We need separate lists for men and women. The achievements of the two sexes are simply not comparable and they make the lists a muddle of figments and favoritism.
I'm not convince about Moses. 400m Hurdles is kind of a niche event, imo. Don't think any one American athlete really stands head and shoulder above the others. FWIW, Google AI seems to agree and lists the following athletes as the top American runner. (I'd replace Prefontaine with Frank Shorter.)
Jesse Owens (Sprints): Widely regarded as the most significant athlete in track history. At the 1936 Berlin Olympics, he won four gold medals (100m, 200m, 4x100m, and long jump), famously challenging Adolf Hitler's myth of Aryan supremacy. He also set or tied six world records in just 45 minutes at the 1935 Big Ten Championships. Michael Johnson (Sprints): Known as "The Man with the Golden Shoes," Johnson is the only male athlete to win both the 200m and 400m at the same Olympics (Atlanta 1996). He maintained a dominant winning streak of 58 consecutive 400m finals over five years. Steve Prefontaine (Distance): A cult icon who held every American record from 2,000m to 10,000m at the time of his tragic death at age 24. "Pre" is credited with fueling the 1970s American "running boom" through his aggressive, front-running style. Carl Lewis (Sprints): One of the most decorated athletes ever, Lewis won nine Olympic gold medals across four Games (1984–1996). He matched Owens' feat by winning four golds in a single Olympics in 1984. Jim Ryun (Middle-Distance): Often called the greatest American distance runner by purists, Ryun was the first high schooler to break the 4-minute mile. He set multiple world records in the 1960s, including a 3:51.1 mile that remained the American record for 36 years
I'm not convince about Moses. 400m Hurdles is kind of a niche event, imo. Don't think any one American athlete really stands head and shoulder above the others. FWIW, Google AI seems to agree and lists the following athletes as the top American runner. (I'd replace Prefontaine with Frank Shorter.)
Jesse Owens (Sprints): Widely regarded as the most significant athlete in track history. At the 1936 Berlin Olympics, he won four gold medals (100m, 200m, 4x100m, and long jump), famously challenging Adolf Hitler's myth of Aryan supremacy. He also set or tied six world records in just 45 minutes at the 1935 Big Ten Championships. Michael Johnson (Sprints): Known as "The Man with the Golden Shoes," Johnson is the only male athlete to win both the 200m and 400m at the same Olympics (Atlanta 1996). He maintained a dominant winning streak of 58 consecutive 400m finals over five years. Steve Prefontaine (Distance): A cult icon who held every American record from 2,000m to 10,000m at the time of his tragic death at age 24. "Pre" is credited with fueling the 1970s American "running boom" through his aggressive, front-running style. Carl Lewis (Sprints): One of the most decorated athletes ever, Lewis won nine Olympic gold medals across four Games (1984–1996). He matched Owens' feat by winning four golds in a single Olympics in 1984. Jim Ryun (Middle-Distance): Often called the greatest American distance runner by purists, Ryun was the first high schooler to break the 4-minute mile. He set multiple world records in the 1960s, including a 3:51.1 mile that remained the American record for 36 years
With so many multiple Olympic and World champions from the country, someone who never won a medal in global championships does not belong on that list.
Eamonn Coghlan for sure. 5000m world champ. Former world record holder (indoor mile). Three-time Olympian.
Even if the opinion is valid, the post is dumb. O’Sullivan was a 5000m world champ. Former world record holder (2-mile and 2000m). Four-time Olympian. So there goes the case you made for Coghlan.
Additionally, O’Sullivan has the World XC double gold, an Olympic 5k silver and a Worlds 1500 silver. Still owns the national records for 2k, 3k, 5k and 10k. Her 8:21.64 3k was the European record from 1994-2002.
It may be best to keep the sexes separate, but if we’re comparing O’Sullivan and Coghlan there’s a clear answer.