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

"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 finished 12th in the 5,000 meter final. His road to get to the Games was not easy. In his final race as an NAU Lumberjack, he qualified for Tokyo when he ran 13:13 for the Olympic standard when he finished second at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Shortly after that performance, he had to figure out a way to get to Tokyo because his status as a beneficiary of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals prevented him from leaving the United States without being able to return to the United States. He hired a lawyer and through the support of many members of the running community and mounting media pressure, he was able to get permission from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to leave. You’ll hear his backstory going back to moving to the United States as a one-year-old, the opportunities that sports and his education presented him and the lasting legacy that he hopes being able to compete at the Olympics was able to provide inspiration to many of the other Dreamers in America. 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 training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 📧 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG Newsletter 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

“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 coverage of the sprints and jumps in 2022.  Jasmine is a world championship silver medalist from 2015 in the 4x100m relay. She also competed in the long jump at the 2019 world championships in Doha. Last year, she finished eighth at the U.S. Olympic Trials in the women’s long jump. She trains in California and has her sights set on making this year’s world championship team in Eugene, Oregon. However, the road there isn’t all that glamorous. In this episode, she also peels back the curtain of why she recently went public with a GoFundMe looking for assistance in funding her housing before she makes it Hayward. On the page, she says: “I know I can break the American Record in long jump. I know I can make this World Championship Team and I know I can Medal. I just need Proper resources again.”  It’s very candid and maybe you can consider supporting her on her journey whether it’s as a backer or as a general fan. She’ll have CITIUS MAG behind her in 2022. Follow Jasmine: Instagram | Twitter 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 training log is compatible with Garmin, Strava, Polar, Stryd, COROS and a slew of other apps and devices. If you are a coach, Final Surge makes planning and analyzing workouts simple and helps streamline communication with your athletes. If you’re an athlete out there hammering miles and tempo runs solo with no guidance or direction, Final Surge is also here to offer up some world-class training programs. Check out their offerings today: FINALSURGE.COM HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings. 🎙️ 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

Kyle Merber and Chris Chavez return to host our first CITIUS MAG Live postgame show called After The Final Lap.  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. For the Millrose Games, we were joined by a surprise guest host: 2016 Olympic gold medalist Matthew Centrowitz. Guests for the show include On Athletics coach Dathan Ritzenhein, men's Wanamaker mile champion Olli Hoare, men's 3000m winner Geordie Beamish, women's Wanamaker mile runner-up Josette Norris and NCAA cross country champion Conner Mantz. Kick back for a fun hour of banter!  (For those listening in the car or at home with their kids, there is some explicit language in this episode. Thanks for that Olli.) ----- Follow CITIUS MAG -----  ▶ Subscribe to the podcast: https://apple.co/3Byp72I ▶ On Twitter:  http://twitter.com/CitiusMag   ▶ On Instagram: http://instagram.com/citiusmag ▶ On Facebook: http://facebook.com/citiusmag ▶ On our website: http://citiusmag.com  For business inquires: chris@citiusmag.com

"I need to have a good 'why' for why I'm doing it and what drives me. For me, it's never been money before with college running... I want to do it for the love of the sport and the fulfillment it brings me. Just Keep my 'Why' in a good place." Whittni Orton Morgan is the reigning NCAA cross country out of BYU who joins us to share some news that she has signed her first professional contract and will be running for Adidas. She talks to me and my co-host Kyle Merber about the process and what it means for her training set up in Utah. Sneakily, there might be a real strong group forming there. We talk through her career up until this point which included playing multiple sports in high school with her favorite being basketball. So how’d she end up running and got so good at it? We touch on her mindset and motivation to win an NCAA title – which was interrupted by injuries throughout her career for the Cougars and just when things were going right, COVID strikes. A real fun conversation before she makes her debut in the women’s 3,000 meters at the Millrose Games this weekend. WATCH THE MILLROSE GAMES POSTGAME SHOW ON SATURDAY: https://youtu.be/0qH6Au6yOQk HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings. 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 👕 Pick up merch from the CITIUS MAG store to show your support for the podcast and website. 📧 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG Newsletter 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

