It's official: Laura Muir is a vet - Why don't many other pros do much of anything besides run?

Ho Hum wrote:

quote of the day wrote:

"No one who works 40 hours a week will beat me in a marathon." -- Bill Rodgers

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Rodgers was a teacher until he ran in the Olympics, meaning he had a full-time job when he first won Boston.

Yes but that wasn't the point. He didn't say he couldn't win unless he didn't work.

However I'm pretty sure the year Rodgers quit teaching he was drubbed by Drayton in Boston. Drayton worked a solid 40.

She is definitely a gifted athlete who put in the work to turn talent into results. There is no denying that and she is rightly celebrated for that.

But, I missed the part where she's a professional athlete. She isn't getting paid enough to do nothing but run.

Tits up bro wrote:The same reasons other professionals don't do much besides specialize in their own field of work.

You are assuming most running elites can make a living off of running. They don't. Not even close.

rojo wrote:

Congrats to Ms. Muir on graduating from veterinary school. Anyone else find it refreshing to find a world-class athlete that does something besides post to instagram during the other 21 hours a day that they aren't running/working out?

https://www.bbc.com/sport/scotland/44582424

Agree. Colin McCourt also said that he did best when studying, and when he became a pro there was too much free time and he got into his own head. I tend to agree that more runners should pursue careers while they run, given that no elite runner makes enough $ to not need to work after.

Like even Centro, I think he should call it quits post Tokyo. Running at elite level for North Americans is fun thing but it's indulging yourself. For most elite runners, who tend to be intelligent, economically it makes more sense to not run and pursue a traditional career.

Justyn Knight is from a good immigrant family who presumably values work and stability. he should pursue the dream for 4-5 years, but then get himself to grad school. Seems like he's be a good businessman -- maybe MBA?

pop_pop!_v2.2.1 wrote:

She is definitely a gifted athlete who put in the work to turn talent into results. There is no denying that and she is rightly celebrated for that.

But, I missed the part where she's a professional athlete. She isn't getting paid enough to do nothing but run.

How much do you think she earns in a year from running?

She's not a huge star in the UK but she's high profile enough that she will definitely be doing ok.

rojo wrote:

Congrats to Ms. Muir on graduating from veterinary school. Anyone else find it refreshing to find a world-class athlete that does something besides post to instagram during the other 21 hours a day that they aren't running/working out?

I don't believe this is a good-faith commendation of Laura Muir's hard work. Rather, it appears to be a cynical effort to denigrate others by questioning the manner in which they spend their free time. As I perceive this to be little more than an ad hominem attack, I'll turn the question around: how do you and Weldon answer for your own stunning lack of productivity as measured against your peers (either from St. Marks or from Yale)?

I know, I know, in those halcyon days of yore, semi-pro runners who quit their day jobs and moved to Flagstaff at least engaged in the backbreaking labor of establishing a niche website in their spare time!

For example:

Laura Muir confirms her quality and lands £30k with Diamond Race win

• Scot again beats Kelly Holmes’ former record

• Third fastest time by a British athlete

It was Muir’s third fastest time of the year and the third fastest ever by a Briton, coming five days after she set a new national record, her second of the summer, of 3min55.22sec in Paris.

The performance netted the University of Glasgow veterinary medicine student... A $40,000 (£30,140) JACKPOT FOR WINNING THE OVERALL DIAMOND LEAGUE TITLE IN THE 1500m EVENT.

The Flying 'Wee-Sparra' Scot said:

1) “This is amazing, because I never expected anything like this."

2) "I am the Diamond Race winner."

3) "This is big...big for me.”

Oh well.

It's not a big surprise.

Let anyone in this thread who earned more from running than that make themselves known

I wonder what type of animal drugs are effective on human endurance athletes?

Why do they have to do anything other than run? If an athlete is good enough to make 100k+ by working 4 hours a day, that seems like a high quality of life. Also, Instagram followers = sponsors and added value to their brands. What good is an athlete that represents sponsors everywhere but on social media?

Didn’t Muir herself say that she was looking forward to focusing on running full-time, now that her exams are over? Even Yuki is rumored to be giving up his “citizen runner” schtick to maximize his opportunities post-Boston.

But yeah...let’s pretend that working 40 hours a week, training 25, and constantly traveling is where it’s at.

I believe Chelimo and Kipchirir are vets also.

Because she understands that a competitive career is short and they aren't paid like Premier League footballers or Ronaldo with his $1Bn lifetime contract with Nike

James Herriott wrote:

rojo wrote:

Congrats to Ms. Muir on graduating from veterinary school. Anyone else find it refreshing to find a world-class athlete that does something besides post to instagram during the other 21 hours a day that they aren't running/working out?

https://www.bbc.com/sport/scotland/44582424

I would imagine sleep takes up some of that Instagram time you speak of. While it is refreshing to see her pursue her studies to this degree, Miss Muir is not actually WORKING as a vet yet.

Definitely more pros could actually do a day job as well.

Yeah, she just graduated. You idiot. "...not actually WORKING...". LOL What a dork.

Laura - Thank you fur your service.

Rojo,

Didn't Weldon quit his job to run full time? Perhaps you should ask him

LoneStarXC wrote:

rojo wrote:

Congrats to Ms. Muir on graduating from veterinary school. Anyone else find it refreshing to find a world-class athlete that does something besides post to instagram during the other 21 hours a day that they aren't running/working out?

https://www.bbc.com/sport/scotland/44582424

It’s Dr. Muir now.

She can now write prescriptions for doggie downers for the Trainspotting gang.

It's funny, you hear sponsored pro runners on podcasts, and their lives are frequently run, maybe hit the weight room, eat, nap, get a massage, and watch Netflix.

Huapango wrote:

I wonder what type of animal drugs are effective on human endurance athletes?

Email Alberto. I'm sure he knows.

On the one hand, I'll say that many of us geezers who post here have often responded to complaints about how difficult it is for marginal elite runners to support themselves by talking about runners from "our" era who were putting up times that would make them competitive today while working "real" jobs. The point being that if you aren't making enough from your running you could always get a job and continue serious training. The two are not mutually exclusive and it is always refreshing, for lack of a better word, to see someone prove that point.

On the other hand, I've always thought that the great thing about being a professional athlete is that you get paid for doing something you really like doing rather than for something you're only doing to support yourself. You don't have to deal with the drudgery of a conventional job. So if someone is making enough from their running to do that and nothing more, why would they do anything besides run?