2025 Millrose 800 is gonna be LOADED - Bryce Hoppel, Josh Hoey, HS sensation Cooper Lutkenhaus & more

I am so amped to watch this race. The 800 was in the doldrums for so long, I am happy it is back on the "worth watching" list.

And before someone starts with the "are they all doping" questions (which are kind of valid given how everyone went from 1:44 in 2022 to 1:41 last year), can someone who has experience with bi-carb talk about how that is changing the 800m game right now?

I am asking because the 800m is the race where the lactic build-up was the most painful and sudden. The bear, piano, whatever that suddenly dropped on your back at 600m...

p.s. I know Hoey ran fast last week (1K in 2:14) but I am putting my bet on Bryce Hoppel to continue his domination of American 800m running.

Would love to see Hobbs Kessler on the start line

I’m looking at Josh Hoey’s bio and iaaf profile and it’s kind of strange

he was a prep star, went pro right out of HS (2018) running a 1:47 at that time, regressed, could not even break 4 for the mile, then ran a 1:43 and 3:52 in 2024 before ofc breaking the 1000m record this year.

maybe he was just a kid having fun?

If it looks like a duck....

Does the high schooler forfeit eligibility by competing in this meet with pros?

I don't think so? I remember the Newbury Park guys not being allowed in California HS meets because they ran with pros, but I think that was a California outdoor specific thing. Nico Young and Drew Hunter set their 3k records at Millrose and still did HS competition outdoors.

Me too, and we've got a bunch of sub 1:44 guys now. The 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th placers from the OTs are racing Millrose (3rd place Kessler in the mile), it's gonna be stacked. I like Hoey's chances personally just because that 2:14 is crazy fast and I don't know what Hoppel is ready for, but I think it's gonna be a race between the two of them.

He switched coaches last year.

Excited to see what Lutkenhaus does!

As much as I like to see a loaded/stacked 800m field, that scenario can create a messy race indoors. Hoping Lutkenhaus stays out of the jockeying up front, tucks in on the rail, and get pulled to a quick time.

There was a lot of discussion about this in the Hoey record thread it basically came down to 5 things:

1. First time doing any sort of high-volume threshold and slower aerobic work

2. First time training at altitude

3. Was a speed-type 800 guy in HS and kept training like that as a pro, resulting in him basically running himself into the ground for however many years.

4. Got an actual coach that wasn't his dad for the first time ever

5. Presumably first time using bicarb

Conclusion was that while his improvement was suspicious, all those factors combined with a newfound sense of confidence and the fact that he's just really damn talented (1:47.67 in hs is still insane today) was more than enough to put him over the top.

Yep. His dad was doing the same things over and over and it showed. Thankfully he finally realized he might be the reason for the lack of improvement.

He had multiple coaches in the past years try to help coach with his dad so it wasn’t just his dad. Ask Centro’s dad.

I'm hoping he runs well but I'm not big on putting a kid in there with grown men.

Lutkenhaus turned 16 one month ago (12/19). Soph in HS.

I watched a couple of his race videos and that’s exactly what he does, even against fellow HSers. At Millrose, he’s likely to start near the back and pass some guys over the last 200m.