April 26, 2022
Nell Rojas joins the CITIUS MAG Podcast for the first time after finishing as the top American at the Boston Marathon for the second time in a row. The Boulder-based running coach placed 10th over in a new personal best of 2:25:57 – which took 75 seconds off her time from her sixth place finish last October in Boston.
In this episode, we go through her build-up to this race which wasn’t perfect and then the decision-making process into leaving her contract with Adidas that she signed in April to run in a pair of Nike VaporFly shoes.
We touch on the conversation around unsponsored runners since her decision to ditch the contract has been a topic of discussion on Twitter and message boards. Plus: Why representation matters for her as a Latina on the start line of these major races, where she sees herself in the U.S. marathoning scene + much more. Outside of running, she’s a strength and running coach based in Boulder Colorado.
For this episode, I’m joined by David Melly for a crossover episode with the Run Your Mouth Podcast.
Catch the latest episode of the podcast on Apple Podcasts. We are also on Stitcher, Google Play and Spotify.
Photo by Kevin Morris/@kevmofoto
THANKS TO FINAL SURGE FOR SUPPORTING THE SHOW
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. Some of the top coaches in the world who have been guests on this podcast use it on a daily basis.
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. Get yourself a training plan for that spring 5K, Half Marathon or full marathon on your calendar. They’ve got plans from Ben Rosario and NAZ Elite, Drew Hunter and Christine Thorn and the Tinman squad with their Hammer and Axe plans, hit the classics with Greg McMillan or Boston Marathon champion Amby Burfoot.
If you are a fan of the sport and are curious how the pros are training, Kellyn Taylor, Stephanie Bruce and the rest of the NAZ Elite squad share all of their training logs on Final Surge. Use code CITIUS at checkout for a discount.
Give it all a look at FinalSurge.com
THANKS TO THERABODY FOR SUPPORTING THE SHOW
Their new RecoveryAir JetBoots are the first of their kind as the world’s most advanced pneumatic compression system ever created. RecoveryAir flushes out metabolic waste more fully and brings back fresh blood to your legs at three times the speed of competitors. Faster cycles mean faster recovery, so you don’t have to wait for..the legs to be feelin’ great.
For more information and to get a discount visit: https://therabody.com/citius
GET TICKETS TO THE 2022 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
In less than 100 days the best athletes in the world will be heading to Oregon, but are you? The likes of Mondo Duplantis, Yulimar Rojas, and Grant Holloway will be competing in your backyard at the World Athletics Championships – but Team USA needs our support! Athletes like Devon Allen, Taliyah Brooks, and Raevyn Rogers have traveled the world competing on the biggest stages, but there’s no place like home: NEXT STOP OREGON. You can get your tickets by visiting WorldChampsOregon22.com/Tickets
SHOW NOTES AND NOTABLE QUOTES
– “I think I have a lot of room to improve between now and (the next Olympic Marathon Trials) and that’s what I’m most excited about.”
– “This is not when I’m trying to make money. If that were my goal, I’d try to make money and I would do something else. My goal for these next handful of years is to try to do the best I can do. I understand that some of these deals that these girls have – well first of all, the shoes probably work for these girls and that’s great. Good for them. Also maybe they’re getting paid a lot of money and they can’t say no to that. I’m in a different position.”
– “I just have to run well. Use it as fire. I know I will run well. I know I have a lot ahead of me so I’m like ‘Whatever.’ That’s all I have to do. I know who I am. Whatever.”
HOW TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST
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Chris Chavez
Chris Chavez launched CITIUS MAG in 2016 as a passion project while working full-time for Sports Illustrated. He covered the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and grew his humble blog into a multi-pronged media company. He completed all six World Marathon Majors and is an aspiring sub-five-minute miler.