Tbh it's not a bad idea to spread this rumor and getting it going on Twitter to the point that nike makes her race worlds to prove that that she isn't a J6'er.
If she doesn’t like racing this much then just quit already. What’s the point of running 2 races a year? How can you even call yourself a professional athlete at that point? Just quit and go do modeling or whatever it is that she wants to do. Give opportunities and places on the podium to women who actually like running. The sad part is that all the sponsors will continue to pour all the money into her instead of supporting other athletes who are out there racing. Now I’m rooting for Moora and Keely to beat her.
Why the heck will you not run if you are healthy???
Hmmmm, what would be the ONE reason a healthy athlete easily poised to win would suddenly pull out of a major championship? This shouldn’t be difficult!
Because winning that Olympic gold is all she needs to be marketable for many years. Maybe get another next year and she’s good for life. The way things are everything else is just a stop on the way.
Lucky most athletes still compete and rave enough outside of that one big meet every four years.
Almost none of you have the mental equipment to be a World and Olympic champion and yet you are know it alls who criticize someone who has shown that she does have the requisite mental equipment. She has done what few American women have ever done and yet she gets scathing criticism. Most of you sit and type this criticism but if you were in the arena you wouldn’t even be noticed. She is a star and she does not deserve this criticism. As far as her coach that is another deal.
Almost none have the physical ability, but quite a good number have the mental equipment. There are doctors who go through 20 years of training to stand over a patient on an operating table, knowing if they mess up the patient will be dead. There are single moms who work three jobs to support their kids and try to give them a better life. There are soldiers who need to operate under intense enemy fire and risk their lives without hesitation to save someone else.
All of these, and plenty of others, involve more pressure, hard work, and sacrifice than getting paid to run around a track and trying to win a medal.
One way to take the sting out of anxiety is to race more often. Have her go out there and crush the competition on a regular basis to cement the feeling of superiority. Doesn't matter if it is a low key meet. Just toeing the line more often will ease the nerves. There are so many ways to approach the mental aspect. The worst thing to do is sit out! Surely she is talking to a sports psychologist about this?
I said in a post about a month ago that her career as we know it was done. Three things: (1) There is no way Athing running 1:58-high in late June was going to beat athletes running 1:55 and 1:56 weeks earlier. She was not going to win gold in Budapest; she knew it and Bobby knew it. (2) In a recent interview, Athing clearly expressed her lack of commitment to running and how she wanted to explore other interests. Competing at the highest level requires total commitment (period). (3) She took too long of a break after the WCs last year, probably allowed herself to get too out of shape and is finding it difficult to back to where she needs to be. I suspect she a couple months last Autum 2022 and into the early winter where she did not do anything. Btw, not competing in 2023 will only make the situation worse.
Athing Mu is healthy and training right now but will not run the 400 as scheduled at the Ed Murphey Classic on Friday and may not race for the rest of the year and focus on 2024.
“It’s in our control if we decide we’re just going to go ahead and train through this year and focus on next year, then that’s what we’re going to do,” Bobby Kersee said. “The training is going well but our thought process, openly, is that we’re going to just train here in L.A. for the next two weeks and the next time she gets on the plane it’ll either be on vacation or to Budapest.”
Mu has only raced at two meets this year and said after Worlds last year that she felt no need to rush back into competition as she adjusted to Kersee's training. It's also clear that she's interested in things off the track, such as modeling, but it would be huge news if she skips the Worlds entirely.
Wow. I have a lot of empathy for the athletes, the stress, the difficulty with motivation, but if this is true, it’s a shocker. We think Mu is fit and healthy based on USAs, so to simply decline to compete at worlds is something unheard of outside of the marathon. Is there another example of a gold medal favorite just blowing off the meet? I won’t say it’s disrespectful to the sport, but it is a blow. Look at Hassan last year. She was not ready to defend her titles, but she showed up any way and took the losses. She easily could have just skipped it. Does anybody think less of her for showing up and getting beat? As a fan I’d sure rather see Athing race and lose then not race at all.
