Citius Mag Podcast

Happy Friday! This is the second edition of Track Snacks – a short show taking you into the weekend where Chris Chavez and a fellow CITIUS MAG staffer share the story of an athlete who they're excited about right now that you can expect to see compete at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 (July 15–24, 2022). In this episode, The Lap Count editor-in-chief Kyle Merber joins the show to geek out about the stardom of Uganda's Joshua Cheptegei. He is the reigning Olympic champion in the 5000m, the reigning 10,000m world champion and the world record holder in the men's 5000m and 10000m. Just two years ago, Cheptegei boosted his international profile by breaking Kenenisa Bekele's world records in the 5000m and 10000m in 2020. He has already stated his intention that he will be looking to lower his 5000m world record at the Prefontaine Classic. We dive into how his progression has also lifted up Ugandan distance running and why we think we may be seeing the greatest distance runner of all-time in his prime.

"It's almost criminal these days how little the shot put gets coverage-wise. You can say it's arguably the best it's ever been all-time...What I'm trying to do is to bring people to watch and think that guy is not only really good at what he's doing but looks really good doing it...I also think that shot putters – when it comes to the people that I've met around the world – are some of the best personalities. I think we have some of the funniest guys out there." Nick Ponzio is a shot putter who represents Italy on the global championship stage. He just took seventh at the World Indoor Championships. He is an electric follow on Instagram – @chubbydiamonds on there. He just recently threw a 21.83m personal best at the European Winter Throws Cup to open his outdoor season. He is originally from San Diego, grew up in Temecula, went to the University of Florida before transferring to USC. He also spent some time training post-collegiately in Arizona with Ryan Whiting but is now based in Nashville and coaching at B

Happy Friday! This is the first edition of Track Snacks – a short show taking you into the weekend where Chris Chavez and a fellow CITIUS MAG staffer share the story of an athlete who they're excited about right now that you can expect to see compete at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 (July 15–24, 2022). In this episode, David Melly joins the show to geek out about the brilliance of Venezuela's Yulimar Rojas. She is the reigning Olympic champion, world champion and indoor and outdoor world record holder in the women's triple jump. She most recently recorded the farthest jump in any setting ever by leaping 15.74 meters to win the World Indoor Championship triple jump gold medal in Belgrade, Serbia. She's been undefeated at every global championship since taking silver at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. We unpack other mind-blowing stats and share a little bit about her upbringing and coaching set-up. Track Snacks is presented by Hayward Magic. Everyone knows how much all of us in the CITIUS MAG

"I think that's why we're running so well. We just all push each other to be the best. We realize that none of us will be the one star. We're all going to share this together. I think that's what makes it really special. They just push me to be a better athlete. I'm just glad that we're all willing to race each other all the time and push each other and break the limits of high school running." In this episode, we speak with Roisin Willis. She is a senior at Stevens Point Area High School in Wisconsin. That’s the same high school that has produced track and field greats like Chris Solinsky and Suzy Favor Hamilton. Roisin is already one of the next big stars. Last year, she qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials when she ran 2:00.78 at the Trials of Miles NYC meet and then ended up reaching the semifinals in Eugene. The fast times continued this indoor season as she ran 2:00.06 to break the high school girls indoor 800m record. The previous record was 2:01.78 set in 2017 by Sammy Watson. She capped her indoor s

"Every time we race, records are looking to be broken or new records are looking to be set. Just like us being out there competing against each other, there's definitely a chance of us getting a record each time we go out there." In this episode, we speak with Sophia Gorriaran. She is a junior at Moses Brown School in Providence, Rhode Island. She’s truly a special athlete who comes from a family of runners yet showcases even more athleticism by being a star on her school’s lacrosse team as well. Last summer, she qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials and ran her outdoor personal best of 2:02.26 in the first round of the Olympic Trials just five days after she turned 16 years old. This winter, she ran 2:00.58 and finished fourth in the same race against pros and collegiate athletes that Roisin Willis broke the high school record. Sophia also got under Sammy Watson’s previous record from 2017 to put herself at No. 2 on the all-time high school girls 800m list. At New Balance Nationals, she raced the 400, the 80

