Releasing a Q&A with her agent is making me roll my eyes so hard. This is a carefully-worded press release with some additional formatting, it speaks volumes that they don't want her talking to a real journalist who would ask follow-up questions.
Every time O'Keeffe tries to explain her actions it only raises more questions. She needs a new team around her who can get her healthy for the future— the only way to move past this is to run well in the future so this doesn't become her legacy.
I don't think this was a last minute injury, as much as she avoids giving a direct answer. I believe she missed a race in NYC this summer because of injuries. And her vague description of Mammoth makes it sound like she clearly was dealing with something. This sounds like it had been going on for awhile. I know Kara and Des are still defending her, but it just comes across as super selfish. Maybe new rules need to be considered
I think her answer is direct enough. Yes, it sounds like she has had other injuries she was dealing with this summer (she mentions her ongoing tight calf), but says as of August 2nd she was feeling good enough to have a good workout where she felt strong with no issues. The particular injury that caused her to drop out is the hip injury that she first felt after August 2nd. Of course, it's possible she's not being honest about this injury, but I don't see any reason to assume the worst of her. I think this was just a case of a runner being overly optimistic about how quickly a new injury would resolve, but I don't see any reason to assume at the time she made the decision she knew for sure she wouldn't be able to race.
Why are you assuming she's telling the truth about having had a good workout on August 2?
That jumped out at me, too, and I completely agree. It wasn't too late to make a decision -- she just delayed making a decision until it was too late to do so. Meanwhile, she was gimping her runs, somehow duping herself into thinking that an injury that clearly was painful enough to merit an MRI would just ... miraculously go away overnight? Be cured with physiotherapy? Nonsense. Even if she felt ok running a few easy miles, that doesn't mean she was up to the stress of racing an Olympic marathon. She could have faced facts and made a decision earlier. That she didn't do so was the choice she and her coach/agent made.
So apparently at the Oympics, the gymnastics alternate does not get a medal, though they do at the World Championships. But I would assume the bench players on the basketball team get one, even if they don't play, because they practice and scrimmage together, and so can be considered as contributing to the team effort, etc.
But it seems dumb to pay runners a bonus for making the Olympic Team and then pay them a bonus again for being present at the start line with shoes and a kit on, like they didn't get a free flight, accommodations, and gear as a part of the deal...?
I think we have to re-look at the definition of what it means to be "an Olympian" and strongly disincentivize putting on a kit when you aren't prepared to compete at a high level. I think things will sort themselves out if you negate the financial issue or the "I'm an OLYMPIAN" nonsense.
Wrong. The entire gymnastic team has multiple photos of all 5 of them with their gold medals and that includes the 5th one who was the alternate
Alternate gymnasts do not get a medal. there were 3 alternates that you never saw. But all 5 on the team got a medal. All 5 were in the preliminary round that got them to the finals. It's like the relay teams. Those who ran in the prelimns also got medals even if they didn't run in the finals.
Is there any surprise she's acted like this? The whole worldview that she publicly embraces (she's a pronoun-listing woke liberal, and from some of her posts, possibly an actual pagan) is centered on self-affirmation and self-indulgence. The idea of duty to others and to country is foreign to it.
I think her answer is direct enough. Yes, it sounds like she has had other injuries she was dealing with this summer (she mentions her ongoing tight calf), but says as of August 2nd she was feeling good enough to have a good workout where she felt strong with no issues. The particular injury that caused her to drop out is the hip injury that she first felt after August 2nd. Of course, it's possible she's not being honest about this injury, but I don't see any reason to assume the worst of her. I think this was just a case of a runner being overly optimistic about how quickly a new injury would resolve, but I don't see any reason to assume at the time she made the decision she knew for sure she wouldn't be able to race.
Why are you assuming she's telling the truth about having had a good workout on August 2?
It is of course possible that she is lying about that workout. It's possible everything she said in this Q&A is a lie. But, I don't see a good reason to assume she is lying. I don't know anything about O'Keefe outside of watching her limp at the start of the Olympics (which was tough to watch) and have no idea whether she has a history of being dishonest. But what she says in the Q&A sounds perfectly possible to me - I (and friends I run with) have certainly had weird injuries that appear at bad times where it was hard to predict how they would feel the next day.
I will say - maybe this incident should cause USATF to think about whether it should be making this decision, rather than leaving it up to the athlete. I think the athlete is always going to want to race if it's possible, and may not be in the best position to make the smart decision. But, I don't know if I like the idea of USATF having more power to make decisions like this, I could see USATF making some bad decisions too.
I do think that situations like this one could eventually lead to the elimination of the trials and towards a more subjective selection process. I like the idea of the trials because it's more objective, but when athletes take advantage of that process, like starting a race they can't run because they're injured, they could potentially ruin it for everyone else. I do believe the trials seems to be the most fair, but it doesn't work if athletes make decisions like this one.