Alicia Monson is a professional runner for the On Athletics Club and a 2021 Olympian in the 10,000 meters. Before turning pro, she was a star at the University of Wisconsin. Just a few weeks ago, she won her first national title with a win at the USATF Cross Country Championships in San Diego. In this episode, we touch on a bit more of her personality and dive into why so many things have been going right for her in the past two years. She’s got big goals to make the U.S. national team in the 10,000 meters again for this summer’s world championships. I think she does a great job providing insight into her mindset during races and when she makes her move to break the competition. Stick around for her recap of the super hot Olympic Trials 10,000m race and her funniest drug testing story. HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings. 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 👕 Pick up merch from the CITIUS MAG store to show your support for the podcast and website. 📧 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG Newsletter 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

"I didn't feel like I had it. I had no idea. With a mile to go, I looked at my watch and I think I saw 2:12. It's hard to do math when you're so tired. So I was like, 'What does that mean? I think I can do this but I need to keep going.' It's funny because when I get in really good shape, my husband calls me The Buzzsaw. Don't stand in my way because Keira is just coming through. In the last mile, I don't know what it was but I was clinging to that. I was physically saying aloud to myself, "Buzzsaw. Buzzsaw. Buzzsaw." as 'Keep going! Keep hanging on!'...I kept looking for the banner. I knew I was going to be able to see it. I was a little like, 'Please just make this soon because I don't know how much further I can go.' When I made the turn and seeing the banner, that's when I was like. 'This is going to happen for me today.'" Keira D'Amato is a friend of the podcast and just this past weekend set the American record for the marathon with her win at the Houston Marathon in 2:19:12. She took 24 seconds off Deena Kastor's previous mark which had stood since 2006. At 37 years old, she's one of the most inspiring stories in the sport. If you haven't heard her episode with me from November 2020, she talks in detail about her decade of hobby jogging after running at American University. She got married. Got into Real Estate. Had two kids. Started competing well on the national level at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials and her Cinderella story continues to this day. She went on the Today Show on Tuesday morning and then joined me for this longer conversation where we basically are processing her run in real-time. Listen to her previous episode on the CITIUS MAG Podcast from Nov. 2020. Listen to her Dec. 2020 appearance on More Than Running. HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST Interested in sponsoring the show? Reach out to Chris at chris@citiusmag.com for advertising, sponsorship and partnership offerings. 🎙️ Subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. 💵 Pledge any dollar amount to us on Patreon.com/CITIUSMAG or Hit us on Venmo @CITIUSMAG 👕 Pick up merch from the CITIUS MAG store to show your support for the podcast and website. 📧 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG Newsletter 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

“For some reason, I think everyone on this team is kind of an underdog. Everyone has that same killer mentality. We want to be at the top and we want to have that respect we deserve. Even Danny as a coach has been an underdog. Time after time, people are starting to understand these guys are legit. Josh is the best example of that. I think over the next couple of years, there will be more people winning medals.” Isaiah Harris is taking his 1:44.42 personal best for 800m and 3:42.63 personal best for 1,500m to the Brooks Beasts. In this episode, he tells CITIUS MAG why he decided to make the move after a year where he finished fourth in the 800 meters at the U.S. Olympic Trials and recorded a victory at the British Grand Prix at Gateshead. He takes us through his early roots in finding success in track as a high schooler in Lewiston, Maine. By the end of his high school career, he held the Maine state record in every event from 200 meters through 800 meters. Riley Masters considers him the greatest athlete to come out of Maine. Now, Isaiah wants to give back to his community at home as a professional because Lewiston ranks as Maine's poorest city so you'll get to hear a bit about those plans. Consider Isaiah someone to watch in the 800 in 2022. 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 👕 Pick up merch from the CITIUS MAG store to show your support for the podcast and website. 📧 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG Newsletter 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

