The CITIUS MAG Podcast | A Running + Track and Field Show

"We don't talk about winning national championships...What may sound close to it is – we want to execute a great team race in moments that matter. So language we're really careful about. Winning, second, third, fourth, sixth – those are outcomes. I gotta teach this stuff the years that we get 19th. The teaching is the same." We made it happen. Today we have the pleasure of speaking with Coach Mike Smith of Northern Arizona University. With more than 20 years of coaching experience under his belt, Coach Smith has turned the Northern Arizona cross country program into a dynasty. Since joining the team in 2016, the Lumberjacks have won multiple Big Sky Conference Championships for both men and women. The men’s team has won six national titles in the past seven years. Coach Smith has been at the helm for five of those. He’s produced multiple All-Americans and Olympians. He is a five-time USTFCCCA National Men's Coach of the Year. In this chat, we'll be discussing his coaching philosophy and what he's learned on the job to create a winning culture. Enjoy! SUPPORT THE SPONSORS OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. Learn more at DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount) HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

On this week's show, it's silly season in the track and field world with athletes switching teams and signing new contracts. The Boston Marathon unveiled its deepest fields maybe ever. The Millrose Games Wanamaker Mile and men's 800 fields were released. World Athletics has posted the schedule for all athletics action at the 2024 Paris Olympics. 3:25 – Recent athlete signings & moves: Natosha Rogers to PUMA Elite | Josette Norris to On Athletics Club | David Ribich to Union Athletics Club | Charlie Grice, Eric Avila to Very Nice Track Club | Paige Stoner, Cruz Culpepper to HOKA NAZ Elite | Stephanie Bruce unretires, re-signs with HOKA NAZ Elite  11:15 – Millrose Games Wanamaker Mile: Olli Hoare is back to defend his Wanamaker mile title after setting the indoor Australian mile record with last year's 3:50.83 victory. His biggest challengers this year include Cole Hocker, Mario Garcia Romo, Yared Nuguse, Johnny Gregorek, Sam Tanner, Sam Prakel, Neil Gourley + more. 15:57 – Millrose Games Men's 800m: Bryce Hoppel returns after last year's victory but will be up against Clayton Murphy, Noah Kibet and Cade Flatt. 18:09 – The Boston Marathon fields include Eliud Kipchoge, Evan Chebet, Benson Kipruto, Albert Korir, Daniel Do Nascimento, Conner Mantz and Scott Fauble on the men's side. There are five women with sub-2:18 marathon PRs and the big stars are Amane Beriso, Sharon Lokedi, Lonah Salpeter, Sara Hall, Gotytom Gebreslase, Emma Bates and Edna Kiplagat. 26:57 – World Athletics' 2024 Olympic schedule has all evening finals. Track and field at the Games will be held from Aug. 1 to 11. 32:58 – Buy or Sell: World Bests, World Record Pending Ratification*, Off Distances, Jake Wightman Losing, Bobby Kersee, Track Meets In Los Angeles. 42:17 – What else is happening inside CITIUS MAG SUPPORT THE SPONSORS OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. Learn more at DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount) HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

“I think I was ready for a change and I wanted to really see where I could keep growing as an athlete...I wanted that team environment. I took a visit to the On Athletics Club in October and my gut just said, ‘This is where you need to be to be successful.’" Josette Norris was previously a guest on this show back in October 2021 but she’s back now after signing a new contract with On and has joined the On Athletics Club. We talk about how the move came together, why she’s excited to workout with Alicia Monson and Sage Hurta and how she overcame some mental battles during last year’s outdoor season. She is making her OAC debut at the Dr. Sander Invitational on Jan. 28 and then racing the women’s Wanamaker Mile at the Millrose Games on Feb. 11. SUPPORT THE SPONSORS OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. Learn more at DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount) HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

"I want to consistently compete for podium finishes in the U.S. road racing scene. I'll probably still dabble with the track a little bit as well. I have unfinished business there. My big goals for this year are to be more consistently competitive for titles and also gain confidence going into 2024." 2022 USATF marathon champion Paige Stoner has signed a pro contract and joined HOKA NAZ Elite and is training under coach Alan Culpepper in Flagstaff, Arizona. She is coming off a victory at the California International Marathon where she took 51 seconds off the course record with a personal best of 2:26:02. The time puts her at No. 21 on the U.S. all-time list and she is just 26 years old. In this episode, we discuss why she is joining the team, what she’s most excited about and how she took a bet on herself by self-coaching herself for much of last year.  SUPPORT THE SPONSORS OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. Learn more at DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount) HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

