Drew MF Hunter just made Team USA for WC!!

*quite

They're the same age bro

From the brief clip of the race I have just seen, very brief, he will have difficulty getting to the final at Worlds. Slow pace is pretty much guaranteed in Doha especially in the heats and as yet there's no evidence of real acceleration and kick from him. Fast 1500/mile times are no guarantee that an athlete can kick hard over the last 300 or so in a slow 5000.

I agree 100% with you rojo! The meet should have been 3 to 4 weeks later to give more time for qualifiers. I can’t get excited about ANYONE making a team by finishing 5th!

I am glad you are so excited for your 5th place finisher who made the worlds team. Basically anyone who can’t be top 3 in the race will be crushed at Worlds. He needs to up his game or he will never make the final

Why are there so many Hunter stans? People act like he’s still in high school.

Only you are, cracky.

He’s 22 years old and will gain the experience of a world championship. I don’t think it matters how he got there.

Also, his training has a long term approach by not burning the bulb too bright. So by his mid 20s he could be closer to 13 flat. That coupled with world experience will make him more of a contender.

He’s the same age(or around the same age) as grant fisher. When is grant going to the world championships?

AP5000 wrote:

This whole thread is hilarious. This argument is like arguing whose best on the JV team, because that's what the US is on the international level.

It's "who's" as in who is. "Whose" denotes ownership. I know it's difficult for you, you're make great progress, sparky.

Who cares about 5th place in the US. That translates to like 40th place against international competition. Quick frankly it's embarrassing how bad we are with an almost 350 million person pool. Once the race is over 400 meters we are irrelevant.

Much like your poor educational development is embarrassing in such a wealthy nation. But you understand that we are proud of our best scholars and our best runners, even if they aren't the best in the world.

Drew Hunter has become “Mr. Asterisk” lately, with his two notable recent achievements both coming with huge asterisks: a “US indoor title” where he time trialed the slow heat, and now a US team qualification where he finished 5th. For almost anybody else, this would be great. For a young guy routinely hailed as the future of US distance running, it’s a bit anticlimactic.

Also, not that it really matters, but I wish he would cut his hair and stop wearing those silly half tights in a 5k. He stuck out like a sore thumb in that race, and not in a good way. He still looked like a boy among men, and he’s a bit old for that now.

I agree that U.S. athletes his age who have gone the NCAA route are catching up to him.

But come on guys, 3:35/7:39/13:22 at 21 years old. He would be a top competitor for NCAA titles at 1500, mile, 3k, 5k, XC and probably DMR. He made the smart decision to get his money/contract when he did and now he’s made an outdoor worlds team.

He’s obviously not the best ever U.S. athlete at his age, everyone should know that, but he’s pretty damn good.

Every single one of you denigrating what he has done in his professional career is pathetic. Unless you've run sub 13:30 for 5000m... you are pathetic. That is all.

JumpsDoctor wrote:

Every single one of you denigrating what he has done in his professional career is pathetic. Unless you've run sub 13:30 for 5000m... you are pathetic. That is all.

Logic fail.

AP5000 wrote:

This whole thread is hilarious. This argument is like arguing whose best on the JV team, because that's what the US is on the international level. Who cares about 5th place in the US. That translates to like 40th place against international competition. Quick frankly it's embarrassing how bad we are with an almost 350 million person pool. Once the race is over 400 meters we are irrelevant.

The US brought home 1 gold, 2 silvers, and 4 bronzes in Rio for distances over 400 meters. I wouldn't call that irrelevant.

milermb wrote:

From the brief clip of the race I have just seen, very brief, he will have difficulty getting to the final at Worlds. Slow pace is pretty much guaranteed in Doha especially in the heats and as yet there's no evidence of real acceleration and kick from him. Fast 1500/mile times are no guarantee that an athlete can kick hard over the last 300 or so in a slow 5000.

^^^^^^^^this x1000

He does not have the change of gears and closing speed to compete on the world's stage. He won't even make the final.

I support Hunter and hope he continues to run faster, but there should be no surprises as to what will happen at Doha. The qualifying heats are likely to be slow, except for the last 600m of the race, where the kickers will easily move on. So the experience of being at World's is great, elite track races is mostly a kicker's game.

I'm still marveling at Lomong -- what a great pair of races for him. He looks more fit than ever.

T ! N m @ n wrote:

JumpsDoctor wrote:

Every single one of you denigrating what he has done in his professional career is pathetic. Unless you've run sub 13:30 for 5000m... you are pathetic. That is all.

Logic fail.

This is prototypical LetsRun. I'm not sure if it is because people on here think that life is smooth for everyone and you should consistently improve at a linear rate throughout the entirety of your career, or because people are upset with the fact that they'll never be as talented as the athletes they choose to criticize anonymously, but the basic idea is this: Drew Hunter is running at the World Championships. He's allowed to dress however he wants and wear his hair at whatever length he wants. He's also allowed to struggle a bit, because that is human. Just because he isn't where people think he HAS to be after his high school career doesn't mean criticism of how his career has unfolded so far is warranted.