"I would rather race them and get pulled along to a fast time and possibly get second or third instead of going and running on my own and maybe having to do a bit of extra work to get a faster time or maybe not even get that fast of a time. My mind is set on not really caring so much about winning and losing but getting a fast time." In this episode, we speak with Juliette Whittaker. She is a senior at Mount de Sales Academy in Catonsville, Maryland. Juliette is a super talented athlete who isn’t one to back away from competition and throw herself in the mix for some fast times in the process. Last year, she ran an 800m personal best of 2:01.15 in Westchester, Pennsylvania and then reached the semifinal of the U.S. Olympic Trials at 17 years old. This indoor season, she ran the high school indoor 1000m record with a 2:39.41 and clocked the third-fastest high school indoor 800m time in 2:01.69. At New Balance Nationals, she led the mile wire-to-wire to run a personal best of 4:37.23, which is the fourth-fastes

"I was never in it for the money or the fame. But if you really think about it, I had more gold medals than Allyson Felix individually. I have more medals – if I'm not mistaken – than Usain Bolt individually. Yeah, it sucks but it all goes back to how the track takes over the field. It's just unfortunate but again, I feel like I was put on this earth to inspire and not to be that person. That's just not who I was put on this earth to be. I never really dwelled on it. Do I feel like I was underappreciated? Yeah, of course. It's track and field. I'm definitely underappreciated if we're talking real talk. I'm not on that type of time or type of level. I just never really cared about things like that. But, I am the MJ of long jump though. I feel like I am that." My guest for this episode is one of the greatest track and field athletes of all-time. She doesn’t get the credit she deserves. It’s the one and only Brittney Reese aka B Reese aka Da Beast. She is the Michael Jordan of the long jump. She was the 2012 Oly

Deena Kastor is one of the greatest American distance runners of all-time. Up until recently, she was the American record holder in the marathon with a personal best of 2:19:36 from 2006. It withstood the test of time until Keira D’Amato broke it in Houston in January. Deena has held American records from 5K to the marathon. She is the 2004 Olympic bronze medalist in the marathon She is a two-time world cross country championship silver medalist. She has won the London Marathon and Chicago Marathon. The best part is that she’s not done.  In this episode, you’ll hear a bit more about her plans for the year, what excites her about the sport as a fan, coach, athlete, fan and commentator and what she makes of everyone running so dang fast. It was a blast to record this episode with Deena at the Running USA Conference in Orlando, Florida. SUPPORT THE SPONSORS FINAL SURGE: No matter if you are an athlete or a coach, Final Surge helps plan and attain both short, and long-term training success. Their free online

“To be able to have a race where we’re focusing fast and really see the culmination of the hard work and the progress made – both in training and my mentality and my approach to training/racing – was really cool to see come to fruition.” Bowerman Track Club star Elise Cranny returns to the show for the first time in two years. The last time she was on was in 2020 after she ran 14:48 for the 5000m, which was a major breakout performance. We went through her high school, college and early pro years but ever since then, she’s ramped it up to the next level. In 2021, she won the U.S. Olympic Trials in the 5000 meters and then finished 13th at the Tokyo Olympics. She was also fourth in the 10000 meters at the Trials. Last month, she ran 14:33.17 to break the 5000m indoor American record. Less than two weeks ago, she hit the track outdoors in California at Sound Running’s The Ten and ran 30:14.66 for the second-fastest 10000 meter time by an American woman. Only Molly Huddle’s American record is faster. I got the c

Kyle Merber and Chris Chavez host After The Final Lap live from The Armory in New York City for the 2022 New Balance Indoor Nationals.  We are joined by special guest host Trayvon Bromell. – On the final day of the championship meet, we saw Cade Flatt of Benton, Kentucky run the No. 3 U.S. HS boys all-time 800m mark in 1:48.86. He joined us to share why he isn't afraid to talk about going for the high school record.  – Roisin Willis of Stevens Point, Wisconsin continued her incredible indoor season by adding a national title to go along with her indoor 800m record. – Juliette Whittaker of Mt. De Sales (Maryland) ran the fourth-fastest girls high school mile in 4:37.23 by leading the race wire-to-wire. – Gary Martin of Archbishop Wood High School (Pennsylvania) won the boys mile in 4:02.34 along with three other boys under 4:03. He's not afraid to talk about sub-four minute mile aspirations. + Much more New Balance Nationals Indoors 2022: You can find live results, entries and a schedule of events he

