Nick Willis and John Walker say it like it is.

I'm not negative about what Willis says in that article. But at the same time, what is positive or substantive about it?

A few days ago a leaked report comes out saying that a bunch of unnamed elite athletes have blood tests that are shady at best. Now Willis is saying that he believes a bunch of unnamed athletes are doping and he isn't. Why is that even worth reading?

I trust and believe Willis. But those quotes just ring empty to me. And I personally believe he is doing everything in his regimen Rupp is doing.

Haha man I had to respond to this, well you are "personally" very wrong to believe that he approaches the sport the same way as Rupp. Rupp and Willis on are on different planets in terms of their entire lifestyles and history.

Maybe I am biased because I've known him for years, shared a flat with him and have traveled with him and know his extended family well. The guy grew up running on grass tracks and bare feet in Lower Hutt, New Zealand. I can attest to you that there is nothing flash about Willis, he's as normal a bloke as you will come across and would not know he was a world-class athlete unless you probed. He lives a very normal life for someone of his caliber. He trains hard like any serious runner, but his family and faith come first. This I can attest to first hand.

Plus he's had the same coach in Ron Warhurst for 14 seasons. If anyone knows Ron Warhurst he is about as old school as it gets. Just a solid guy, do the work, run tough, respect your opponents and give it what you got, no excuses. He and Salazar are complete opposites on many levels. Actually it makes me laugh to even think of this, Willis and Rupp are in polar opposite universes. Ask guys like Tim Broe who Warhurst coached.

What I can tell you is this, Willis is the one in a million that is "world-class" and the mile is his sweet spot. The guy was born to run 56-58 pace for four laps. He's not the fastest at 800m nor the strongest at 5k, but he's a born miler with great speed-endurance and he's very efficient at that pace. He ran 4:01 when he was 17 and was 4th at the World Junior Champs in the 1500m back when, his brother was also a sub 4:00 miler, bottom line the genes and God-given talent are there.

He's done it the right way, and has balance in his life which has prolonged his career. The guy isn't burnt out by any means, he does a lot of effort-based training over the course of the year and will gladly train with runners of all abilities. He is an open book and what I've said above is the same thing that hundreds of others will tell you as well.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and obviously in this day age every performance is under speculation, Willis himself said that in the interview. He knows what he up against and has been for years.

The Book On Willis - well said.

ryan foreman wrote:

I'm not negative about what Willis says in that article. But at the same time, what is positive or substantive about it?

A few days ago a leaked report comes out saying that a bunch of unnamed elite athletes have blood tests that are shady at best. Now Willis is saying that he believes a bunch of unnamed athletes are doping and he isn't. Why is that even worth reading?

I trust and believe Willis. But those quotes just ring empty to me. And I personally believe he is doing everything in his regimen Rupp is doing.

"Why is that even worth reading?" - Because as you said he's trusted and believable also, respected.

ryan foreman is a top 5 NOP apologist here.

I believe you about Willis, and have a lot of respect for the guy, but why is his being a good guy necessarily different than Rupp? You admit to knowing/being friends with Nick, but don't know Galen at all. We don't actually know that Galen breaks any rules, and you seem to imply that Nick "runs tough," "works hard," and has "God-given talent," which are all things that are certainly true of Rupp also. Why are their approaches necessarily different?

Is it because you like Nick, and don't like Galen?

We've got a new Kara wrote:

From the Old School wrote:

Great read:

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/athletics/news/article.cfm?c_id=19&objectid=11491256&ref=rss

Nick Willis thinks he's the only one in the world that can defy age and break 3:30 twice... and win a medal. Personally, I'm getting sick of his grandstanding. For once I would like to hear an athlete say, "If I can do it, than I believe my direct competitors are clean." We'll never hear that from Willis.

I read the story. Sounds like a middle school lunch room drama. The proof Willis has is that he thinks the bad kids sit together.

Getting sick of this nonsense. How about a new rule?: Either provide facts or STFU.

I kind of agree with this. A lot of posters here seem to be of the opinion that anyone under 3:30 or 27:00 or whatever is a cheater, or at least the vast majority. But the very way Willis talks about cheating and his competitors makes it sound like that isn't the case. For example, he wouldn't be saying things like "it's easy to spot the cheaters" if 80% of his competitors were cheaters, would he? So I agree with you in that I wish he'd come out and say something like that directly. I mean if I were in his position I'd be MORE optimistic than the average letsrun poster because I would be secure in the knowledge that I had run 3:29 clean, which means that plenty of other guys surely have as well.

Maybe it's because Willis doesn't have a medical chart that says he was taking testosterone when he was 16 and Rupp does. Maybe it's because Willis doesn't fly halfway across the country to get treatments that might improve his running from a doctor for a condition no other doctors recognize as an actual condition.

Willis has never flown across the country or to another country to seek medical attention from a specialist so that he could improve his running? Ever?

Please walk into this....

This is just like when Willis said he doesn't have any association with those affiliated with doping (see Willis' agent, see Tyson Gay).

