Gary Martin: Progressing Nicely!

2020420 wrote:

McRunnin wrote:

Was Strand widely known for having a devastating kick as a junior? Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think we was.

I just looked up some of Strand and Martin's championship race splits and watched some of their videos. Here are some observations:

• 2024 Strand got badly outkicked at both the indoor and outdoor NCAA championships. Indoors, he closed a 4:01-4:02 race in 27.51 while each of the top 3 guys closed in under 27. Outdoors, he closed a 3:39-3:40 race in 53.71 while the top 3 guys all closed in under 53.
• This year, Martin outkicked Strand on the final lap of the DMR at NCAA indoors. To be fair, Strand got the baton nearly a second behind Martin. But Strand took the lead, and Martin passed him for the win, registering a 3:48.12 leg compared to Strand's 3:49.23.

We know there's a direct relationship between a runner's fitness level and his ability to access his kick in a race. The stronger an athlete is, the faster he can close, particularly in the fast championship races we're seeing these days. IIRC, Jakob has talked about that.

One of the things that stands out to me is the difference one year made in Strand's close at the U.S. championships. Here are his splits for both years:

• 2024: 56.98-58.82-56.45-46.85
• 2025: 57.00-58.53-55.65-39.09

Watching the video of last year's race, Strand look fried on the final lap and faded after coming through 1200 in 2:52. He had the worst final 300 of anyone in the field. This year, he came through 1200 in 2:51 in a similar type of race and was able to have the best final 300 of anyone in the field. I think the clear difference was he's a lot stronger this year.

Martin held up much better to the hot pace this year than Strand did last year. Martin came through 1200 in 2:51 and closed in 41-flat. If he's able to get stronger at age 22 like Strand did, he'll be able to close faster too.

I’m correcting you because you’re wrong. Stand is literally infamous for having a devastating kick. He had a clearly terrible race at USAs last year which you shouldn’t really use as a data point to ascertain his kick.

In Alabama he was known as the guy who never really time trialled but always doubled and tripled at meets and closed in 27’s to win everything. One example is a 9:00 indoor 3200 he ran as a junior closing in 26 putting 4 seconds on Graham blanks

As a college sophomore he ran a 7:46 3k again closing in 26 putting 5 seconds on Wolfe. He also ran his sophomore 3:55.08 mile… with a 39.7 last 300. He had his national breakthrough last year as a junior closing a furiously tactical indoor mile at NCAA’s to way over perform and finish 4th. He closed his 3:48.32 this summer with a 1:52 final 800 and 26 second final 200.

His kick is literally his reputation dude

McRunnin wrote:

Thanks for the helpful background info. I don't follow the high school level closely, so that stuff is good to know. But, to clarify, I was really talking about the national collegiate level when I asked if Strand was known for having a devastating kick as a junior. A couple of your examples were from his senior year (such as the 7:30 3k you mentioned in your follow-up post), so they don't apply to my question.

I think your best examples are from his sophomore year in 2023: the 53.3 close to win ACC outdoors in 3:38.13 and the 26.6 close to win the ACC indoor 3k in 7:46. Those were undeniably awesome (note: I don't see a 3:55 mile from his sophomore year on his World Athletics profile nor on his UNC profile; do you have a link for that one?). One example I'll add is Strand closing his 2024 ACC outdoor 3:40 win in 53.03 over Martin, who closed in 53.90.

But where was Strand's vaunted kick at the 2024 indoor and outdoor NCAA championships?

Other collegiate runners have demonstrated better finishes than Strand in national championship competition before he leveled up for his senior year.

• Green closed the 2023 outdoor championship in 51.88 to win in 3:42. Waskom and Spencer closed in 52.16 and 52.23 respectively.
• Houser closed his 2024 4:01 indoor championship win in 26.82, with Spencer closing in 2nd in 26.84. Strand's close was 27.51.
• Waskom, Cook, and Spencer closed the 2024 outdoor championship in 52.65, 52.50, and 52.98 respectively to all finish in 3:39. Strand's close was 53.71.

Before his senior year, Strand was closing 3:38-3:40 races in 53. That's very impressive, but it's not as good as the top guys who closed their races in 52. Getting stronger as a senior is what enabled Strand to close faster.