“You’re just thinking of everything to get yourself through it. I was chatting with a lot of people down there. In hearing people’s stories, you realize everyone has their own story and they have something in their past that they’re there for now. That’s when I realized when I was on the course that it was all coming to me. I never had that experience before where you’re asking for help and anything to get you going.” My guest for this episode is former Ole Miss standout Sean Tobin who just broke the record for the fastest Antartic marathon in history. Last minth, the Irish star went down to the Earth’s southernmost continent and ran 2:53:33 to win the Antarctic Ice Marathon and broke the previous record of 2:54:54 held by USA’s Mike Wardian. It was 6.8 degrees Fahrenheit but with super tough footing. He described it as one of the toughest things he’s ever done. He’s someone whose run super well on the track including personal bests of 3:57 for the mile and 13:33 for 5K. Hear more about how he pulled this off and what it took to dig deep mentally and physically to walk away with the record. SUPPORT THE SPONSORS OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. Learn more at DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount) HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

In 2023, the CITIUS MAG Podcast will try to bring you a weekly podcast that unpacks some of the biggest news stories and headlines in track and field with our team's own commentary, analysis and occasionally jokes. In this episode Chris Chavez, Kyle Merber and Jasmine Todd cover: – What are we most excited and optimistic about in 2023? – Houston Half Marathon fields were announced ahead of its running on Jan. 15. U.S. recorder holder Emily Sisson headlines the women's field but will be up against Hiwot Gebrekidan and Tirunesh Dibaba. Fan favorites Conner Mantz and Edward Cheserek are in the men's field but face three East African men who have broken 60 minutes. Vanessa Fraser and Jenny Simpson will be making their debuts at 13.1 miles. – What events are you looking forward to at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix on Feb. 3 and Millrose Games on Feb. 11th. – 'Buy or Sell' features a discussion on World Athletics' Olympic qualifying standards, Handicap Races, World Cross Country Mixed Gender Relay, the Devon Allen rule change and the closing of The Wild Duck.  SUPPORT THE SPONSORS OLIPOP is a prebiotic soda with only 2-5g of sugar that is actually good for your gut health. – and it's delicious. Use code CITIUS25 for 25% off non-subscription orders. Learn more at DrinkOlipop.com (click the link or use our promotional code for the discount) HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

We’re off for the holidays but we didn’t want to leave your podcast feed empty this week so here’s a recent conversation that Kyle Merber and I had with PUMA Elite’s Patrick Tiernan and Fiona O’Keeffe while at The Running Event in Austin, Texas. They’re fantastic leaders on the up and coming team based in North Carolina that is coached by Alistair and Amy Cragg. Tiernan sat down with us just two months after running 2:11:02 in his marathon debut at the Chicago Marathon. Fiona has put together a strong year that was highlighted by a 67:42 half marathon in Houston and her first national title at the U.S. 10-Mile Championships in October. She was also the top PUMA woman in their win at Sound Running’s Cross Champs, which was the day after we recorded this. SUPPORT THE SPONSORS TRACKSMITH: Running in cold weather requires thoughtful layers and Tracksmith’s Fells Collection is a Citius favorite. During the month of December, visit tracksmith.com/citius and use code “CITIUSMAG” at checkout for free shipping and to support Achilles International – Their mission break down barriers to race start lines and empower the disability community to cross the finish line. VELOUS is an active recovery footwear brand designed to help you restore, revive & re-energize before and after you train. Two years in development, this team has created the world’s most comfortable, supportive and lightweight active recovery shoe in the world. Get 20% off using code CitiusMag20 GARMIN: Music. Training. Data. The Garmin Forerunner 245 Music is my favorite running partner. You do the running. This GPS running smartwatch does the thinking. It even gets to know you and your body better, mile after mile and song after song. Get one for yourself here >> https://bit.ly/3Pcu0qo FINAL SURGE: If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF. HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