Kyle Merber and Chris Chavez host After The Final Lap live from The Armory in New York City for the 2022 New Balance Indoor Nationals.  We are joined by special guest hosts Emma Coburn and Cory McGee. Newbury Park High School destroyed the U.S. HS Boys 4 x Mile record in 16:29.31. We're joined by Aaron Sahlman (4:11.37 split), Leo Young (4:06.86 split), Lex Young (4:07.35 split) and Colin Sahlman (4:03.74 split). Flower Mound High School (TX) broke the U.S. HS Girls 4 x Mile record in 19:37.78. We're joined by Nichole Humphries (4:56.23), Alexandra Fox (5:01.36), Samantha Humphries (4:56.47) and Natalie Cook (4:43.73).  With the NFL, NBA or MLB, you tune in to the game and afterward, you hear more from the athletes and coaches and get some fresh takes and thoughts from analysts about what you just saw. We’re bringing that to you in a fun show after some of the best action from these high school stars.  Kick back for a fun hour of banter! Be sure to join the conversation on Twitter, Facebook and

"If you’re not having fun with it, I think you’re going to look back in a few years once you retire and be like, ‘You know what, maybe I didn’t handle it the right way. I was too serious with it.’ You can have fun with it, enjoy it and still do well. Everybody was talking about how Molly wasn’t taking it seriously – No. We were taking it super seriously in Sapporo and Tokyo in everything we were doing. Having fun is also super important and I think that improves their performance at the end of the day. People can look at it and be like, ‘Oh they’re joking around and having fun.’ But yeah, we joke around, we have fun but we perform, which is what matters at the end of the day.” Jon Green is a former All-American from Georgetown who ran professionally for a brief time after college but now he’s most known for his coaching credentials. At 27 years old, he’s coached someone to an Olympic team and an Olympic bronze medal in Tokyo. That someone is Molly Seidel, who used to be his teammate but then they teamed up to

"In this sport, it's always about what have you done for me lately. All I can do is control what I can control moving forward. That's: Running fast, making teams and getting medals...This is my fifth indoor USAs and my third team. It meant so much to get positive feedback from people who are actually fans of track and saw that after the Olympics I was able to put together more races and show I'm still here." My guest for this episode is Marvin Bracy, who just finished second in the 60-meter dash at the U.S. Indoor Track and Field Championships. He tied his personal best of 6.48. Last year, he ran a 100m personal best of 9.85. He was an Olympian in 2016 in Rio and there's a chance that he was going to make the team again last year but hurt himself in the semifinal. The years between Rio and 2021 are fascinating to observe. You don't see any results on his World Athletics profile from 2017 to 2019 because he took a break to play pro football in the AAF. He was a high school star in track and football, spent tim

“I’m no superstar like LeBron James or Tom Brady. There are occasions when people come up to me and say certain things and they’re flattering. I walk away just saying, ‘You have a mission. You were put on this earth and you have an opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives.’ I know that.” My guest for this episode is Boston Marathon race director Dave McGillivray, who is an absolute legend. While that title may be what he's best known for, he’s also quite the philanthropist through his work organizing and managing events through DMSE Sports and now through the Dave McGillivray Finish Strong Foundation. Next month, he will be running his 50th Boston Marathon. Many people may have heard of his story about how he runs the race at night as the last finisher. This time, he’s going to try to make it special for the final mile. You will walk away inspired by his story. The crazy part is that Dave has run more or organized more than 1,000 mass participatory events so we haven’t even scratched the surface of

"I'm looking forward to competing against those guys. They may be world championship qualifiers and Olympians but if I enter these events scared of them, then I'm not doing myself any favors and I'm not really living up to my mantra of finding my limits. If I can compete with them, I can obviously and hopefully surpass them. I'm looking forward to the competition and getting to know them as competitors and fellow U.S. athletes aspiring for the same dream." My guest for this episode is Atlanta Track Club Elite middle distance star and new 1000m American record holder Shane Streich. A few weeks ago, Shane took people by surprise when he ran 2:16.16 at the American Track League’s Eastern Indoors meet to break Bryce Hoppel’s previous record by .11 seconds. Shane is having a solid indoor campaign with three wins in his four races so consider him someone to watch at the upcoming USATF Indoor Championships. In this episode, get to learn a bit more about the former Minnesota Gopher and Lipscomb Bison, why he chose th

