Correct, Valby looks like a pro runner at college while Tuohy looks like a college runner at college.
Valby is built like a pro runner, who is not clean. Tuohy looks like a college runner in college, muscular but has fat on her arms and legs. Tuohy's progression has been natural. Valby's progression is not.
What someone said here is correct, other runners are suspicious too, none of Valby's competitors congratulated her after finishing 2nd in the 5000m. None. Only Gator athletes congratulated her on the track and on her post.
Valby's time on this course indicates sub 15 5k on a track. Quite a progression for a year with injuries.
She ran 15:20 last year while only running twice a week after earlier in the year breaking her foot. She now appears to be healthy and training normally so running sub 15 is not that extraordinary. Nothing about this is strange.
I mean an athlete who already had a suspicious progression, who already exhibited signs of ped use suddenly comes back from a layoff to bomb a super-suspect time? Ducks in a barrel.
And you think it’s normal to run a 15:20 off of only 2 days a week of running?
This is what gets me in this thread. People keep citing her time off 2 days of running a week as evidence that the progression isn’t suspicious. In reality, that’s exhibit A of suspicious improvement.
Maybe she’s clean. Maybe she’s not. No one here knows. But her last year has been suspicious as hell.
What is interesting about the race splits is that she was already ahead by a minute and then slowed way down in the last 600m and kept her lead. Did not see the race, but I guess she probably could have gone faster.
Valby beat Addie engel who is ranked around 30 by a full minute, and Grace Forbes time by a minute. Crazy.
Tuohy should just turn pro right now. She can’t beat a healthy Valby. No more championships .
14:51 5k speed on track
about 25 seconds faster than Tuohy’s pb.
Valby should go pro. If she is running 14:51 she is the next Gidey. But yes, Valby will crush the field and be top NCAA all time 5k, etc, if this holds out.
Amazing what chemistry can accomplish. After the loss last year I think she just decided to go all in to land a contract and try to be Sydney McLaughlin. It's a career plan.
A mind-blowing time like this, which is about 20 seconds ahead of the fastest ever NCAA 6x xc times that I have seen, screams short course or rising star. I think it's a combination of rising star and fast but legit course. 2nd place was Addie Engel of Ohio State in 20:02. She had run only 20:54 and 20:39 this year but ran 19:59 at regionals last year and 20:15 at NCAAs. So either the course was a little short or it is just very fast and that, plus Valby's incredible pace, led Engel to running close to her best time. Valby ran 15:20 as a freshman after 19:41 in xc, so she is one of the best talents ever in the NCAA.
Like I always say, nothing prevents college runners from playing this game but the decision not to do so. There is an alternative universe out there where Tuohy is ruthless and Lance Armstrong like and already running 14:20s. There is not enough testing in the NCAA to stop it, especially if you avoid the world trials.