Elle St. Pierre is a terrible racer

Emily Mackay beat her in trials. I think she will soon beat Elle on a regular basis. If Elle even continues to race. I see more little St Pierres in her future.

I read Coogan's book and in it he has his philosophy a detailed training plan template. It's just more of the same "hammer long difficult interval/tempo workouts way too often" bullcrap. Same nonsense that Brad Hudson did to run most of his pupils into the ground 10-15 years ago. Twenty other coaches could have written the exact same book.

Did anyone hear from MacKay after her semi? She looked rough in last, but she’s also young and first time Olympian. Maybe she was sick / also had COVID? And if she had COVID maybe ESP as well?

I do agree Elle went out too hard on the first lap, and maybe she was healthy and just overlooked it too soon. But after seeing MacKay bomb her semi (and all the press about COVID for team USA) I couldn’t help but worry she was sick and maybe ESP soon too.

Also, ESP seems to race her best indoors. From NCAAs to now as a pro. She’s very good outdoors but great indoors. Is that a training thing to somehow adjust??

MacKay admitted post-semis race she thought the three rounds at the Trials would prepare her for the Olympics. Instead, it left her fried.

For Emily, this is just a fitness issue, being so new to professional running. She's just two years removed from her 4:06 pr at SUNY Binghamton. She's fine.

So is ESP. Post-finals race she stated her plan was to go out with the leaders and not let a gap form. Same with Hiltz.

Unfortunately, no one was expecting the first 400 meters to be sub-60. Pretty sure that's the fastest opening 400 in a woman's 1500 race in history. (Anyone who knows differently, please respond.)

For comparison: when Kipyegon ran her 3:49.04 WR last month, her opening 400 was 62.4. The rabbit ran 61.42.

Race Summary: ESP & Hiltz's strategy to tuck in behind the leader Tsegay -- likely everyone presumed Kipyegon would take the lead -- was sound. Hull, Bell, Welteji, Kipyegon, Ejore, and Guillemot all did the same. From that front pack of eight (59.3 - 60.6), five were able to survive and medal or set personal bests: Kipyegon, Hull, Bell, Welteji, and Ejori. The other four went lactic and were not able to hang on. Rerun that race ten times, would wager US picks up a medal in half of them due to improved race plan execution.

Bigger Picture: looking forward to see what all these women can do over the concluding five weeks of this season. Fully believe ESP & Hiltz can break Houlihan's 3:54.99 AR; likely, much faster. Add in MacLean, Johnson, Wiley, Schlachtenhaufen, and Cranny, US women's 1500 running is in good hands and at an all-time high.

She wasn't as doped as the first 4.

And St Pierre is unaware that Hull uses her as a personal pacer during the race. They may be friends off the track but Hull is all business on the track and is the better racer. St Pierre hasn't figured it out yet.

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St. Pierre IS NOT a terrible racer. When Gudaf took off Ellie assessed who it was and deemed it necessary to follow Gudaf. The unfortunate thing is Gudaf blew her load and Ellie's at the sametine.

I like her training partners McClain and Mackay. I think Elle has hit her limit. Elle doesn't race enough and seems like she likes to race in US where she knows there's not as much competition.

You have just explained why ESP is a terrible racer.

I think most of the analysis here on the thread is accurate. ESP is a great runner, but she runs best when she's one of the clear top 3 runners in a race, and isn't comfortable letting a great field elevate her and just trying to be patient and kick at the end. She has a tendency to try and force her move in a race, even if it is too early or there isn't space. Lastly, she has a track record of putting a strong focus on indoors where she often does very well and there are plenty of races a short distance from her farm. I would suspect this focus is likely why she doesn't sustain and perform as well late in the season like some other athletes. Not sure what changes I'd recommend for her, but hanging out in europe and getting in a few more fast races between 1500 and 5000m would be good experience.

There's nothing wrong with this career. She has a world medal, she'll be considered an all-time great at the national level, and she has been able to live the lifestyle she wants.

I think the 1500 was a better choice than the 5000. Coming out of the trials, it seemed like it was Faith Kipyegon and everyone else. The 3:53-3:57 pack seemed more likely for ESP to beat than the sub 14:10 crowd in the 5000.

She got further than I ever got, so I can’t judge. Ironically, her PRs are probably better than the OP’s.

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When it comes to Elle I’m pretty conflicted. On one hand she’s tough, she runs strong and hard. I have never doubted that she wanted to win, and I’ve never doubted her effort. Many athletes are afraid of the big stage and fold like a cheap suit. She always gives a hard effort, something I really admire. She also seems like a good mother. That doesn’t particularly matter, but it’s nice to see.

On the other hand, I agree with many of the other commenters when they say she lacks racing IQ. It seems that she is perfectly fine blowing away a field of 4:00-3:57 women, but once there is an athlete who can equal her, she gets a bit cagey and frantic. She needs to learn to stay calm and wait for the race to come to her. The problem is that most of her success comes from winning via brute force, this works in domestic races most of the time, but at the international level she just doesn't have the fire power.

Lastly, I have some weird gripes about her, some of which aren’t exactly her fault. My first is that if I hear Kara Goucher or some other talking head bray on and on and on about her life as a dairy farmer and about her son Ivan I’m going to explode. I get it, she was pregnant and had a kid and lives in Vermont and likes milk. This isn’t exactly her fault, but it is very annoying. Also she gives a vibe of being an a-hole, I get that she’s likely ultra competitive and wants to win, but she always just looks mean, or standoffish. I get the feeling that if Mckay or Maclean or any of her other teammates at NB beat her, there isn’t a smile and a good job, I bet it’s a scowl and silence. I hope she does well, I don’t hate her, but there are many other US women I support more than her.

“…she runs best when she's one of the clear top 3 runners in a race…”

So does everyone else. In that Olympic final, her choice was to go out fast and shoot for a medal, or stay back and settle for something like 5th or 6th. Either way, she would be criticized on LR.

The US women and Hiltz are phenomenal in the United States. Their kicks devastate US fields.

It's a different ball game internationally. I thought Hiltz might be able to squeeze out a third place finish with a lean at the line, but ESP had zero chance of kicking with the best of them. That was a quality field- better than anything they see in the US.

I may have to go back and time Hassan's last 300m of the marathon and compare it to what ESP/Hiltz close 1500s regularly in. I'd guess the difference isn't all that much

Arrogant of her to assume she was good enough to go out in 59. This whole Olympic setup was arrogant. Glad she got humbled.

She’s faster than you, and you’ve never worked a dairy farm!🤣 She could outwork you any day of the week, keyboard critic!