jefferson-Wooden sparked outrage among fans. Coe also weighed in on World XC in Tallahassee, Grand Slam Track, and the World Ultimate Champs in his end-of-year media call.
- Seb Coe contrasts GST to World Athletics new Ultimate Championships "This isn’t something that can be a happy accident or, ‘It’ll be okay on the night.’ This isn’t the management of just sort of hope that it is going to work. We’ve got a team of over 20 people who, at this moment, are working on that. And they’ll work through Christmas on it. We will do everything we possibly can to make sure we move the sport in the right direction."
- Seb Coe says World Athletics will have to "police the calendar" more in the future after GST
“Over the next few years there are going to be lots of different and new things, and I welcome that. But it has to be suffused in a realistic proposition that you have stuff that is fireproof. It’s got to be sustainable.”
Non-Distance News
- Noah Lyles says World Athletics' athlete of the year award is "kind of a joke now" Lyles said, "There’s a lot more politics to these awards than you think. I don’t think that Mondo doesn’t deserve athlete of the year. I mean he breaks the World Record every year. ...But the World Athlete of the year thing is kind of redundant because I mean Melissa (Jefferson-Wooden) wasn’t even nominated. At this point, this award is kind of a joke."Southeast Asian Games recap: Thailand’s Puripol Boonson wins triple gold (100m, 200m, 4x100m) He ran an Asian U20 record in the 100m heats with 9.94 and an Asian U20 record in the 200m with 20.07.
- World field athlete of the year Nicola Olyslagers – in her words World HJ champ Olyslagers talks about back when she was working washing dishes in a café just trying to save money to pay for flights to compete internationally.
- Mike Holloway named as Chair of USATF's High Performance Division Holloway has coached the University of Florida men and women to a combined 14 NCAA team titles.
Distance News
- World Athletics: "Sabastian Sawe – in his words" Sawe says now that he's full-in on the marathon and "moved on from the half" he won't be defending his title at the World Road Running Championships in 2026.
- World marathon champion Alphonce Simbu writes open letter about becoming the first Tanzanian to win a World Championship gold medal It's been a long time coming for Simbu who ran his first Worlds in 2015 and won a bronze in 2017 and in the end, it was one of the craziest finishes from Tokyo with Simbu beating Germany's Amanal Petros by just .03 seconds.
- Southeast Asian Games: Thailand’s Kieran Tuntivate wins triple gold - 1500m (3:47.50), 5000m (14:46) and 10,000m (29:41.81)
- USATF Masters Half Marathon Championships recap: Adrian Pagan (1:14:41) and Jennifer Rodriguez (1:30:17) win on a hilly course and cold/windy day
GST Update
New bankruptcy filings reveal that Grand Slam Track owes millions for TV production, million to athletes including $356,250 to Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, and $272,915 to Citius Mag for coverage and related services
- Discussion: Grand Slam Track's debts revealed
- The Telegraph: "Failure of Michael Johnson’s Grand Slam Track risks shredding his reputation" An anonymous agent said, "It’s been incredible – he’s gone from the supposed savior of the sport to being talked about like he’s the worst person. One thing that shocked me was how some people turned unbelievably quickly. It seems that he had more enemies than I was aware of.” On a more positive note, agent Paul Doyle said even at 50% pay, some athletes still earned more than previously in their careers, "So, although there is a bad taste in their mouth, they haven’t been as completely irate as you may expect."
- The Independent: GST owes Josh Kerr $218,000
Cross Country News
- GB's Euro XC silver medalist Megan Keith said the course with "so many hills and jumps" was "more of a Mario Kart video game."
- Stats from Euro XC Champs World 1500m champ Isaac Nader closed his anchor leg in the mixed relay with 4:16 for 1640m (4:11 mile pace).
- World Athletics marks less than a month until Tallahassee World XC Champs Tickets are only $10 and there is an open "fun run" for $30.
- European XC champion Thierry Ndikumwenayo and U23 champ Maria Forero headline Spanish team for World XC
Weekend Distance Action
Johnson ran 4:21.66 to break the US record of 4:23.98 (set by Krissy Gear in April) and came in well ahead of runner-up Nikki Hiltz (4:24.50). Hoey won in 3:54.77 to beat out Hobbs Kessler (3:56.21). Johnson also won the battle of the sexes, coming in ahead of all the men after the women got a 31 second head start.
