They are options. We don’t have enough information here to conclude what option is best for her.
It’s possible (I don’t know) that her chances of making either team in 2024 are rather small, so keeping the sport fun and engaging and improving overall physicality may be sufficient reasons in themselves to try the steeple.
Keeping the sport fun, engaging and improving physicality, is one of the wackiest things I’ve ever read. She will run her best event, which is the 5000m.
I agree with the first part but can’t accept your conviction that she’ll run the 5k. “Keeping the sport fun, engaging and improving physicality” is something you’d say about a high school sophomore who’s torn between running and show choir, not an NCAA champion and Olympic hopeful. But Valby has indicated she’s going to try the steeple, and maybe she can run <9:15 this year, and maybe that does give her the best chance of making the Paris team. She could be taking a page out of the Jenny Simpson playbook, who competed in the steeple in Beijing 2008 before matriculating to the 1500.
Besides you, who has ever said such a thing? Valby is better at 5000m and that’s what she’s going to run.
I don’t have a problem with you saying Valby will run the 5000m. But when you, in essence, poo poo what Valby actually said, to then try and implicate the steeple idea as “whacky”, then you aren’t paying attention or altogether confused.
It’s easy for armchair keyboard warriors to come on here and bash these young athletes that work very hard.
I assumed that you knew how to read but I guess not since you had to ask. No you didn't mention Tuohy. Try to follow the logic. Valby made a big jump this fall. She left Tuohy in the dust. Tuohy was better than Henes when they were competing together in college. Transitive property says Valby will now beat Henes.
“Keeping the sport fun, engaging“ is what Valby said. Improving physicality is obvious.
Valby has high level coaching at Florida. They are looking at multi-year development. She said 2028 is more realistic than 2024.
There is an underlying mind-body connection in the development of physicality. Consider, if you wish, jumping water barriers as forced box-jump plyos.
My apologies, can’t really argue with that if she’s the one who said it. It does seem (to me) like she’d want to run whatever event gives her the best chance at making the Paris team, because she’s that good and the future is never guaranteed.