She still has shown a couple of flashes of getting back to her top level as a pro, but she’ll drop one race showing she could be on track then has a bad USAS or pulls out of a start list. She ran 4:25 and 15:04 last year then was last or close to it at USAS. Puzzling
As a fan of the sport who watched Tuohy grow up here's my unsolicited take. She trained hard young/ lifted more than most HS runners (seeing her in person she was so ripped and also tiny!) and was a very strong very well coached driven athlete. As a mom of a daughter who also ran I know there's a line between the casual yet competitive HS girl and the one who does everything from strength training/fueling/recovery/sleep/PT/massage/cupping/needling and on and on. I remember seeing videos of girls using compression boots in HS. (averagel athletes don't have access to those) Those athletes are going to rise to the top and dominate (see Hendegren). Then possibly stagnate as they age because as a collegiate or Pro now more and more are doing the same thing as you and now they've caught you. Diljeet commented how well Hendengren has adapted to training thus big jumps in fitness. Maybe Tuohy's body hasn't adapted or absorbed the pro training because she has been training as a pro for so many years.?
Once you start training hard on a year-round basis, it is likely that you will reach all your lifetime PRs within a 10 year period. And then maintain or decline after that. For a lot of us that is age 14 to 24.
I don’t think it’s lack of effort. She’s clearly trying hard. That is as fast as her short little legs will allow her to go. She has to take two strides for every one of Jane’s. Imagine how hard that must be.
Michael Jordan, Lebron James, Tom Brady, CR7, and Messi are generational talents. There is very little to no debate they are the best in their generation. Not for a year or two but their entire career. We are fortunate to see those last 2 together because it is rare to have that.
She's only 5'3" to Jane Hedengren 6'1". She can't compete with the doping Kenyans. I think her short height hurt her. She did great in Jr high, HS, College with individual and 3 team titles.
Beatrice Cheney is 5'0" and we'll likely see her striding away from Jane in 2027
Can we talk about this like adults? She was suppossed to be a generational talent. Granted, she seemed to be on track to be through high school. Then she did some good stuff in college. But then she just stopped improving. A high school girl ran faster than her lifetime best. She is now an average pro in the US which is a country not overly competitive on the world stage. Did she train too hard too early? Did she dope? Did she gain weight? Did she just develop early? This type of topic comes up regarding females but it always turns into emotional attacks.
This is probably controversial to say but, my unprofessional take?
The thing that catapulted her to success in college is the very thing that’s holding her back as a pro. Her “Wolfpack” team. She’s chosen to stay near her college, training with them, without anyone pushing her. She’s likely one of (if not the) fastest in her group, at sea level.
What she needs is extended altitude training, a new, strong team of fast women, and to look ahead in her career, not behind.
She is living and training like a college student, not like someone who will qualify for the Olympics.
This is what I think is happening. It's unfair to make assumptions about Katelyn's upside potential, but bumming around Raleigh just doesn't seem like it's bringing the best out of her. In order to run well you have to get out of your comfort zone.
Generational talents: Mary Decker, Mary Cain, Jane Hedengren.
Slightly below "generational talent": Debbie Heald, Melody Fairchild, one more from 70's that I can't remember the name of
I am getting sick of the word "generational".
Katelyn WAS a generational talent. She broke every national high school record and she won nationals three times.
Also this thread really downplayed Katelyn's college accomplishments. She won like 4 NCAA titles!
It's crazy to see narrative rewritten like this. IDK what's going to happen with Jane (and I'm not rooting for this) but in a couple of years if she doesn't pan out, the message boards are going to be singing such a different tune.
Generational talents: Mary Decker, Mary Cain, Jane Hedengren.
Slightly below "generational talent": Debbie Heald, Melody Fairchild, one more from 70's that I can't remember the name of
I am getting sick of the word "generational".
Katelyn WAS a generational talent. She broke every national high school record and she won nationals three times.
Also this thread really downplayed Katelyn's college accomplishments. She won like 4 NCAA titles!
It's crazy to see narrative rewritten like this. IDK what's going to happen with Jane (and I'm not rooting for this) but in a couple of years if she doesn't pan out, the message boards are going to be singing such a different tune.
I agree the term "generational telent" is overused. But disagree that Tuohy ever fit that profile. Just dominating distance at the US HS level does not make an athlete a generational talent. They need to be among the best in the world.
Decker, Budd and even Cain won national titles and world Jr titles, set WRs and made WC or Olympic finals while teenagers. Their records lasted for decades or are even still standing. Tuohy was never close to that level.
Tirunesh, Kipyegon, Gidey and Chebet all won world jr titles in XC and on the track. As great as Ritz was in HS he was crushed by Bekele in world jr XC, who then finished 2nd in the Sr race the next day. That's what a generational talent looks like.
Tuohy was a great HC and NCAA runner and that should not be diminshed but I don't think she was really as purely talented as so many made her out to be. She was obviously highly motivated and focused at a young age and that took her a long way. Now she has seemed to hit a wall as far as improvement. Maybe the issue is training or injuries, or maybe she simply doesn't have the level of talent required to move to the next level.
We're splitting hairs. Was she one of the most talented high schoolers ever? I can see how people are saying no.
But whatever you want to call her, she was one of the most accomplished high school runners ever. Many of them, especially on the women's side, have no success in college.
Tuohy defied those odds. And overall, it was pretty good in college. But once again, a lot of college runners are not that good as pros.
There's no guarantee she'd be a superstar if healthy, but I can't believe people are asking "What happened to Tuohy?" What happened is she's been injured as a pro.
This post was edited 12 hours after it was posted.
I'd say Touhy was better than 'pretty good' in college, but otherwise I agree with you.
Her 1-2 yr college run was very similar to Jenny Simpson with wins and records.
What hurts her claims though is Valby came along the next year and did almost the same and then added the Olympics. Meanwhile even Grace Hartman and Napoleon at her own school are duplicating or beating her times.
Still 5 nxn races w/ 3 titles, and 4 ncaa xc all american w/ 1 title and 3 team wins is hard to beat for durability and consistency.
The issue with 'generational' is that a generation is 15-20 years, ie was she the best runner of her generation? Well no.
Cain, Efraimson, Hedengren, Engelhardt, Hutchins, Cook and Leachman at high school level are faster, Valby, Hartman, Napoleon and perhaps shortly Hedengren are faster at college level. Cranny, Houlihan and Purrier as pros.
My guess when the dust settles Cain and Hedengren will be the 'generational' talents, also Cranny and Simpson very good at 3 levels of hs, college and pro.
Still it will be Hasay and Tuohy that had the biggest impact on the general public, and these two both had longevity that others will not be able to match. (Hasay 4 Foot Lockers, 2 wins, 4 yr Oregon career, and brief but effective pro marathon success)