My guest for today's episode is Gary Martin, a fan favorite here at CITIUS MAG since his high school days. Now he's a junior at the University of Virginia. Gary just delivered one of the fastest miles in NCAA history at the prestigious Millrose Games, running an incredible 3:48.82 – a performance that shattered his own school record and puts him at No. 2 on the all-time collegiate list and No. 8 on the world all-time indoor list.

What makes this even more impressive is that he was the only collegiate runner in such a stacked field of pros and ran a very well executed race surging through the field from being last at halfway to finishing 5th overall. Today we're diving into what this performance means for his season, his mindset going into that historic race, and how he's approaching the upcoming championship stretch.

Plus, we talk about the evolution of his career at UVA and the rapid rise of collegiate milers pushing the 1500m and the mile to new limits.

Host: Chris Chavez | ⁠@chris_j_chavez on Instagram

Guest: Gary Martin | @gary.martin20 on Instagram

Episode Highlights:

The following excerpt has been edited lightly for clarity. You can listen to the full episode with Gary Martin on the CITIUS MAG Podcast.

What led to his 3:48.82 mile breakthrough at the Millrose Games:

I think it's definitely the strength. Going back to cross country, it was a world of difference. Last year [2023], I was [219th] at NCAAs. I don't think that was a true reflection of my season, but I think on my best day I was still closer to a 50th [place] performance. I think winning [Cross Country] ACCs this year, getting 13th [at Cross Country NCAAs], and then running 7:36 in the 3K versus 7:47 last year, I knew I was due for a pretty good mile performance once I got into a little more mile shape.

Obviously I think the speed is coming from a base in strength. I've been really hitting the aerobic workouts well and I feel a lot stronger than I've ever felt. I maybe haven't touched that all-out speed as much yet, but I feel really strong and that's kind of set me up well – both to have a really long season and to run pretty fast right now.

Reflections on his progression at the University of Virginia:

My first year was definitely that big adjustment period where you're used to being the star in high school. You even think a little bit that you're going to come into college and just have a big jump. Being able to work out with guys who are four or five years older than me who have had 80-90 mile weeks under their legs for five years is a little bit of a reality check. You're getting beat up in longer workouts and you know you're not the fittest guy on the team anymore.

Training-wise, I adjusted pretty well, but it definitely took a year to feel comfortable running 70-80 mile weeks. Last year, I felt like I turned the page a little bit but struggled to get momentum because of a couple sicknesses here and there. [There was also] race tactics at NCAAs – I tripped there – and then outdoors, I just didn't have the legs. I feel like I never fully turned the corner even though I felt a lot fitter, but I think this year will be the year. Training is going really well, I’m feeling super strong, and I'm able to handle the longer threshold workouts and stuff like that pretty well this year.

Pressure, expectations, and goals heading into the Millrose Games Wanamaker Mile:

Going in, I thought I was ready to run 3:49. That was that the time I had in my mind for probably months now. I thought that once I got my chance to rip a mile, 3:49 was the time I could run. In the back of my mind, it was like, ‘If I go out there and run 3:52 or 3:53, I'm going to be really disappointed. I'm going to feel like it was a letdown.’ But on the outside, other people would probably be like, ‘It was a good race.’

I think I was putting more pressure on myself than anyone else. I'm confident in my ability, so I knew I wasn’t going to have a race where I ran four flat and got blown out of the water. I thought to myself: If I go out there and don't have the race I want to have, people probably aren't going to be looking at it because they're going to be looking at guys like Yared [Nuguse], Hobbs [Kessler], and Cam Myers at the front running 3:46. Thinking about it that way helped relieve some of the pressure in my mind, but obviously there were still a lot of nerves going into it.

Confidence heading into the postseason:

I wanted to be in a race like this – a 3:46 or 3:47 race – because I thought I could hang onto a pace like that. It's definitely a confidence builder just going out and doing it. The way I look at it is that it's a really good indicator of my fitness. It's a good sign that I'm strong and there's a big block to chisel from. I’ve still got to sharpen up and refine my race tactics going into the postseason. I'm excited to get the chance to actually go out into a more tactical race environment.

Thoughts on moving up to No. 8 on the all-time list for the indoor mile:

People asked me if I was shocked crossing the line. To be honest, I didn't feel like the shock set in yet when I crossed the line because I thought I could run 3:48 or 3:49. I was really excited, but I don't feel like I was as shocked as other people. It was afterwards when someone told me I was number eight on the world all-time list. That's when I was like, ‘Wow.’ I couldn't believe that because three years ago, I was trying to climb the high school list. I was fifth all-time in the high school rankings and now I'm eighth in the world for the indoor mile. Just comparing historical performances is what was kind of crazy about that.

Listen to the full episode here.

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