*MB: Josh Hoey 1st place male at Kalakaua Mile
Hauger-Thackery won over two-time defending champion Cynthia Limo (2:31:33) and Weldlibanos also beat the defending champ, Yemane Haileselassie (2:14:29).
European XC Champs
Battocletti got a comfortable 15 second win over GB's Megan Keith while the men's race came down to a dramatic sprint finish with Ndikumwenayo beating Gressier by 3 seconds. The Spanish men and the Belgian women won the team titles.
- Italy retains mixed relay title as world 1500m champion Isaac Nader sprints to silver for Portugal
- GB's Innes FitzGerald wins her third successive women's U20 title She dominated the race by 32 seconds.
- After multiple near-misses, Ireland's Nick Griggs wins gold in the men's U23 race Griggs has been a close runner-up twice at Euro XC Champs, but won this race by 12 seconds.
- Belgium’s Willem Renders kicks to men's U20 gold
- Spain's Maria Forero takes women's U23 title
- The best images from Euro XC Champs
Brooks (Foot Locker) XC Champs
Spencer ran 15:10.7 to edge out Mantecon by just .2.
Just like at NXN, it came down to a duel between her and Blair Bartlett, with the winning margin ending up exactly the same. Dudek won 16:55.5 to 16:57.1 and she beat Bartlett by 1.6 seconds at NXN. Jaelyn Williams also repeated her finish from NXN, coming in 3rd place with 17:17.2.
Two LRC Exclusives On The 2021 Olympic 800m Champions
After three years with Kersee that included an American record in 2023, a devastating injury in 2024, and a failure to make the US final in 2025, Mu-Nikolayev has left Kersee and moved from LA to Dallas.
The Kenyan 800m star has largely disappeared since winning Olympic and world titles in 2021 & 2022. And the physiotherapist who treated him twice a day, every day for 6 months leading up to the Olympics is worried for him. "We’ve been trying to help him, but he hasn’t been willing to receive the help."
NCAA / HS News
- Nebraska's Axelina Johansson breaks collegiate indoor shot put record with 19.72m She had an impressive series and ended up throwing five of the top-8 best throws in collegiate history.
- Drunk driver runs off the road and hits 8 high school runners in California The driver ran up onto the sidewalk at an intersection, hit the runners and smashed into a brick wall. 7 of the runners were hospitalized and 5 have since been released.
- The Bowerman Award presentation is next week on December 18 The men's finalists are Arkansas' Jordan Anthony, Baylor's Nathaniel Ezekiel, and Auburn's Ja’Kobe Tharp. Women's finalists are New Mexico's Pamela Kosgei, Alabama's Doris Lemngole, and Michigan's Savannah Sutherland.
Doping / Ban News
- AIU chairman David Howman: "Let's be honest and pragmatic... intentional dopers at elite level are evading detection. We are not effective enough nowadays in catching cheats." Speaking at the World Conference on Doping in Sport, Howman urged anti-doping organizations to "move beyond compliance to a system that supports effective, ambitious anti-doping efforts."
- IOC wants ban lifted on Russia and Belarus youth athletes The IOC said, "The Olympic Summit recognized that athletes, and in particular youth athletes, should not be held accountable for the actions of their governments - sport is their access to hope, and a way to show that all athletes can respect the same rules and each another.
Friday 15
US Cross champ Parker Wolfe talks about his big US XC win, Swoosh TC life, training with Nico Young, trash talk with Ethan Strand, and makes his case for Tallahassee. Plus: Grand Slam Track files Chapter 11 and we dig into the Emmanuel Korir mystery. For Supporters Club members.
GST is bankrupt but still dreaming of a 2026
This was the most likely outcome the moment they cancelled the 4th meet. "With every altenative fully explored, moving into a court-supervised reorganization - which is what GST did today became the clearest path to protect our community and our mission," wrote GST.
- NY Times: GST has almost no money left but more than $10 million in liabilities According to its public bankruptcy filing, GST says it has between $0-$50,000 in assets, while having between $10,000,001 and $50m in liabilities.
- Independent: MJ isn't giving up MJ: "While GST has faced significant challenges that have caused frustrations for many – myself included – I refuse to give up on the mission."
