Has there ever sub-par runners in HS that later in life ended up in the olympics?

"Talent is not overrated at all...in fact it is underrated. In our weak society today everyone thinks they can do anything they put their mind too. While this may work for parts of life, in athletics it just isn't true."

Yes, I think in the USA in particular our mind set is that you can do anything no matter where you are born etc.. The ol' American story of being born poor, work hard, and make it to the top- no social hierarchy or caste, no royals, etc..

But in reality your DNA is a huge determining factor in your POTENTIAL to train yourself into a great athlete or your IQ that will allow you to develop a great product, etc..

Here are some other namesMichael Phelps. As far as I know he never broke 10 in HS.Ryan Locke. AFAIK never broke 20 mins in the 5k.

Hey Bud wrote:

Hunter Kemper. 10 minute 2 miler in high school. 4 time Olympian

Ran 3:58 despite not running XC because he wanted to play football.Notice how all these guys that didn't take the sport seriously in HS were still running sub 4:30 miles. Also not how within 2 years of serious training how it was pretty clear how talented they were.There is always something. Take Pat Porter. 4:29 doesn't sound great. 4:29 at 7k ft on the other hand is a lot more impressive. Through in minimal training and you have all the ingrediants of someone who will get a lot better in college compared to a sea level guy who has been running 70 mpw for 3 years.

Fat Boy wrote:

McMullen

Not to nit pick as I agree with your point, but I'm fairly sure Porter's HS PR's were probably run in the Denver area (5000 ft.) not the elevation of Pat's hometown, Evergreen.

really? whats the limit then? as long as you challenge youre body it HAS to improve

Julie Culley was 10th at her state meet in XC at a h.s. senior.

Good, but nowhere near great.

Heck, she went to Rutgers for distance running.

Shows how much interest she had from big time colleges.

Smismard wrote:

Dude, fewer people become Olympians for the USA in track and field than make the NBA, MLB or NFL. It's a very elite and difficult thing to do. If you're running just to be an Olympian, odds are that you will be disappointed. Hopefully you are running for other reasons as well, such as you enjoy running and training, being fit and feeling good, striving for new personal bests and pushing back your limits, and enjoying the great people who run with you. If you set enough personal bests, maybe you'll be an Olympian someday. But just enjoy the process and see where you go.

This is the best answer so far. To make an Olympic team is just crazy. To hope to make one while being a sub par runner early on is even tougher to do.

Go ahead and dream. Dream big even, but refer back to the post Smismard made and take it to heart, for he speaks the truth.

Aquafina wrote:

"Talent is not overrated at all...in fact it is underrated. In our weak society today everyone thinks they can do anything they put their mind too. While this may work for parts of life, in athletics it just isn't true."

Yes, I think in the USA in particular our mind set is that you can do anything no matter where you are born etc.. The ol' American story of being born poor, work hard, and make it to the top- no social hierarchy or caste, no royals, etc..

But in reality your DNA is a huge determining factor in your POTENTIAL to train yourself into a great athlete or your IQ that will allow you to develop a great product, etc..

blah blah blah.

some people sit on their couch and whinge about talent and some people get out there and make their own.

metrododger wrote:

blah blah blah.

some people sit on their couch and whinge about talent and some people get out there and make their own.

So the only reason you didnt go to the Olympics is that you didnt find that magical training schedule.

lol idiot.

Hey guys this is OP. I quoted this one because it really stood out to me the most.

Everyone else is basically saying the same thing and i honestly think 4:30mile is not sub-par or even 9:30 2mile. But idk how far i can get, even getting INTO the olympic trials would be a huge goal to accomplish and i think that is a more reasonable goal.

Been waking up for the past month for XC practice at 5am every morning to workout(and sprint work on other days) 8-10am mon-fri and run as well at 8pm about 5-7 miles, with having fri/sun as a rest day due to doubling. Trusting my coaches i hope to break 17mins this season.

Thanks for all the posts on here though, even if some were not motivational,is reality, and reality is sometimes harsh, but i'll try to prove you guys wrong one day :D

If anyone decides to even read this, know of any good diets out there to follow? I do not eat junk food unless i have to (pizza is a cheap and can feed a whole family so i can't just not eat it and starve the whole day) I do not drink soda. The most fruit i eat is banana's every now and then, healthy food is pretty expensive honestly, but i try my hardest to have my parents create healthy food.

Priscilla Welch was 6th in the Oly marathon in 1984 at age 39, and she won the New York marathon at age 42.

She started running when she was 35. She didn't run in high school at all. I think she smoked cigarettes too.

Uh... Symmonds was a 1:53 guy who just never put himself out there. Wheating started Track and XC his Senior year and never got much training in, yet still ran 3:57 for 1500 in HS. He was so talented that he was spotted and even Vin said his talent is recognizable in just the way that he runs.

I ran much faster HS times than you did, and probably ever will, and even though I did not try my absolute hardest back then (49.X 4x400, 1:53 800, 4:16 1600) I knew I didn't have it. Don't make excuses for yourself. Be real. Don't try to convince yourself of things that will probably never materialize, you will only let yourself down. There are HS girls who can run all 3 of those times, and much faster. Feel free to give it your all in HS, and maybe college if you make it that far, but it's easy to see who's going to be an Olympian. People like Ritz, Hall, Webb (class of 2001) were so impressive: their HS times and accomplishments spoke for themselves and it was obvious they could do it. Your times do not. So unless you undergo massive amounts of puberty soon, don't bother. It's probably not gonna happen. Take into consideration that to be an Olympian, you have to be the top 3 in the entire country. Can you see yourself running 1:44, sub 3:34, sub 13, or sub 27? Solinsky, a 12:55, 26:59 guy, is not even an Olympian. Take that into consideration. He was exceptionally talented in HS AND college, with numerous accolades and titles, yet has never made an Olympic team and probably never will at this point because of his age. Your times speak for themselves. I'm not trying to be a douche, though I'm coming off as one. I'm just being real.

Ignorant Buffoon wrote:

I'm not trying to be a douche, though I'm coming off as one. I'm just being real.

I know you mean well.

Just don't eat s**t food and you'll be fine. As a teenager, I was fortunate enough to have healthy dinners and a decent breakfast, but usually for lunch I would go off campus and eat tacos/pizza 2 hours before running. Just eat lots of fruits and vegetables and carbs and red meat once a week and fish once a week at least. If you can't eat those at least try to go a decent source of protein whether it be from bars or shakes or whatever. You want your muscles to rebuild after being torn down from hard workouts. What grade are you in/how old are you? If you're a freshman and end up running sub 16, that's very impressive, but if you're a senior or junior, it's only above average.

for what its worth - i think a few things havn't been mentioned:

1. injuries

2. attrition - people lose interest and fade into the real world. I would include that they become tired of the pressure to 'produce'

included in that I think you need a pretty good helping of good fortune/luck