Efraimson Go Pro

This is a decision that seems to work out reasonably well for women. Examples: Mary Cain, Ajee Wilson, Allison Felix, etc.... For women, I think there is something to be said for avoiding the "drama" of college women's teams and the sometimes negative and toxic environment that goes with it (eating disorders, partying, etc...) If she has a good support system, she will likely be able to remain more focused and continue to thrive. Only time will tell, but I hope it works out well for her.

Camas is only 30 minutes from Portland. Beaverton is just another 15 minutes. So why why on earth would she not sign with Nike? With Nike she will have access to EVERYTHING an athlete could hope for...and still be near her family and friends. It would have been weird if she would have opted for any other team but Nike.

There is a piece of this discussion that missing--academics. Ms. Efraimson is clearly a very good student. By turning pro she is able to separate the otherwise complicated mix of athletics and academics in her choice of schools. As a pro, she is free to attend the best school she can get into without worrying about whether or not the athletic program is as good as the academic program. (The two do not always go together). I don't think going pro is always the right choice for prodigiously talented runners--it was a mistake for Alan Webb probably. But this is a different situation. A good comparison might be the great cello player, Yo-Yo Ma. Everyone was wondering which music conservatory he would go to. He surprised everyone by matriculating as a regular college student at Yale and taking "side" gigs as a professional working musician. I think we need to respect individual choices in these situations, especially for the most rare talents. I wish Ms. Efraimson the best. She seems like a great young lady.

CORRECTION: Meant to say that Yo-Yo Ma went to Harvard not Yale ...

Money talks. Bull$hit walks.

/thread

Simplistic to say this is only about money. There isn't enough dough involved in this situation for that to set aside the issues of mentorship and education. If you were talking about a football player from Dinwiddie, West Virginia who otherwise would only go to a technical high school or a community college than probably, yes, money would the primary motivator. But this doesn't seem like a family with limited means. They seem to have been able to hire a private coach for the last few years.

I've heard that Nike was looking into starting a 3rd Nike HQ based running group (smaller than the other ones) because Salazar has no additional bandwidth to take on another runner; Schumacher's group wasn't even in the picture (for whatever reason).

I guarantee this was less about money and more about the fact that she's easily better than all her competition this year and is already better than all the competition she'd face at the collegiate level (except maybe Elise Cranny). This is a great move on her part. Her marketability is very high right now (similar to Cain's last summer), she's proven herself on an international stage against junior competition and she's focusing on the big picture. She can choose whatever college she wants to attend now for academics only, while staying with a coach who obviously understands how to get the most out of her.

Her coach, Mike Hickey, has said time and again that he talks training with Salazar and you can bet he taps into other resources, too. Having the Nike facilities so close is an obvious draw and benefit and being able to stay in Camas during her final year of high school and her first year as a pro will make the transition that much easier. Cain had it rough last year, spending a very large portion of the year in Portland, while still trying to maintain ties back in NY (getting her high school diploma, prom, etc.) and you could argue it slowed her progress. Efraimson won't have the same issues, at least not on the same scale.

Congrats to Efraimson and her coach on creating a great situation for her to thrive this year and in the future.

What makes you think money for college wasn't a part of the package? I'm sure it was for Cain and I'm sure it is for Alexa as well.

While I agree, I hope it works out well for her both in running and life, I just think she's rushing it. She could always run for a college for one or two years, and if it didn't work for her, then go pro. If in fact she isn't desperate for money (and maybe she is, I don't know) what would be the harm of waiting for a few years?

By the way, in response to the poster "Another perspective" its absurd to say the atmosphere on college women's teams is "toxic." In fact, young women in college are far more likely to have a decent support system than a pro would. Without strong support, I could see that as a young woman traveling constantly and running week to week in a succession of minor league meets in Europe being far more conducive to mental depression and physical breakdown than any college running experience.

If Efraimson makes it, wins world championship glory, is in the Olympics, etc. then she'll have made the right decision. If not, I hope she is able to run well for a few years and then get a decent education and have a successful career in another field.

But by giving up college running, she is giving up some great life and competitive experiences, which she could build on later as a pro. Why do so many Europeans/Africans come over to U.S. universities to run? Not to experience a "toxic" atmosphere! If the money involved was huge, yes, no debate, it would always be the right decision to turn pro. But we all know we're not talking millions here, and from what I've read about the life of all but the most successful pros, it is really hard to make it work. If I were her parents, I would have told her to be patient, and appreciate the camaraderie and lessons she could learn from running in less pressured competitions, and wait until she was more emotionally and physically mature.

That said, I hope I am proven wrong by her dramatic and early successes!

This seems like a smart decision. She remains with her coach and has the Nike resources (and other Nike athletes to potentially train with from time to time) available just 45 minutes away. Being only 17, she will be eligible for another shot at the World Junior Championships again in two years.

I feel like this was a bit premature. If she had a decent showing at US Nationals then maybe it would have made sense. I'm sure she is probably getting a decent salary to go pro, but with another year of training and improving I bet she could make more of a splash and could have gotten a better contract, but who knows maybe she did get a great contract. Then again since Mary Cain barely raced this year Alexa was probably talked about more (at least during outdoors) so it might be a better decision going pro now, assuming Cain has a full season next year Alexa will likely be heavily in Cain's shadow.

Why gamble on a new coach and a new situation when what you have works, AND the price is right. Think how much money someone like German Fernandez left of the table. There is so little money in track, you must strike while iron is hot. Plenty of time for college later.

Footlocker for sure. I'm not certain about NXN. At Footlocker everyone runs as an unattached individual, so any high school runner of eligible grade is invited. No clue about NXN.

AT wrote:

Footlocker for sure. I'm not certain about NXN. At Footlocker everyone runs as an unattached individual, so any high school runner of eligible grade is invited. No clue about NXN.

Can't run at Foot Locker because her new employer won't want her running in another company's jersey unless it's a national team kit.

I hope she picks ANYONE but her current coach. Even Salazar would be better.

seriousrunner wrote:

I hope she picks ANYONE but her current coach. Even Salazar would be better.

What's wrong with her current coach?

How much better would her package be if she were coming into it with one or more national titles she could have earned while in college? Is her star so hot right now that it wouldn't have been hotter with a longer resume of proven success?

Only problem in this is next two years are World Championships/Olympic years. Efraimson is clearly very ambitious, possibly even more so than Cain. Running three seasons in a typical college season would probably negatively impact her making a national team.