- Jessica Hull's dad wishes she got paid 100% but is sympathetic to MJ's plight "I don't think Michael Johnson went out there to rort people of money. I don't think those were his intentions at all," Simon said.
Mid-D News
The 1500m world champ is currently a free agent on the coaching front but was recently seen training with Tomasz Lewandowski's group. Will he also switch shoe companies from Asics to Nike? "Of course it’s not often [someone changes coaches after winning Worlds], but it happens. I’ve been in this business for 42 years and he’s not the first one to change coaches after a big success. But they are still very close, they are good friends, there isn’t any type of problem between them. Enrique understood Isaac’s decision," said his agent.
*MB: Shock 1500m world champ Isaac Nader makes a shock decision - he's leaving his coach. Will he switch to Tomasz Lewandowski?
- MB: Jane Hedengren stays hot. Splits 4:29 for 1600 at altitude as BYU DMR runs 10:47 that converts to a 10:31 WR A very good showing for a Wednesday meet at altitude.
Spring Will Be Here Before You Know It
It's the first time since 1978 that both American record holders will both be in Boston.
*MB: Defending champs John Korir & Sharon Lokedi plus American record holder Conner Mantz and Emily Sisson to run 2026 Boston Marathon
- Brooks (Footlocker) XC preview: Jackson Spencer and Natasza Dudek look to finish off undefeated seasons. As a result of Golden Tickets, there is a record of 50 in each race.
Interesting Reads
Durham magazine's Renee Ambroso profiles the Puma group in North Carolina that has had an unreal 2025. From Taylor Roe's 10-mile WR to Alex Maier's 2:08 debut win in Germany, to Dorcus Ewoi's WCs silver, to Fiona O'Keeffe's 2:22 American course record in NYC, to Molly Born's 2:24 course record at CIM, the group rocked it all year long.
*MB: Behind the scenes with LRC's coaches of the year, Amy and Alistair Cragg - How have they led Puma Elite to get so good so fast?
- London DL organizers says ticket sales surged 1,150% after Mondo was announced And "all of the week’s top-selling tickets were linked to the part of the stadium closest to the men’s pole vault."
- Alex Yee's Coros watch reveals how the Olympic triathlon champ ran 2:06 in Valencia His final key workout was 30k (5 x 5km at 3:01 per k with a 1k @ steady pace). And the watch revealed his stride length didn't shorten at all in the final 10k like it did in London - it actually got longer.
- MB: This is incredible. Canadian man starts running last year at age 25. Makes Canadian team for World XC with 4th place finish
- MB: Spanish hobby jogger gets popped for diuretic after finishing 29th out of 61. Do you think she was looking to get an edge?
- Hakone Ekiden entry lists are out and #2 seed Chuo University leads the way with an avg. 10k PR of 27:55.98. Pre-race favorite Koku Gakuin University, looking for its first title, has a 28:23 avg.
- Nice sportsmanship: In Valencia, Joyciline Jepkosgei missed her 35k water bottle but Peres Jepchirchir shared hers
- World track athlete of the year Emmanuel Wanyonyi – in his words
More Marathon News
The former New Mexico Lobo has had an incredible year as she broke 15:00 for the 1st time (14:55), 30:00 for the 1st time (30:50) and 67 in the half (66:58). She wants to make up for her biggest blemish of the year - a DNF in Chicago.
- RRW After top 10 showing in NYC, Uber driver Tsegay Weldlibanos is looking for JAL Honolulu Marathon win The Eritrean, who has a 2:07:35 pb, has been separated from his wife and child for 6 years as he seeks asylum in the US. He works about 25-30 hours a week, on top of putting in about 110 miles or running.
- Amos Kipruto, who ran 2:03 twice this year, in mourning after father’s death He posted an emotional tribute to his dad from his hospital room. “Dad, you were the truest person I ever knew. You meant so much to me, and that’s why I did everything I could to help you get better. But God knows why things happen the way they do. Today, I feel like I’ve lost everything. It breaks my heart to say goodbye, Dad. It’s so hard to write these words… RIP, Daddy,” part of the tribute read.
Week That Was
In our weekly recap, we note that Katelyn Tuohy still hasn't made at a US team as a pro. How rare is that for an NCAA XC champ? We also uncover the #1 thing that nearly all of the fastest marathoners in Europe share and wonder if altitude or the Mormon faith is the key to winning the boys' individual NXN title. And much more.