This post was edited 6 minutes after it was posted.
Athing Mu is healthy and training right now but will not run the 400 as scheduled at the Ed Murphey Classic on Friday and may not race for the rest of the year and focus on 2024.
“It’s in our control if we decide we’re just going to go ahead and train through this year and focus on next year, then that’s what we’re going to do,” Bobby Kersee said. “The training is going well but our thought process, openly, is that we’re going to just train here in L.A. for the next two weeks and the next time she gets on the plane it’ll either be on vacation or to Budapest.”
Mu has only raced at two meets this year and said after Worlds last year that she felt no need to rush back into competition as she adjusted to Kersee's training. It's also clear that she's interested in things off the track, such as modeling, but it would be huge news if she skips the Worlds entirely.
Athing Mu is healthy and training right now but will not run the 400 as scheduled at the Ed Murphey Classic on Friday and may not race for the rest of the year and focus on 2024.
“It’s in our control if we decide we’re just going to go ahead and train through this year and focus on next year, then that’s what we’re going to do,” Bobby Kersee said. “The training is going well but our thought process, openly, is that we’re going to just train here in L.A. for the next two weeks and the next time she gets on the plane it’ll either be on vacation or to Budapest.”
Mu has only raced at two meets this year and said after Worlds last year that she felt no need to rush back into competition as she adjusted to Kersee's training. It's also clear that she's interested in things off the track, such as modeling, but it would be huge news if she skips the Worlds entirely.
Pretty big change of philosophy from a girl who thought it was important to run the midfest 2018 AAU XC Nationals just 4 and half years ago. Also ran pretty much every race in sight then.
There is a possibility this is a Simone Biles type deal and that the proper response is compassion. Let us not tear her down at this juncture. She is a champion.
I have no compassion for people who choose not to compete due to vague reasons. Earning a spot on the US team is an honor and a privilege. If she doesn't want to go to Worlds, I'm not going to write nasty things on her twitter but I sure as heck won't cheer for her at the Oly trials.
You really think highly of yourself don't you? Who the f*&k are you? Did she ask you for compassion? Do you really believe she cares about your compassion? The comments here are hysterical, a bunch of nobodies demanding answers or they will cry, pout, piss themselves, etc. Absolutely idiotic.
I think she's losing motivation. She's been competing for a long time going back to AAU. That fire is fading especially since she has other avenues where she can form a career. Very few kids who compete intensely in pre-puberty youth ranks survive running into adulthood...just burned out.
This is why I have stated for a year or two on here: Track & Field needs an honest weekly injury report for top (50 or 100) athletes per event at least six weeks prior to Olympics and at least six weeks prior to World Championships.
Model? All T&F athletes sponsored by a shoe company are models. Earning one or more gold medal would make A Mu a more valuable Nike model.
I defend elite T&F athletes who chose to race infrequently as long as elites are not skipping Olympics &/or W.C. One or more poster(s) stated A Mu may withdraw from 2023 W.C. due to fear of 800m competition. I don't know. I do know I stated weeks ago I was not impressed by A Mu's 1500m performance. I stated then, her 1500m performance does not indicate a pending fast 800m.
I said in a post about a month ago that her career as we know it was done. Three things: (1) There is no way Athing running 1:58-high in late June was going to beat athletes running 1:55 and 1:56 weeks earlier. She was not going to win gold in Budapest; she knew it and Bobby knew it. (2) In a recent interview, Athing clearly expressed her lack of commitment to running and how she wanted to explore other interests. Competing at the highest level requires total commitment (period). (3) She took too long of a break after the WCs last year, probably allowed herself to get too out of shape and is finding it difficult to back to where she needs to be. I suspect she a couple months last Autum 2022 and into the early winter where she did not do anything. Btw, not competing in 2023 will only make the situation worse.
...I hope I am wrong.
it is ridiculous to say you can't go from 1:58 to 1:55 in 2 months.
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