That jumped out at me, too, and I completely agree. It wasn't too late to make a decision -- she just delayed making a decision until it was too late to do so. Meanwhile, she was gimping her runs, somehow duping herself into thinking that an injury that clearly was painful enough to merit an MRI would just ... miraculously go away overnight? Be cured with physiotherapy? Nonsense. Even if she felt ok running a few easy miles, that doesn't mean she was up to the stress of racing an Olympic marathon. She could have faced facts and made a decision earlier. That she didn't do so was the choice she and her coach/agent made.
If she did make a mistake I agree this was it - not being realistic with herself on Friday about whether she would be able to race. But, I just think that is an understandable mistake - she of course really wanted to race and the MRI results were clean. I've had and known people who have weird injuries (usually related to nerves) that have just gone away overnight - so maybe not realistic to hope for that but I can understand why she would. With hindsight it's easy to see it was not the right decision, but if I put myself in her shoes 48 hours before the race I think it would be a really tough decision and can see how she decided to try to race.
Rose Harvey, fellow Puma athlete also coached by the Craggs, just gave an BBC interview where she explained her hip pain turned out to be a femoral stress fracture:
she should have finished the race then, like her Puma teammate Rose did. After all, it was just a little hip wiggle with no visible fracture on the MRI. I am sure you would of done the same and finished.
Rose mentioned the issue arose 3 weeks prior, and the GB replacement happened the week of the marathon - so she could have swapped but they left it too late until the sub had been called up.
Releasing a Q&A with her agent is making me roll my eyes so hard. This is a carefully-worded press release with some additional formatting, it speaks volumes that they don't want her talking to a real journalist who would ask follow-up questions.
Every time O'Keeffe tries to explain her actions it only raises more questions. She needs a new team around her who can get her healthy for the future— the only way to move past this is to run well in the future so this doesn't become her legacy.
The fact is that she did not run her normal marathon pace for even 20 seconds. If we are to believe this press release, we must believe that she was in a condition where she couldn't run her marathon pace for even 20 seconds but didn't know it was that bad 48 hours before the race. That strains credulity.
I agree. She should post the August 2nd workout and if shes running Marathon pace for a decent distance we should all give her some slack. Otherwise this is just PR damage control with alot of subjective half truths to make her look less selfish.
Rose Harvey, fellow Puma athlete also coached by the Craggs, just gave an BBC interview where she explained her hip pain turned out to be a femoral stress fracture:
Can anyone legitimately speak to the culture of this team firsthand? It’s alarming to have all your selected athletes show up to the Olympics dealing with similar injuries. Allistar went on the coffee club podcast last year and his training and racing tactics are legendary In Australia. Perhaps it’s a part of his nature that can’t be switched off, even from a coaching role
she should have finished the race then, like her Puma teammate Rose did. After all, it was just a little hip wiggle with no visible fracture on the MRI. I am sure you would of done the same and finished.
I HAVE done the same thing and finished. But we aren't talking about me.
she should have finished the race then, like her Puma teammate Rose did. After all, it was just a little hip wiggle with no visible fracture on the MRI. I am sure you would of done the same and finished.
I HAVE done the same thing and finished. But we aren't talking about me.
Was your pelvis/femur/sacrum fractured ? Some of you guys are silly beta nutjobs, all mouth breathing know nothings.
That jumped out at me, too, and I completely agree. It wasn't too late to make a decision -- she just delayed making a decision until it was too late to do so. Meanwhile, she was gimping her runs, somehow duping herself into thinking that an injury that clearly was painful enough to merit an MRI would just ... miraculously go away overnight? Be cured with physiotherapy? Nonsense. Even if she felt ok running a few easy miles, that doesn't mean she was up to the stress of racing an Olympic marathon. She could have faced facts and made a decision earlier. That she didn't do so was the choice she and her coach/agent made.
If she did make a mistake I agree this was it - not being realistic with herself on Friday about whether she would be able to race. But, I just think that is an understandable mistake - she of course really wanted to race and the MRI results were clean. I've had and known people who have weird injuries (usually related to nerves) that have just gone away overnight - so maybe not realistic to hope for that but I can understand why she would. With hindsight it's easy to see it was not the right decision, but if I put myself in her shoes 48 hours before the race I think it would be a really tough decision and can see how she decided to try to race.
That's a charitable assessment of her frame of mind, and I can appreciate how difficult it is for an athlete to make that call. But that's no excuse for her coach/agent, USATF, and whatever medical professionals were treating her. SOMEONE should have stepped up and said, "No, this isn't happening. We don't know what's exactly wrong, but you're clearly hurt, and chances of this being better by Sunday are not good." Clearly, there was sufficient concern that USATF flew out Jess McClain, so they KNEW it was serious.