Upcoming Indoor / Road Action
- Grant Fisher and Jake Wightman will duel over 2,000m at the New Balance Grand Prix in Boston on January 24 Noah Lyles and Elle St. Pierre were also announced for the meet.
- Olympic marathon champ Tamirat Tola announced for the 2026 Doha Marathon on January 16
- Ukraine's HJ world record holder Yaroslava Mahuchikh announced for the Springer-Meeting Cottbus in Germany on January 28 US's former two-time world champ Sam Kendricks was announced for the pole vault.
- Greece's Olympic LJ champ Miltiadis Tentoglou maps out his indoor season Starts in Ostrava on February 3 and ends at World Indoor Champs in March.
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Tebogo Updates
- Letsile Tebogo says he's received three financial offers from different countries to switch allegiance from Botswana He was approached by Qatar, UAE, and Tunisia and actually seriously considered a couple of them, but ultimately rejected the offers. *Video Interview
- Botswana gives Letsile Tebogo a new three-bedroom house This is the home that was promised to him from the government after he won Olympic 200m gold. It's valued at $172,683.
Assorted Distance News
- Julia Paternain writes letter to Uruguay about her shock marathon bronze medal at Tokyo Worlds (Uruguay's first ever world medal) "When I hit that final stretch, I wasn’t even sure it was the finish – I was just hoping. Then, I crossed the line, a cameraman told me I was in third, and I was in absolute disbelief. I wasn’t an All-American in college. I only made NCAA Outdoors once and came dead last. My path through college didn’t point to this moment. I was one of the very last athletes to qualify for this race. And somehow, I walked away with a bronze medal. It still feels pretty surreal."
- Athletics Weekly chooses their best shoes of 2025 They chose the Puma - Fast R3 as their best racing shoe for 5-10k. Read a NY Times article on the shoe here.
- NXN appearance stats: Which teams have the made NXN the most times? Southlake Carroll, TX has made it the most for boys, making 17 out of 20 editions of the meet. For the girls, Southlake Carroll, TX and Saratoga, NY are both tied for 16. There are actually 7 states that have never sent a team to NXN.
- Japan names team for World XC Champs The men's team is lead by sub-28 runners Ryuto Igawa and Daiki Ozawa while the women have two sub-32 runners in Momoka Kawaguchi and Wakana Itsuki.
Triathlon Running News
- Eliud Kipchoge, Mo Farah, Kilian Jornet, Femke Bol and Keely Hodgkinson among those to congratulate Alex Yee on his 2:06:38 in Valencia Kipchoge posted, "Congratulations Alex, in life we don’t believe in limitations. The future is bright!"
- Alex Yee says he plans to return to the triathlon, but doesn't rule out running another marathon in the future
- MB: Brazil's Manoel Messias breaks WR for fastest marathon split in a full Ironman with 2:26:50 That's a 2:26 marathon after a 3.8km swim and 180km cycle at the IRONMAN Brazil. He broke the previous record by almost 4 minutes, although he was still only second place in the overall race.
Catching Up On Some Recent Results
- World 10,000m champion Jimmy Gressier wins Course de l’Escalade road race in Switzerland He won the 7.323km race in 20:35 (4:31 pace) well ahead of Kenya’s Boniface Kibiwott (20:55). Kenya’s Winnie Jeptarus won the women's race in 23:40 (5:12 pace).
- Brooks XC West Region recap: Symond Martin and Carmen Dorsey-Spitz win at Mt. SAC XC course Martin was 13th at the NXN Southwest regional last month and Dorsey-Spitz was 16th.
- German XC champ Elena Burkard wins Weinstadt Cross Country race by over two minutes
- Oxford beats Cambridge at varsity cross-country meet
- Event-by-event top-10 NCAA marks of the week (December 2-8)
Doping News
- MB: Kenyan 58:53 half marathoner Hillary Chepkwony provisionally suspended by the AIU for doping This is the third member of Eliud Kipchoge's training group (coached by Patrick Sang) to be banned for doping.
- The Guardian's Sean Ingle: "Sabastian Sawe - the marathon star on a mission to be drug tested as much as possible" Sawe was tested 25 times ahead of the Berlin Marathon and he and his agent asked for special top-end analysis that is better at testing for even small levels of banned drugs. AIU head Brett Clothier says they normally don't do this because of budget constraints, but in this case adidas (Sawe's sponsor) paid for it. An interesting/depressing stat from the article is that out of the 427 athletes the AIU has sanctioned since 2017, 145 of them are Kenyan. (Russia is next highest with 75 and Ethiopia and India have 20.)