"I was planning to go to the marathon last year but this injury came up. I still have unfinished business on the track so after world champs, I’m going to try to debut at a fall marathon. Hopefully New York or something. That was my main thing. Once I switch my focus and I’m doing the marathon, I’m going to do some damage there." Shadrack Kipchirchir is the newly-crowned 2022 USATF cross country champion. He is a 2016 Olympian and has not missed a U.S. world outdoor championship team since he switched allegiances from Kenya to America in 2014. After he kicked to the win on Saturday, I tried doing a little bit of research into his upbringing and his career path and honestly couldn’t find much. This is someone who has the 4th-fastest U.S. 10,000 meter time and has won six U.S. titles. So I reached out to him and invited him onto the show. This is his first-ever podcast interview and we went through his early days in Kenya growing up as one of nine kids, why he came to America to run for Western Kentucky and then Oklahoma State, why he enlisted in the Army before even thinking of the opportunity of being able to run for Team USA and how he’s found success. Last year, he suffered the first major injury of his career with a torn calf that knocked him out of making his second Olympic team. He cross-trained his butt off and roared back with the cross country victory in his first race in 294 days. 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 👕 Pick up merch from the CITIUS MAG store to show your support for the podcast and website. 📧 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG Newsletter 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

At 20 years old, Cole Hocker has put himself atop the United States middle distance scene. I profiled him for Sports Illustrated last July after he outkicked reigning Olympic champion Matthew Centrowitz for the win in the men’s 1,500 meter final at the U.S. Olympic Trials – which was one of my favorite races to watch of the whole trials. Hocker’s finishing speed is world-class. He went on to run 3:31.40 for sixth place in the Olympic 1,500 meter final.  In September, he signed a professional contract with Nike and now sets his sights on his first professional indoor season, which includes headlining the men’s 3,000 meters at the Millrose Games. In this episode, we discuss his plans for the new year, the decision to turn professional after just one full NCAA campaign at Oregon, thoughts on American records and much more. 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 👕 Pick up merch from the CITIUS MAG store to show your support for the podcast and website. 📧 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG Newsletter 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel

"I never thought I would inspire anybody in life. I quit everything. I was never an inspiring person. To see me now, by just sharing my story of going from really sad to really glad and that being able to inspire somebody is a dream come true. I love making videos. I love sharing my story. I love oversharing, as my husband would say. The fact that it can help people is like, 'Are you kidding this is amazing?!" It is just more motivation to keep going, keep making videos and keep running because there are so many benefits that it's brought to me. Seeing the change that it brings other people is addicting and it never gets old." We welcome Erin Azar – also known as Mrs. Space Cadet. She’s a rapidly-growing social media star with 720,000 TikTok followers and 70,000 Instagram followers. She describes herself as an "expert struggle runner and struggle lifer making running more approachable for beginners." I first learned of her in Dec. 2020 when she was a guest on Dana’s podcast. She is one of the people who really picked up the sport during the pandemic and chronicled her journey on Tiktok to millions of viewers. The sport is growing right now and there are thousands of people like Erin. In this episode, we recap her experience in this running journey including running the NYC Marathon and also how we can get someone like her to connect with track and field since there’s typically that disconnect. This is a fun conversation and I hope you all enjoy it as we wrap up the year and start an epic 2022. SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS TRACKSMITH has launched the Tracksmith Foundation. If you’re not able to attend the Midnight Mile but would like to make a donation to the foundation, you can do so through the Tracksmith website. Listeners get 15% off their purchase using code CITIUS15 at checkout. Visit Tracksmith.com today. 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 👕 Pick up merch from the CITIUS MAG store to show your support for the podcast and website. 📧 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG Newsletter 🎥 Subscribe to the CITIUS MAG YouTube channel