"I think if I can be in 3:27 shape again and just be stronger to maybe be able to run 3:28.5 in the final, that's the best I can do. If they keep getting better and run 3:25 or 3:26 in the final of a major championship, I've got to be honest with myself and say, 'Well I'm not there yet.' Because I'm not. I can run 3:27-high in a major championship this year. I know I can. If that wins, it wins. But it was the same conversation back in 2020: We can run 3:29 in the Olympic final and we just have to be happy with what that comes out with. We're chasing to be the best in the world. I want to be world champion this year. Everything that I can do to make that happen, I'm going to try. At the end of the day, if I cross the line running my best race as I did in 2021, I'll shake everyone's hand and be happy with my performance and how I represented myself and my brand at that major championships." My guest for today’s episode is Brooks Beasts star and 2021 Olympic 1500m bronze medalist Josh Kerr. This man is entertain

"I didn't know if I wanted to go pro after the Olympic trials. I actually had a job lined up. I had accepted a job offer in South Carolina to start in the fall starting August. And I called them when I qualified for the Trials and I'm like, “Hey, I'm not going to be there. I'm going back to school, I'm going to be in East Lansing.” Having the opportunity to come in for a sixth year and get a free master's degree was pretty big...I knew that competing more and getting my name out there a little bit more would be really advantageous. So I decided to come back as a collegiate and maybe get a maybe a better deal or get with a team that hadn't been looking at me that I was a better fit for after the trials. I didn't get a whole lot of attention from pro teams or even agents immediately after the Trials. It wasn't until the fall...Now I have the time to look at all of the options and see what's what and where I could go while not making any super rash decisions – all while still getting a master's degree." My guest

"I jokingly told my wife, 'I bet if just had a decent bunch of kids, I bet I could win a state meet and be a national-caliber team.' She was like, 'Yeah...yeah...' I emailed all the coaches in the area. I decided to go back to school to get my credentials and maybe I'd teach in high school. Nobody got back to me but Newbury Park. The coach was like, 'Hey, I'm retiring in a couple of years. We need someone to take over the program.' That's kind of how it happened. I just walked into the program, sat down with the guys and we were not very good at the time. I just started setting the standards high. It made some people mad at first. I might have lost one or two kids mentally wanting to put that work in. It turned around pretty quickly. We won a state championship in three years. We won a couple more and then a national championship. My girls won the state championship. It's just been snowballing since. The biggest thing I say is that we don't set boundaries. We really don't. We just go after what we want." I go

"There are over 600,000 dreamers in America. When I think about my situation at the Olympics, out of the 600,000 Dreamers, imagine if there was someone else in the same exact situation higher than Olympics or even better than the Olympics – something better than that and they can’t get the opportunity to go to their event or do this or that. That’s why my whole movement when it started it was really big for all the Dreamers in the U.S. It was an inspiration I think to say if I could do it, they can do it. It’s really difficult to be in the situation we are in because there are a lot of obstacles we have to go through. It’s really hard to leave the country in the first place. Imagine if you’re somebody who wants to travel and see the world, you might not ever have the opportunity to do that because if you leave you can’t get back in. I think I kind of started something and got more recognition for what DACA is and what Dreamers are.” Luis Grijalva was an Olympian for Guatemala at the Tokyo Olympics and finishe

“For me, that American record has been on my mind since I’ve been at Oregon. I know that I can hit that American record. The fact that I went to the Olympic Trials and came in eighth off of four weeks of training, that’s what did it for me. In 2021, I was not as fast as I had been in 2015 due to my hamstring injury. After last year and being at the Olympic Trials and finishing eighth, that was the moment. These girls were jumping. It’s not like you weren’t out there competing. This is something you can do. That American record can happen. All you need is your speed back. You’re at a great facility. You can’t deny your jumps coach. You can’t deny your training group. You’re learning from this amazing training group. Your coaches believe in you. Your family believes in you. There’s no reason to not have set in stone to myself: You’re the future American record holder. That’s my goal. That’s what I want to do.” Please give her a warm welcome as Jasmine Todd is joining the CITIUS MAG team to help bolster our cove