- 9.91 Liberian sprinter Emmanuel Matadi joins the Enhanced Games Matadi set the Liberian national record in 2024 and competed at the Paris Olympics.
- Kenyan 2020 Olympian Sheila Chelangat gets 6-year doping ban for EPO The 66:06 half marathoner was provisionally suspended in May. Her little sister, Faith Chepkoech, was also banned for EPO in 2024.
Valencia Marathon
Jepkosgei beat world and 2020 Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir who ran 2:14:43 (#6 all-time). On the men's side, Korir won handily, coming in 1:39 ahead of second place.
Parker Wolfe ran down Rocky Hansen to win USATF Cross Country, while pre race favorites Nico Young and Graham Blanks rounded out the strong Team USA for Worlds.
Kelati dropped Katie Izzo to win USA XC, with Kurgat, Schweizer, Venters and Hartman rounding out Team USA. Recap, results and link to race replay.
More Weekend Distance Results
- 16-year-old Sam Ruthe obliterates New Zealand secondary schools 800m record with 1:46.81 a day after smashing 1,500m record (3:38.62) This is at NZ's high school championships. He won the 800m by three seconds and his 1500m heat by nearly 30 seconds (he came back to win the 1,500m final on day 2 in 3:49.47).
*MB: Sam Ruthe 1.46/3.38 back-to-back - Molly Born beats Sara Hall (2:24:09 to 2:24:36) and Futsum Zienasellassie beats Joseph Welan (2:09:29 to 2:09:41) at CIM The top 52 men and the top 55 women broke the Marathon Trials standards (2:16 and 2:37).
*MB: CIM discussion thread
*MB: Courtney Dauwalter comes up short on OTQ time at CIM (2:38:54)
- Mathew Kipkoech and Dorcus Chepkwemoi Ndiema win Great Chepsaita Cross Country Run in Eldoret, Kenya Kipkoech (ranked #3 in the world in XC) received first aid attention after collapsing at the finish line, winning a close battle that separated the top-5 by just 4 seconds.
- Derese Workneh wins Hofu Yomiuri Marathon in Japan with 2:06:58 Mizuki Nishimura won the women's race in 2:25:54.
- Bayelign Teshager wins Fukuoka International Marathon in 2:07:51 ahead of Yusuke Nishiyama (2:07:56)
BU
Hoey's 1:12.84 crushed Donavan Brazier's previous 1:13.77 indoor WR and almost bettered the outdoor record, too. Hedengren ran 14:44.79 to take 7+ seconds off the NCAA women's 5,000 record.
- MB: Josh MF Hoey Smashes 600m WR
- MB: Jane Hedengren 14:44! Far superior to Park Valby smashes collegiate record
- MB: Riley Chamberlain appreciation Chamberlain placed second in 14:58.97 and actually had a faster last 1000m than Hedengren (2:48.41 to 2:49.75).
NXN
Spencer ran 15:01.1 to come in 2.2 seconds ahead of Yohanes Van Meerten. Niwot dominated the team race with a meet record of 61 points. Dathan Ritzenhein's son Jude was their 4th man in 40th place (15th in the team scoring).
Both were ranked #1 coming into the meet, but only just barely. That ended up being accurate as they only won by the narrowest of margins. Dudek, younger sister of 2019 Foot Locker champ Zofia Dudek, came in 1.7 seconds ahead of Blair Bartlett while Wayzata beat Niwot by 5 points.
Is the US winning too many relay golds? Is it fair to make a rule change aimed directly at them?
World Athletics has reversed course from seven years ago and is capping relay substitutions at Worlds and the Olympics at two per team. This is a direct shot at Team USA which is basically the only country that regularly uses more than two subs in the relays.
USATF Awards
Triple world gold medalist Jefferson-Wooden beat out Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone for the award, despite SML winning World Athlete of the Year. Cooper Lutkenhaus was named youth athlete of the year and Dennis Mitchell coach of the year.
- Vin Lananna receives Robert Giegengack award from USATF The award is given annually to "a person who excels in contributing to the excellence and high standards of the sport of athletics."
