January 14, 2026
Listen
"The top three spots, you've got to work very hard to get one of them—which is exciting for me. Nothing was ever handed to me. I have to work hard for it and I'm willing to do the same thing for it now."
Zouhair Talbi joins the CITIUS MAG Podcast to share his journey from Morocco to becoming an American citizen. He discusses his recent victory at the Houston Marathon, the decision to switch his allegiance to the United States and the challenges he faced along the way from the Moroccan federation.
He reflects on his early running career, the setbacks he encountered during the Tokyo Olympics where an issue with Morocco’s drug testing ruined his chance to become an Olympian and his transition to marathon running.
Talbi also talks about his experience in the US Army, his training insights, and his aspirations for the future, including the upcoming 2028 Olympic Trials.
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Host: Chris Chavez | @chris_j_chavez on Instagram
Guest: Zouhair Talbi | @zouhairathle on Instagram
Produced by: Jasmine Fehr | @jasminefehr on Instagram
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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 on Feb. 15th, 2025 finally broke five minutes for the mile.
