THE LATEST in the aches, pains & eligibility departments:
Prep sprint star Mia Brahe-Pedersen says she is nearly recovered from the hamstring problem that limited her indoor season.
Rio 1500 gold medalist Matthew Centrowitz has decided at 34 that this is his final season. (see Last Lap).
Oregon miler Elliott Cook, who ran a 3:55.50 in December, ended his indoor season after Christmas vacation hip injury.
VaTech’s reigning NCAA vault champ Julia Fixsen is recovering from a herniated disc and hasn’t competed yet this year.
Now self-coached, Kate Grace is returning from childbirth, and expects to open up in April or May.
Conner Mantz withdrew from the New York City Half Marathon because of a “minor setback.”
Alicia Monson was gunning for a very fast 10,000 at The TEN when she was forced to drop out with stomach problems. She later posted, “Not a good time to come down with a stomach bug. But I guess life happens.”
Two-time Olympic TJ champion Christian Taylor has confirmed that he will retire at the end of the ’24 season.
Juliette Whittaker won the NCAA 800 despite straining her hamstring that week as well as dealing with some chronic knee pain.
On The International Front…
Belgium’s Bashir Abdi, the Tokyo bronze medalist in the marathon, is working his way back from a sacral stress fracture.
Twice a World Champs finalist at 200, Bahamian Tynia Gaither has retired at 31.
Sifan Hassan withdrew from the World Cross Country, saying, “I prefer to give my body more time to recover from the marathon and focus on what is ahead.”
Steepler Gesa-Felicitas Krause postponed training camp because of a bad case of sinusitis.
Ireland’s Ciara Mageean had to miss the indoor season after developing a hamstring problem in setting a 15:13 best for the popular ParkRun 5K series.
With discomfort in his right thigh, Kevin Mayer dropped out of the Aztec Invitational decathlon on day 1. As of yet the defending Olympic champion has not produced an Olympic qualifier. He said, “We still have plenty of options, much closer, but nothing has been decided. This will be a last-minute decision. From now on, I really don’t want to rush the preparation.”
Aleksandr Menkov, the ’13 world champion in the long jump, says he will retire after Russia’s Friendship Games, partly because his nation has been barred from international competition.
Arshad Nadeem, world bronze medalist in the javelin, is back to training after December surgery on his shoulder.
Johannes Vetter skipped March’s European Throwing Cup, “due to the problems with my elbow and because I’m still a bit worn out from training camp.”
Anita Włodarczyk says that she that Paris will be her final Olympics, potentially giving her a record four straight gold medals in the hammer. She indicated she will retire at some point before the ’28 Games.
High jumper Maryia Żodzik (6-5½/1.97) has switched nationalities from Belarus to Poland, and will be eligible in time for the Olympics.
Doping Bans…
6 years – Purity Komen (Kenya, distance);
3 years – Winnie Jemutai (Kenya (distance), Norbert Kigen (Kenya, marathon);
2 years – Sofiane Bouchikhi (Belgium, distance), Tiffany James-Rose (Jamaica, 100H), Caroline Kipkirui (Kazakhstan, distance);
18 months – Alexie Alaïs (France, javelin);
1 year – Megistu Nigatu (Ethiopia, marathon). □