Valencia Marathon is Sunday
- Valencia Marathon Is Sunday & John Korir is in it as are 3 female studs and a few Americans Course record holder Sisay Lemma (2:01:48) leads the men's field but John Korir (2:02:44 pb) is surprisngly a late add after running a foolish race in Chicago. In the women's race, course record holder Amane Beriso (2:14:58) will clash with reigning world champ Peres Chepchirchir. Americans Keira D'Amato, Emma Bates, and Lindsay Flanagan are all racing.
Pre-NXN News
- DyeStat Preview: No. 1 Niwot Boys come Into NXN looking for repeat, chance at history The team includes senior Roco Culpepper (son of Olympians Alan and Shayne Culpepper) and freshman Jude Ritzenhein (son of Olympian Dathan Ritzenhein).
- DyeStat Preview: Competitive team and individual Races add intrigue to girls championship at NXN Regional winners Natasza Dudek, Blair Bartlett and Averi Lowen lead the field along with 2023 NXN champ Addy Ritzenhein.
- NXN Team Projections Niwot boys, Wayzata girls ranked #1.
- NXN free live stream starts at 12PM ET Boys race @ 1:05PM ET, girls race @ 2:35PM ET.
LRC Prediction Contest
LRC Prediction Contest
Valencia Marathon is Sunday
- Olympic Triathlon champ Alex Yee is pumped for one final attempt for a fast marathon before returning to triathlon next year He ran 2:11:08 in London but his watch told him he can run 2:05 in Valencia. He recently ran a 61:29 in the half.
- Fukuoka & Hofu marathons are in Japan this weekend but Suguru Osako (with a new tatoo) is in Valencia The first 6 men in both Fukuoka and Hofu will qualify for the MGC as long as they break 2:09. Osako must break 2:06:30 to qualify.
- John Korir hunts redemption (and a smart race) in Sunday's Valencia race after running foolishly in Chicago "I will run a tactical race; I will not go out hard in Valencia,” he said "My target in Chicago was to run under 2:01. But in Valencia, I am going for the win,” he added.
- Jakob Ingebrigtsen pulls out of European xc champ but says he's not injured "Jakob has had a very good training period at altitude in recent weeks and has decided to skip the European Cross Country Championships in order to focus fully on the 2026 season. We support the decision and look forward to the upcoming season," said Norwegian Athletics Association sports director Erlend Slokvik as quoted by NRK.
*MB: Jakob Ingebrigtsen running European XC championships. Update: No he's not. Pulls out on Dec. 4th.
Jager Q&A for Supporters Club Members
Evan Jager retired this week and then sat down with LetsRun.com for his most candid interview ever. He opened up about the Paris fall, the Olympic silver, the Fancy Bears leak, and the tension between Alberto and Jerry that shaped parts of his career.
- World Athletics' article on Evan Jager's retirement A good rundown of the highlights of his long career.
Message Board Q&A
Atlantic CEO Nicholas Thompson, runner, best-selling author, and host of “The Most Interesting Thing in A.I.", just ran over three hours in the marathon for the first time in 20 years. He joins LetsRun Friday to talk running, life, and his new book The Running Ground. If you'd like a book for free, just join our Supporters Club. Click for more info.
Marathon Analysis
Did you know everyone who has won a women's major since the start of 2022 has a pb under 2:18? Have we already found the heir to Eliud Kipchoge?
O'Keeffe Had A Great NYC
O'Keeffe ran with the leaders through 19 miles and finished 4th in 2:22:49, the fastest time by an American woman in NYC by almost two minutes.
Josh Hoey parts ways with yet another coach
Somehow Justin Rinaldi transformed Josh Hoey, who couldn't break 1:47 for 6+ years, to a 1:42.01 world indoor champ and DL winner. How has he been rewarded? With a pink slip. Rojo thinks it's hard to think of a dumber decision than this but then again Jerry Jones once did fire Jimmy Johnson.
After disagreements on training philosophy, Justin Rinaldi will no longer be coaching Hoey despite engineering one of the greatest turnarounds in American middle distance running history, taking Hoey from 1:47 to 1:42 and World Indoor champion in two years. Plus get the inside scoop on a key workout Hoey overcooked before USAs.
