Athing Mu added to 3rd section of 1500 at Sound Running Track Fest on Saturday

Concerned fan wrote:

I agree that in the beginning it looked like she was trying to run slow, got at least some experience running in the pack, although as mentioned she was mainly running wide. At the end, it was clear she was exhausted and had no gas left. Bryce hoppels been running terrible 1500s and I’m not worried about him, so part of me wants to say it’s fine, but he’s also run pretty decent 800s. If pre is her first 8 it’s going to be a blood bath. I’m not writing her off just yet because she’s athing… but I don’t feel good about her or Bobby’s methods right now.

slowdude wrote:

Is there any anecdotal evidence (or otherwise) as to why she runs so wide all the time? Has she always run like this?

Moving backwards wrote:

Just Running. wrote:

It's just a workout. She doesn't like doing long efforts solo in practice, so she just jumps into a local race. How hard is it for people to understand this? She's not racing, she's just running.

So what is she training for? The season is in full swing. One National championship?? That’s all she’s good for in terms of actual competition?

fjhdfjh wrote:

at some point she needs to either man up or shut up. She has world-class talent and makes a great living doing the sport. She either needs to step up and start acting like it or don't and retire. All of this bizarre tip-toeing around these weird events is counter-productive and frankly just strange.

MatthewXCountry wrote:

People are making this out to be way worse than it is.

In 2022, she opened with a 2:02 in April. She went on to win worlds.

In 2023 she opened her season with a 1:58 in June. Then in July ran a 4:10 in the heats and 4:03 to win the USATF champs 1500m. She went on to set her PB in 1:54.97.

I get that people don't like these training runs, fitness test races. But I think she'll win the US 800m title if she doesn't trip.

Concerned fan wrote:

I agree that in the beginning it looked like she was trying to run slow, got at least some experience running in the pack, although as mentioned she was mainly running wide. At the end, it was clear she was exhausted and had no gas left. Bryce hoppels been running terrible 1500s and I’m not worried about him, so part of me wants to say it’s fine, but he’s also run pretty decent 800s. If pre is her first 8 it’s going to be a blood bath. I’m not writing her off just yet because she’s athing… but I don’t feel good about her or Bobby’s methods right now.

objectively things are looking good wrote:

MatthewXCountry wrote:

People are making this out to be way worse than it is.

In 2022, she opened with a 2:02 in April. She went on to win worlds.

In 2023 she opened her season with a 1:58 in June. Then in July ran a 4:10 in the heats and 4:03 to win the USATF champs 1500m. She went on to set her PB in 1:54.97.

I get that people don't like these training runs, fitness test races. But I think she'll win the US 800m title if she doesn't trip.

Uh-oh! Facts!

But but but what about the LR posters who are obsessed with declaring her “done”?? (Due to races FOUR MONTHS before the World Championship final?)

MatthewXCountry wrote:

Concerned fan wrote:

I agree that in the beginning it looked like she was trying to run slow, got at least some experience running in the pack, although as mentioned she was mainly running wide. At the end, it was clear she was exhausted and had no gas left. Bryce hoppels been running terrible 1500s and I’m not worried about him, so part of me wants to say it’s fine, but he’s also run pretty decent 800s. If pre is her first 8 it’s going to be a blood bath. I’m not writing her off just yet because she’s athing… but I don’t feel good about her or Bobby’s methods right now.

People are making this out to be way worse than it is.

NYDCRunner1 wrote:

I wonder if her coach will have her compete in a few 400M to refine her speed endurance.

Jonathan Gault wrote:

-She clearly still feels uncomfortable running near the rail...she swung way wide when she took the lead at the end of the final turn and had no urgency to cut back inside once she had the lead. This was an issue for Mu even when she was at her best but she obviously still produced some pretty stellar results while doing it.
-Sadie Sargent ran Mu down in the home straight, 4:10.01 to 4:10.70. Mu had no response when Sargent passed her.

objectively things are looking good wrote:

MatthewXCountry wrote:

People are making this out to be way worse than it is.

In 2022, she opened with a 2:02 in April. She went on to win worlds.

In 2023 she opened her season with a 1:58 in June. Then in July ran a 4:10 in the heats and 4:03 to win the USATF champs 1500m. She went on to set her PB in 1:54.97.

I get that people don't like these training runs, fitness test races. But I think she'll win the US 800m title if she doesn't trip.

Uh-oh! Facts!

But but but what about the LR posters who are obsessed with declaring her “done”?? (Due to races FOUR MONTHS before the World Championship final?)

Ruxton Towers XC wrote:

p.s. Does anyone worry about general "fitness" and being in shape with people at this level? I mean, it looks like she is just plain out of shape. Not everything is mental...

Jonathan Gault wrote:

slowdude wrote:

Is there any anecdotal evidence (or otherwise) as to why she runs so wide all the time? Has she always run like this?

Yes, she has done this for her entire pro career. She has said she does it because she is worried about getting tripped because of her long legs. So she tries to give the other runners a wide berth.

Ruxton Towers XC wrote:

She just looked sluggish on the final corner. It didn't look at all like the Mu of 2021. It is hard to imagine her not having the speed to go with the leader when she used to kick down everyone in the world in the 800m.

People get out of shape. It happens. Wasn't that one of the reasons Dallas gave for the Luka Dončić trade? Even super stars need to stay in shape.

Look at the difference:

Video:www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9q34hWrOEE