Laura Muir's season over

By most runner's standards, she had a pretty good year. Somehow, though, I never got the feeling she was in her normal form this year, even when she was running fast. She just didn't seem to force the pace as much, wasn't always in contention. Then, again, others were running crazy fast times.

I admire her a lot, and hope she comes back strong next year.

I have the same feeling. Loathe though I am to criticise Laura Muir, who has shown up year after year, won an Olympic silver and multiple indoor championships, she already seems to have accepted defeat before she has hit the start line. Its all very well running a pb but surely its better to win an Olympic medal? Starting as slowly as she did in the Olympic final left her with far too much to do. If Jessica Hull or Georgia Bell or Batocletti in another event had taken the same approach, they wouldn't have been in the medals either. But with Laura, it all seems to be about personal satisfaction, pbs, being friends with other runners, worshipping Kipyegon, etc.. I thought her fifth places in the world indoors at 3000m was particularly poor this year.

Laura has constantly failed to be a good 5000m runner. However, her alternative distance of 800m has proved great for her, she won the 800m at the Zurich Diamond League at the end of August last year. From Athletics Weekly's Olympic statistical review, in Olympic final, the times were:

Kipyegon’s: 59.8, 63.7 and 63.6 and she produced a final 400m of 59.3.
Georgia Bell: 60.4, 63.6 and 63.4 and ran a 60.4 last circuit.
Laura Muir: 61.7, 63.9 and 62.7 and ran a 60.5 last lap and 2:04.0 for her final 800m to Bell’s 2:05.0

I'm not convinced that running the penultimate lap nearly a second faster than the gold and bronze medallists to recover from being nearly last, and running the second half of the race a second faster than the bronze medallist is good pacing at all.

Similar for Eilish McColgan - runs some great times but has never medalled at Olympic or World level, despite many appearances, and they seem to share the belief that the Africans are unbeatable.

At this point I should say that I am a Scot, and I find frustrating at times the negative and "be satisfied/don't aim too high in case you're disappointed" attitude that our schools do their best to indoctrinate us with, and I see it in Laura, despite her great talent and many achievements. Laura seems to lack confidence in her abilities and potential and all too ready to accept being happy with a pb instead of a medal.

Sorry Laura (and Eilish!)

you would have to be their conjoined twin who NEVER sleeps to claim with any certainty that ANY of these people aren't doping...

you aren't...

and they are...

ALL DOPING at the elite international level - all of them - but they all still have to run the races at maximum effort with the level of fitness and enhancements that they bring to the starting line each time

i have come to grips with it and am able to enjoy the competitions for what they are at this point

got more hair raising goose bumping thrills from these olympics than any others ever

but, let's not be NAIVE

Muir has always carried herself with dignity and grace, but it must be really frustrating:

1) Dealing with Dibaba, Hassan, Tsegay, and then Houlihan during her best years.

2) Losing the bronze medal to Semenya in the last 5 metres at the 2017 World Championships.

3) Now Hull and Bell, and having to watch Bell beat her British record after 6 months of running.

I won't be surprised if she retired or moved to the roads (but the road races are even worse).

I honestly think it was more a case of others like Hull levelled up a gear and the arrival of Georgia Bell that were her problems. She has always run like that. She never goes with a fast first lap. She knows she will blow up and be out of medal contention.

She ran the fastest she has ever ran. You can’t really argue with that. You can disagree with her strategy and that’s fine.

Elle St Pierre said she went with the fast first lap and that’s why she faded and was out of medal contention but she felt she needed to give it a shot. They are just different runners.

Honestly, after watching Laura over the years, if she’d gone with the pace she would have placed much further down and would never have been in medal contention. She knows herself very well.

I think she’s ended her season early as she maybe doesn’t know where to go from here. Running a PB and National records isn’t enough anymore when others are improving so dramatically.

She may move to 5k next year. Will be interesting to see what her plans are.

Muir has been remarkably consistent in global 1500 finals over the past ten years. Per her Wikipedia page, here are her finishes starting with 2015 Worlds:

5th

7th

4th (lost to Semenya, so actually 3rd)

5th

2nd (Olympic Silver)

3rd

6th

5th

Aside from Kipyegon, has anyone had this kind of consistent success in a single women's distance event in recent history? 8 straight top 7 finishes? Simpson is pretty close, bit even she had a clunker in 2012, lost her shoe in 2015, and was only 8th in 2019

Well, yes of course she should have had a bronze World Championships medal in 2017 as well. Who knows how much additional confidence that would have given her at that age as a young athlete to on the world stage.

If it was that easy, you'd be doing it.

Think before you post horsesh^t!

Great season and a good decision to shut it down. See you next year!