- MB: Breaking: Josh Hoey has parted with Justin Rinaldi, the man who took him from 1:47 also-ran to 1:42 World Champ!!
- LRC How Josh Hoey Went from Also-Ran to World Indoor Champion, Part I: A Coaching Odyssey
- LRC How Josh Hoey Went from Also-Ran to World Indoor Champion, Part I: Going All-In With Justin Rinaldi & The Fast 8 Track Club
Great listen/read
Nick Thompson, CEO of The Atlantic, joins the LetsRun.com Podcast to talk about his new book The Running Ground, how he ran 2:29 at 44, his late father, and why he still checks LetsRun every day.
Doping Bust?
In the latest update, Iowa State has confirmed that none of the suspended runners were in their top 7 but cited FERPA regulations and won't name the suspended runners. It appears that in a separate incident, their #3 runner was arrested last week for leaving the scene of a traffic accident.
LRC Q&A
The US achieved its most successful relay medal haul since the introduction of the mixed 4x400 with four golds and a silver at the 2025 Worlds. We asked Woodson about Team USA's performance in Tokyo. Plus we asked USATF about what really happened with Rai Benjamin, who said he went out on the town the night before the men's 4x400 final.
Paywall lifted
After five coaches, six states, and hundreds of hours of listening to the LetsRun.com Track Talk Podcast, steepler Dan Michalski will make his World Championship debut in Tokyo. He dedicated his runner-up finish at USAs to the grinders who keep going without a big shoe contract. "They know the grind, they know what it’s like to fight through injuries, what it’s like to feel like you have the talent to make a team and keep coming up short," Michalski says. "This is for them, in a sense."
Chicago Marathon
Kiplimo and defending champ John Korir hit full send on this one and went for it. They ran the fist 5k in 13:58 (1:57:52 pace). They hit halfway on world record pace (60:16) and the next few miles were even faster than that pace. By 30k (1:25:31 - 2:00:16 pace), Kiplimo was all alone. Still on WR pace at mile 22, he slowed a lot late however and had to settle for the #2 time in Chicago history. Tokyo 3rd placer Hawi Feysa of Ethiopia (2024 Frankfurt champ) had a big day as she lowered her pb from 2:17:00 to 2:14:56. It was a tough day for the American women. Natosha Rogers was 6th in 2:23:28. *Full race broadcast
IF you are going to play a video game, play this one
XC Racing 2 is now out and free to play on ios and android and in this version you get to race the famed Detweiller Park course in Illinois.
Random Links A Human Found Interesting
- Melissa Jefferson-Wooden goes on CNN after triple gold and says she's not satisified “There are so many things out there that I’ve accomplished this year. But there’s so many more things that I do want to accomplish.”
- Former Yale swimmer, who had her leg bitten off by a shark, is running NYC marathon She quickly joined the Paralympic ranks and won Paralympic silver.
- Former Queen's Park Rangers star Don Shanks, 73, will run the New York marathon on November 2 to raise money for Alzheimers
- NYC is experiencing a 2nd running boom & some are unhappy about it In 2019, it took an average of 121 days for an N.Y.R.R. race to sell out. This year, races have sold out in an average of four days.
- NYRR claims running boom $934 million for the local economy in the fiscal year through March That’s up 58% from the comparable period five years earlier and they say last year’s marathon alone generated $692 million.
Hocker is the second American distance man to win multiple global golds, the third to win a global 5,000 title, and just the fifth from any country to win global titles in the 1500 and 5,000 after Paavo Nurmi, Hicham El Guerrouj, Jakob Ingebrigtsen, and Bernard Lagat.
- Bring out the brooms: Kenya sweeps the women’s distances. Odira STUNS the world 1:54.62 as Keely gets the bronze
- COLE HOCKER 5000M CHAMPION Hocker has a SENSATIONAL last lap. He was way back and ran a 52 to win in 12:58.
- Was Cole Hocker’s 52.62 last lap tonight the fastest ever in a sub-13:00 5000?
- Rai Benjamin said he had a late night out before the 4x400: "I was pretty much done, you know, so I had a pretty late night if you can imagine."
- Grant Fisher is passed his prime
- Cole Hocker will win 2025 Tokyo 5000m
- Sage Hurta Klecker 1:55.89
Cole Hocker won 5000m gold in Tokyo ahead of Isaac Kimeli and Jimmy Gressier. Nico Young and Grant Fisher ended up 6th and 8th. Jakob Ingebrigtsen was 10th. The Kenyan women’s unreal meet continued and Cole Hocker was GOLDEN yet again. We broke it down for you live from right after it ended.