Listen, I like Willis and I think he's clean. I also like Rupp and I think he's clean. They both work hard and have both shown that it's not impossible to compete with the great African runners.

Rupp tends to keep to himself. He doesn't ever say anything negative about his competitors or comment on any allegations about others. I respect that. Most here on this board don't, however.

Willis is hardly one in a million as a pure miler. So were Elliott, Bannister,Landy, Walker, Delany and Ibbotson in past years.

Well, New Zealand has about 4 million in population, so Willis is more like one in four million in a conservative estimate.

This thread cracks me up. Willis is to be trusted above all others???? Um, why exactly?!?

Ohhh, riiiight..... let me sum up the reasons from this absurd thread:

1) he's white (unspoken, but reason #1)

2) he's "old school" (whatever the f-ck that means)

3) he grew up running barefoot on grass (??)

4) he's a good Christian (LOL!!!)

5) He seems like a stand-up guy

6) he's white

7) He's from NZ, and.....forgot why that matters

8) tons more silly reasons...

Look, I *TOO* believe Willis to be clean. But it has nothing to do with the above reasons (there have been dopers that have shared many of the above histories/characteristics , plenty of them.) I just give the benefit of the doubt to people, and if there are no major red flags, I believe them until proven guilty. This goes for runners from all over the globe.

I guess I am just tired of all these people throwing blanket accusations around accusing 99% of the sports athletes or nations of systematic doping (" ALL THE DOMINANT EAST AFRICANS ARE DIRTY!!!", etc), but then just randomly, picking out their one or two "heroes" and suspending any and all doubt in these few cases and declaring that absolutely a guy like Willis or Jager as the last clean runners alive, or some nonsense. It is just getting a bit ridiculous.

Sorry, but 95-98% of the all time best East Africans are clean, and Willis has gotten his A$$ handed to him by quite a few of them (including Kiprop). He needs to get over that.

Do you mean he went to a doctor who diagnoses things that almost no other doctors do? And there's still the testosterone.

At any rate, speaking out about the situation i the sport is going to make you more popular than keeping quiet.

I won't address the rest of your idyottic tirade, but since you actually threw out a number:" 95-98% of the all time best East Africans are clean,"...except for at least 77 abnormal findings from one of the more serious drug offending-countries in the IAAF.Keep swinging for the bottom of the posting barrel, Bad Wigins is tough comp I know.

The book on Willis wrote:What I can tell you is this, Willis is the one in a million that is "world-class" and the mile is his sweet spot. The guy was born to run 56-58 pace for four laps. He's not the fastest at 800m nor the strongest at 5k, but he's a born miler with great speed-endurance and he's very efficient at that pace

don't under-estimate his 800 ability

he was very likely good for 1'44-high in monaco, perhaps even as quick as 1'44-mid

although nowhere near as good as a 3'29.6 nor top-elite 800 ability, that is still more than respectable 800 ability

Koppenberg wrote:

Well, New Zealand has about 4 million in population, so Willis is more like one in four million in a conservative estimate.

Walker is still alive and Nick's own brother was likely a pure miler too.

Whatever happened to the other Willis?

Another good snippet:

http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/sport/280457/doping-cheats-almost-made-willis-give-up

Says that doping situation has improved noticeably since 2009 (Makhloufi aside, presumably lol)

eh ???

you clearly don't know much about medicine

borderline hypothyroidism is one of the most trickiest problems to deal with

it is not exact science but an "art"

i have asked a leading endocrinologist who i refer patients to about this question & his best answer was :

" i don't treat borderline hypothyroidism because many patients on thyroxine feel worse on it than not ( !!! )"

i asked him, if the patient feels under-par with borderline/raised TSH but normal range T4, shoud i treat or not ?

he said :

"it is completely upto you ( !!! )"

i have put dozens of patients with borderline hypothyroidism on thyroxine to see if their lassitude/malaise improves on it, so your assertion that "he went to a doctor who diagnoses things that almost no other doctors do?" is a few million miles from the mark as i highly doubt i'm only the 2nd doctor in the world after rupp's doc who prescribes thyroxine to borderline hypothyroids

err...

learn to research

sal said it was "testo-boost", a presumbed herbal/vitamin supplement with claims of boosting natural testo production NOT testosterone itself

Watching The Detectives wrote:

I won't address the rest of your idyottic tirade....

"idyottic"??? You're a strange one, that's for sure.

Watching The Detectives wrote:

...." 95-98% of the all time best East Africans are clean,"

...except for at least 77 abnormal findings from one of the more serious drug offending-countries in the IAAF.

"abnormal findings" doesn't mean crap. They acknowledge this. And they don't say 77 ATHLETES, only "findings". Many could be from the same athletes. Finally, most of the "drug offending" Kenyans have not been their top athletes (yes, some like Jeptoo and few others are exceptions). Yes, but convince yourself that Willis has only been beaten by dirty athletes and that the majority of WR holding and Medal winning East Africans have been dirty if it helps you live in your black and white world of definite good guys vs definite bad guys world. Simple beliefs for simple people like yourself.