“All they threw at me was ‘impossible, impossible, impossible.’ I said, ‘OK. I accept but how are you going to do it?’ They said, ‘You don’t get it. It’s impossible.’ I said, ‘No, you don’t get it. How are you going to make it happen anyway?’ Probably from being a coach and an athlete, I can set that spark in people so that they trust me and if I really believed so much in this idea that they joined the team to make it happen.” Olivier Bernhard is one of the founders of On Running. He’s been a runner and athlete his entire life but in 2010, he was looking to pitch several major sportswear companies on selling runners and athletes a new experience and feel while running as opposed to just another product. When he was turned away several times, he took it upon himself to create a prototype and pursue the project independently. He showed off the first Frankenstein shoe to his friends David Allemann and Caspar Coppetti and they decided to partner on starting On. The brand has since partnered with tennis legend Roger Federer and IPO’ed in September 2022 with a $6 billion valuation. I had the chance to sit down with Olivier last month and got a bit of the story of how this company came together and why they’re going to continue pushing innovation and high performance with their athletes and a major investment in running. SUPPORT THE SPONSORS TRACKSMITH: Running in cold weather requires thoughtful layers and Tracksmith’s Fells Collection is a Citius favorite. During the month of December, visit tracksmith.com/citius and use code “CITIUSMAG” at checkout for free shipping and to support Achilles International – Their mission break down barriers to race start lines and empower the disability community to cross the finish line. VELOUS is an active recovery footwear brand designed to help you restore, revive & re-energize before and after you train. Two years in development, this team has created the world’s most comfortable, supportive and lightweight active recovery shoe in the world. Get 20% off using code CitiusMag20 GARMIN: Music. Training. Data. The Garmin Forerunner 245 Music is my favorite running partner. You do the running. This GPS running smartwatch does the thinking. It even gets to know you and your body better, mile after mile and song after song. Get one for yourself here >> https://bit.ly/3Pcu0qo FINAL SURGE: If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF. HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

“Like any athlete or person, when you cross one task off your list you think, ‘I can do better.’ After CIM, I feel OK and I ran what I ran but you know what? I probably can run faster. I felt very controlled and ran a very smart, conservative race where I knew I would successfully complete this task and this mission that I’m on.” Maegan Krifchin is a professional marathoner for the Atlanta Track Club and I decided to have her on because I needed to know more about the wild past 30 days for her. It starts on Nov. 6 with the New York City Marathon where she ran 2:40:52 in hot conditions. Two weeks later, she ran 2:31:42 to take second in the cold conditions of the Philadelphia Marathon. She capped off her year with a 2:29:21 in perfect conditions to finish 7th in a personal best at the California International Marathon, which also served as the USATF Marathon Championships. This PR was a long time coming for Maegan so I needed to hear more about her decade-long journey to this marathon threepeat. SUPPORT THE SPONSORS TRACKSMITH: Running in cold weather requires thoughtful layers and Tracksmith’s Fells Collection is a Citius favorite. During the month of December, visit tracksmith.com/citius and use code “CITIUSMAG” at checkout for free shipping and to support Achilles International – Their mission break down barriers to race start lines and empower the disability community to cross the finish line. VELOUS is an active recovery footwear brand designed to help you restore, revive & re-energize before and after you train. Two years in development, this team has created the world’s most comfortable, supportive and lightweight active recovery shoe in the world. Get 20% off using code CitiusMag20 GARMIN: Music. Training. Data. The Garmin Forerunner 245 Music is my favorite running partner. You do the running. This GPS running smartwatch does the thinking. It even gets to know you and your body better, mile after mile and song after song. Get one for yourself here >> https://bit.ly/3Pcu0qo FINAL SURGE: If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF. HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

"Looking back, I should’ve taken more time to process what had happened after the Olympics. It was such an enormously positive experience that I think it made me forget how difficult it was going into it...I do think you have to be able to take that time to figure out why you’re in this sport and why you enjoy doing this and how you’re going to take everything forward from there. Please welcome back Molly Seidel to the CITIUS MAG Podcast. We just recorded this at The Running Event in Austin, Texas where we partnered with PUMA Running to host a group run, tape a live podcast and follow around the PUMA Elite women before they won Cross Champs. Stay tuned for more content coming from this trip. I really enjoyed this conversation with Molly as we caught up on a lot from the past year including how she handled some lows in her running due to injury and mental health struggles. She’s doing much better and I’m excited for what’s to come with her in 2023. SUPPORT THE SPONSORS TRACKSMITH: Running in cold weather requires thoughtful layers and Tracksmith’s Fells Collection is a Citius favorite. During the month of December, visit tracksmith.com/citius and use code “CITIUSMAG” at checkout for free shipping and to support Achilles International – Their mission break down barriers to race start lines and empower the disability community to cross the finish line. VELOUS is an active recovery footwear brand designed to help you restore, revive & re-energize before and after you train. Two years in development, this team has created the world’s most comfortable, supportive and lightweight active recovery shoe in the world. Get 20% off using code CitiusMag20 GARMIN: Music. Training. Data. The Garmin Forerunner 245 Music is my favorite running partner. You do the running. This GPS running smartwatch does the thinking. It even gets to know you and your body better, mile after mile and song after song. Get one for yourself here >> https://bit.ly/3Pcu0qo FINAL SURGE: If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM – USE CODE CITIUS FOR 10% OFF. HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel