Emma Coburn to miss Olympic Trials after breaking ankle in Suzhou

I mean the video is in her Instagram. Looked like a good/normal foot placement and landing. Her bone just snapped and took ligaments with it. No conspiracy, probably just has bone density issues.

To be honest, I dont think Emma's heart has been into it since Tokyo and maybe even then it was already gone. The whole build up to finally getting there and "sucking" (her own term). Olympic medals are about both the journey and result. Emma experienced the journey for Tokyo but will never get a better result than Rio 2016. She knows this now and so do we all. As real as this injury may be I think it paves the way to make a clean exit. Suzy had falls too.

Valby is an injury-prone runner who has no business running the steeplechase. She has a decent shot at making the team in the 10000.

Emma won a bronze medal at the Olympics in 2016, gold at the world championships in London in 2017, and silver at the world championships in 2019. She won ten national titles in the steeple. Absent this injury, she had a excellent shot at making another US Olympic team (her fourth).

Even if she never runs competitively again, she has had a long and storied career. Indeed, she was the most accomplished US female distance runner (1500 meters and up) of the last 15 years.

What's particularly remarkable is that she achieved all this despite having rather modest PRs in flat races (4:03.8 in the 1500 and 15:24 in the 5000). It is a testament to her excellent hurdling form as well as her ability to compete well in high-pressure situations.

sad ofc, but the silver lining being we have Tokyo WC's next year, so she can have one last swing at a major champs before maybe retiring

The real question will be if she's able to get back to her 2021 (and earlier) shape of sub9:10's to be in the mix, which she hasnt been able to these past 2 years

Curious as to why she's back training in the gym and on the bike - wouldn't it be better if she took a break and processed the loss. Also wondering if she had any bone density issues?

Presumably, her doctors said training would be beneficial to the rehab process, and she has not made a decision that she is done with racing. Bone density issues are unlikely considering her long and consistent pro career, but you never know without confirmation from the athlete herself.

Great post but Jenny Simpson is the distance GOAT of the last 15 years.

US Women Multiple Medalists 800m and up

Jennifer Simpson (4) - WC gold, 2x WC silver, Olympic bronze
Emma Coburn (3) - WC gold, WC silver, Olympic bronze
Athing Mu (3) - Olympic gold, WC gold, WC bronze
Mary Decker Slaney (2) - 2x WC gold
Regina Jacobs (2) - 2x WC silver
Courtney Frerichs (2) - Olympic silver, WC silver
Kim Gallagher (2) - Olympic silver, Olympic bronze
Raevyn Rogers (2) - WC silver, Olympic bronze
Ajee Wilson - 2x WC bronze
Alysia Montano - 2x WC bronze

did you really list Regina Jacobs as an all time great? Clown show.

espn.com

Champion runner Jacobs retires under steroid cloud

Regina Jacobs, whose long and remarkably successful middle-distance running career ended in disgrace when she flunked a steroid test, formally announced her retirement Thursday.

Open link

Dooger,

You are correct. I am very close friends with Yavi and if anyone wants to have a chance in Paris, they'd better bring with them an 8:50 because that's the pace she will run.

It’s time to let go. She was had an amazing career. Nobody could have expected what she was able to accomplish. The diminishing returns of the past handful of seasons and how they have seemed more desperate in their attempt to keep her competitive are just too draining. Tough to walk away when your husband is the center piece of a team but the relief of retiring will be amazing for her psyche.

Jumping over stuff always has risks, but I watch the steeple with great anxiety. Having people jump over something and land on a 45 degree ramp with water on it is a terrible idea. EC will have a few years left on that ankle, should be fine. Later in life a little more arthritis, but she will be good to go for now.

Fixed the list for you. Nothing trumps an Olympic Gold. I don't care how many baby medals you have.

This is horrible news. I had a similar fracture due to a fall over Memorial day weekend last year. I didn't need surgery, but it took three months before I could run on it. And even since then, it hasn't felt the same despite going above and beyond the recommended PT. Drs. say it is 100% healed and as good as new. But that is such a sensitive part of the biomechanics of your legs that you can really feel the difference between the bone pre- and post-injury. She will have a very long road to recovery.

The steeple is a brutal event. A lot of people don’t appreciate how unique her prolonged dominance in such a physically taxing event has been. She had an amazing career. I don’t know that another American will ever accomplish as much as her in this event.

The end of a legacy. She’ll be Hall of Fame someday. Great career.

45 degree ramp? How do you figure that?

As long as she enjoys it, I don't see why she should be forced to walk away. How many times had people said this about Bekele for instance, and look at his last 6 months now.

That being said, there is room to quibble with flying all the way out to China for your first race in 8 months coming back from a serious injury. On the margins, who knows if the huge amount of travel and disruption to the routine can make an injury like this more probable. I wonder if they'll be a little more conservative going forward.

EDIT: I was going to say counterpoint to my logic, Gesa Krause who had a great comeback race. But she also ran a full, low-key indoor season.