astro wrote:
I think Tuohy looked great in the leadup to the race. I think she is fitter than last year at this time. But what was very easy to lose sight of was the pressure. She has been so dominate and so historic that if she lost this race would have become a blemish on her accomplishments, insane as that is to consider. That is how high she set the bar for herself. On top of that is going for a third championship, which has never been done before. That is heady stuff for a 17 year old high school athlete to handle. That much stress can do a number on you, and the body might react strangely. Then you add the conditions and a tough field that was going to go for broke. All the sudden that extra gear suddenly disappears. In retrospect it was perfect conditions for an upset. But dug deep and won anyway.
Well, that's what *she* said it was, and it makes sense to me.
I agree with you that she's probably in the same or slightly better shape than last year, but just didn't have it today (and still showed tremendous heart to pull it out anyway).
I'll be curious to see what she does in the early winter meets. If she runs some poor times, everyone'll say "see, she peaked last year."
If she runs a PR or two, it'll look like this race was just an off-day. (And it's a pretty damn good off-day when you win a national championship anyway.)