U.S. Olympian Cory McGee On The Mindset Shift From Making U.S. Teams To Contending On The World Stage + 'The Emma Coburn Effect', Explained

“I do enjoy watching other 1500m runners who have done other special things over the years and trying to learn from that – not necessarily copy it but learn to emulate the patience. That’s sometimes challenging. It’s a lot of instinct. I had race instinct before but I didn’t have fitness. How I raced at USAs is not that abnormal in how I went about the race but now I have the fitness to finish it.”

The guest for this episode is U.S. Olympian and New Balance 1500m specialist Cory McGee. She and I go way back to when I first started covering the sport and I’m stunned it’s taken me this long to get her on. I was with her when she made the U.S. team for the 2013 World Championships but needed to hit the qualifying time. I watched it happen in Europe that summer and it’s been so cool to see her not just stick with the sport through some rough patches but figure out how to breakthrough and make teams again. She qualified for last year’s Tokyo Olympics and fulfilled a lifelong dream. This year, she backed it up by making the 1500m team for the World Championships. She’s got a personal best of 4:00 for the 1500 meters and 1:59 for 800 meters. You’ll hear how her mindset has changed to cement the fact that she belongs in the Team USA kit and is ready to contend against the world’s best. Plus, we also chat about this thought I’ve had after USAs on how Emma Coburn’s experience, mentorship and skill set helps the women around her on Team Boss.

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