Grant Fisher dodges Nico Young

I am interested to see how this year goes for Hiltz.

Nico had the strength and has now developed the speed still under Mike Smith. Could potentially be in it at worlds with 200 to go now(last year I think he was dropped at 600 and they put 12 seconds on him)

Hiltz has always been a pure 8/15 runner with an amazing kick. The reason they looked so good in the first 2 slams is because the races were over 4 minutes. Last year was the first year that their strength looked great compared to Americans but lacked against the best(Olympics, they got second world indoors but the field was weaker). You’d think maybe with another year of Smith, the strength would improve, but now a coaching change? Is Benson more strength or speed?

Also Nikki turns 31 this year so the room to improve will also be significantly smaller than Nico if he had changed coaches

If anything he was more impressive in the NCAA than in high school. He was the first NCAA runner to break 13/27, that’s pretty historic.

Love to see Fisher flopped after destroying Agnes' income stream.

Grant will be peaking in Auguest. Nico will be cooked by August.

Maybe Smith purposely went to Nike to avoid the drama

Are you a long jumper?

Ethan Strand closed the NCAA indoor 3k in 25.39 which is faster than Nico's last 200 today. Strand's 3k was 7:52, so a lot faster than Nico's 8:01.

Nico closed SLOWER in a SLOWER 3k than Strand.

You are all overreacting. Nico barely outkicked Gilman, who is Grant's much slower training partner.

A lot of must be smokin some righteous skunk weed. Fisher is heads above Nico. Fisher doesn’t need to risk any injury in June for this meet. When the assaults on the 5000 WR happen this Fall, Fisher will be right there in those races. Nico will not.

I think Nico beats Fisher at USA’s this summer, that’s if Fisher races. I bet he DNS

The recency bias in many of the posts on this thread is next-level. Fisher closed with a 51 last lap in the Kingston 5k, also with a 25 last 200m. There is no evidence to suggest that Grant couldn’t have kicked with Nico. That said, Nico is clearly in great form and he’s an huge talent, so it would have been fun to watch them battle it out. I do think Nico could be a medal threat in the future if he stays healthy and trains consistently. But Fisher has proven that he’s the U.S.’s best bet for medals, and if he’s injured and/or has to back off of his training block during this crucial part of the season, that is a big problem.

I’m honestly surprised more people don’t seem worried about him pulling out. There is a tendency to downplay injuries at this point in the year. Plus, when distance runners feel something during warmups, they usually have been dealing with it in practice. I truly hope it is a minor issue and Fisher is just playing it safe. By the end of the season, no one will care how Fisher did in a 3k at the beginning of June.

That's an odd prediction to make about someone who just ran his outdoor track season opener today, June 1st.

Strand is a miler. Probably the best the ncaa has ever seen.

Currently, Young vs Strand in a 2k (5 lapper) should be dead even.

I am one of the biggest Strand glazers on the boards but he hasn’t quite reached 2021 Hocker level, we’ll see if he places well at the Olympics

Nico didn't barely outkick Gilman. It was pretty convincing. Also Sam was 4th at World Indoors in the 3k. It's not like he's some spare.

And yes, the winning time in Strand's race was faster, but the last k was much faster today (2:20.67 for Young v 2:24.35 for Strand). Strand went 59.83-54.06 for his last two laps. Young was 57.59-53.74. To show that sort of gear shift and close in 25.6 when you're already running fast is special. Especially when that's exactly what he will need to do if he is to beat Fisher at USAs.

That said, I kind of agree with your larger point. Young was fantastic today. I think it's going to be him and Fisher and then a gap to everyone else at USAs in the 5k (if that is what Young runs). But Fisher and Strand are really, really good as well. The 3k is Strand's best distance and Fisher is the world indoor record holder who outkicked the Olympic 1500 champ in a 3k a few months ago. I'm not certain who wins if you put all three of them in a 3k right now, though I think I'd have Fisher/Young ahead of Strand.

It’s early for Niko. Stop getting your panties in a knot over Strand.

Young ran the last 3 laps in 2:51.95 and still ran 12.52 for his last 100 today. How fast are you imagining Fisher can front-run the last 3 laps?

I’m not gonna say Young could beat Fisher in a low 12:40s DL race or that he should be favored vs. Fisher in a WC 5k final at this point, but today, I think it would have been extremely hard for Fisher to beat Young in that 3k. He would have had to have nailed the tactics and closed as well as he ever has—very little room for error or an average day.

Remember, for what it’s worth, Coscoran beat Fisher in a 3k last month, and Young beat Coscoran by over a second today.

I am starting to believe that Nico is a dark horse medal threat at Worlds this year. He's developing a nasty kick like Rupp in his prime.

I think his 1:47 800m last year already indicated that. The question is whether he can get into 12:40ish shape to unlock that speed, and things are looking promising right now.

Strand ran 7:30 in the 3k a week after ending his cross country season - meaning only off of 10k training. Strand closed his 3:48 mile with a 2:21 while celebrating the last 5 meters.

Strand could have easily finished that NCAA 3k with a 24 if he needed to. Strand on that day > Nico @ Grand Slam.