- AW: Lilian Odira's surge takes her to shock world 800m gold Odira came out of nowhere to give Kenya a sweep of the women's distance medals, passing favorite Keely Hodgkinson in the final meters to win in 1:54.62. Hodgkinson's teammate Georgia Hunter Bell also passed her to take silver in a photo finish, 1:54.90 to Hodgkinson's 1:54.91.
Sean Brosnan & Chris Lear & Andrew Greif's book is here
In Beyond Fast, Sean Brosnan, with Chris Lear and Andrew Greif, traces the unlikely rise of Newbury Park High School from an overlooked program to a distance-running powerhouse. Packed with behind-the-scenes stories, training insights, and cultural shifts, the book shows how Brosnan and his athletes rewrote the high school record books.
Sean Brosnan Podcast
From BMX to building the greatest HS team ever, Sean Brosnan tells us how he did it at Newbury Park, plus what really went on at UCLA, and what’s next. Don’t miss this one.
Data doesn't lie
We've run the numbers by comparing Lutkenhaus's run against every other age-16 world record, and the data is clear.
Who?
Jonah Koech wasn't even supposed to be in Sunday's 1500. As they approached the bell, he was in 13th out of 17. A lap later, he was the champion. He is just the third American man to win a Diamond League 1500/mile and the first runner sponsored by Under Armour to win a DL race. His 3:37.27 pre-race pb is also the slowest of any man to win a DL 1500/mile.
How Josh Hoey Rose To The Top Of The World
For five years, Hoey cylced through coach after coach but barely improved from his 1:47.67 high school 800m pb. Learn why he moved around so often -- and why he never gave up. Part I of JG's 7,000+ word feature.
*MB: Josh Hoey profile by JG
- Part II: SC How Josh Hoey Went from Also-Ran to World Indoor Champion, Part II: Going All-In With Justin Rinaldi & The Fast 8 Track Club Hoey's career had stagnated until connecting with Rinaldi in 2023. Within minutes of seeing him train in-person, Rinaldi knew he was special: "I said, if I can’t get this guy to run 1:44, there’s something wrong with me."
Stop Obsessing Over Your Diet
The US indoor 1500m/3000m champion overhauled his fueling in workouts before the 2024 season. Now he swears by his routine.
The Record Books Are Getting Rewritten In 2025
In the span of one week in February, runners broke five world indoor records and every American men's middle-distance record from 800m to 5000m. Jonathan Gault spoke to some of America's top athletes and coaches to find the reasons behind all of the fast times.
One More Look at a Legendary Race
From novice fans to running diehards, there was something for everyone (except perhaps Brits and Norwegians) to enjoy about one of the greatest middle distance races ever run.
Blanks = NCAA XC x 2
Just before Blanks chases a 5,000m pb and collegiate record in what is likely his final NCAA race at Boston University on Saturday, he told LetsRun about the key session of his 2024 XC season -- one he described as "probably the best workout I've had so far in my career."
Your latest American stars share their insights.
American Record Holders
American Record Holders
Keira D'Amato, the new American record holder in the marathon, was joined by Deena Kastor, who held the record for 15 years.
Sisson was the guest on the LetsRun.com Track Talk podcast after she became the first American to go sub 67 in the half marathon on a record-eligible course. Podcast highlights above. Full pod here.
Woody Kincaid joined us after he broke the American record indoors at 5000. He talks above why he left the Bowerman Track Club. Podcast highlights and link to full podcast here.
Coogan's New Balance Boston team had 3 Olympians in 2021 and 2022 could be the biggest year yet for the program with 2 new additions and the TRACK at New Balance coming on March 1st.
Danny Mackey has taken the Brooks Beasts from an unproven club to the Olympic podium in its first decade.
Dathan Ritzenhein is the first of the top pro coaches to sit down and talk about his club heading into the 2022 campaign.
Best of Jon Gault
Best of Jon Gault
Take Your Love of LetsRun to the Next Level
Take Your Love of LetsRun to the Next Level
LetsRun Classics
LetsRun Classics
‒So good we didn't even ask the producer of it to be paid to link to it. :)