Citius Mag Podcast

Nell Rojas joins the CITIUS MAG Podcast for the first time after finishing as the top American at the Boston Marathon for the second time in a row. The Boulder-based running coach placed 10th over in a new personal best of 2:25:57 – which took 75 seconds off her time from her sixth place finish last October in Boston.  In this episode, we go through her build-up to this race which wasn’t perfect and then the decision-making process into leaving her contract with Adidas that she signed in April to run in a pair of Nike VaporFly shoes.  We touch on the conversation around unsponsored runners since her decision to ditch the contract has been a topic of discussion on Twitter and message boards. Plus: Why representation matters for her as a Latina on the start line of these major races, where she sees herself in the U.S. marathoning scene + much more. Outside of running, she’s a strength and running coach based in Boulder Colorado.  For this episode, I’m joined by David Melly for a crossover episode

Happy Friday! This is the third edition of Track Snacks – a mini series 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, we're actually joined by the actual athlete. Marcell Jacobs is the reigning Olympic champion in the 100m, the reigning 60m world indoor champion and the European record holder in the men's 100 meters. Jacobs was one of the biggest surprises of the Tokyo Olympics when he ran the race of his life to become the first Olympic champion not named Usain Bolt since 2008. He proved it was no fluke by winning the World Indoor Championships in the 60m in a long-awaited clash against 2019 World Champion Christian Coleman. The fans are in for a real treat because they won't have to wait until July to see them go head-to-head again. This week. Prefontaine Classic race organizers announced Jacob

"When I pass someone, I think: Poker face and pass them with authority. You don’t want to give someone hope. There are a lot of opportunities to feel sorry for yourself in a marathon. I don’t want someone that I’m going by to have a little something to fight for. I want to put them away immediately.” Scott Fauble makes his return to the CITIUS MAG Podcast after taking seventh at the Boston Marathon in a personal best of 2:08:52, which moves him to No. 10 on the all-time U.S. list. He is the third-fastest active U.S. marathoner. This was a big performance for Scott since he shook things up a bit toward the end of 2020 by leaving his sponsor Hoka and parting ways with coach Ben Rosario and Northern Arizona Elite. He eventually teamed up with coach Joe Bosshard and spent the past few months in Colorado to prepare for Boston. We catch up on the decision-making process behind that, his brilliant race tactics in Boston, how he’s shifted his thinking after a big performance and what’s got him excited about the futur

"There was an academy called the Transcend Running Academy. That’s where I came through. It’s sponsored by (2012 Boston Marathon champion) Wesley Korir. I was working out with Wesley when I was in Kenya during high school. He taught me most of the things about running. I didn’t know I would make it in running but when he started talking to me about the benefits of going to school and continuing running, I started being serious in those two areas.” Wesley Kiptoo is the 2021 NCAA Indoor 5000m champion and put together a third and second-place finish at the last two NCAA cross country championships. He was a standout star at Iowa State but now it’s time for a new chapter in his career. Wesley has decided to turn professional and sign with Hoka’s NAZ Elite. He will be training under coach Ben Rosario and he will be making his debut tonight in the 5000m at the Mt. SAC Relays. While in college, Wesley shows fierce competitiveness by pushing the pace from the front. He earned himself personal bests of 13:14.74 for t

“I want to isolate everyone because I run by myself. If everyone gets isolated and they’re running by themselves, that’s a huge advantage for me. I don’t need a pack to run with. I do 100% of my hard training alone. I want to get people alone. I want to sucker people into going harder on the downhills...You have to have that mentality that I’m coming to mess people up. That’s what I think about in a race – just having that raw competitiveness." Brooks pro runner CJ Albertson has been a pretty highly-requested guest on this show because people can see some of the untraditional training runs that he throws down on Strava. But if you ask him, he doesn’t think it’s wild. In this episode, we discuss his rise on the US marathoning scene where he popped off to a lot of people when he led last year’s Boston Marathon for 21 miles and finished 10th. He just ran 2:12 at the Modesto Marathon with three weeks to go until the big race. The catch is that was led off course by the lead bike for a bit. His 26.2 watch split wa

"Boston is such a crazy race. I feel like if you can get to the start line feeling healthy and you've run on the course before and I've done that and I know it races, crazy things happen there. If I'm on the starting line, I'm going to give myself a chance. Last fall was really tough because I wasn't fit and I didn't totally want to be on the start line but we said, 'Eh, we'll just go out and try.' I feel like I'm still building back up from just that. I don't love my odds but if I'm healthy on the line, I'm not like, 'I have no shot.' I'm always going to give myself a chance." I believe this is 2018 Boston Marathon champion and 2x U.S. Olympian Des Linden's third time on the show and the first since 2020 when we may have enjoyed a bit too much whiskey on the air but it was the pandemic so who could blame us. In this episode, we catch up on everything she’s been up to including training for this year’s race, her foray into broadcasting with NBC, our shared love for Formula 1, where she sees her career right n

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