Yared Nuguse (guest) chasing Millrose history, Grand Slam Track’s bankruptcy list, Athing Mu moves to Dallas

2025-12-17

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It's mid-December and the running news keeps coming! Grand Slam Track filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy — we dig into the creditor list, the shocking $272K owed to Citius Mag, and what it reveals about the league's spending. On Friday, we broke the news that Athing Mu has left coach Bobby Kersee and moved to Dallas — what's next for her? Plus race recaps from the Brooks XC Championships, the Kalakaua Merrie Mile in Hawaii, and European Cross Country in Portugal. 279.26 we're joi...

It's mid-December and the running news keeps coming! Grand Slam Track filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy — we dig into the creditor list, the shocking $272K owed to Citius Mag, and what it reveals about the league's spending. On Friday, we broke the news that Athing Mu has left coach Bobby Kersee and moved to Dallas — what's next for her? Plus race recaps from the Brooks XC Championships, the Kalakaua Merrie Mile in Hawaii, and European Cross Country in Portugal.

279.26 we're joined by Yared Nuguse, who previews his quest for a fourth straight Wanamaker Mile title at the Millrose Games on February 1st. Can he break the world record in the indoor mile again?

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Links:

Millrose Games / Wanamaker Mile Tickets
Grad Slam Track Bankruptcy & Creditors List Article
The Athletic: Grand Slam Track Fundning Breakdown
Athing Mu Leaves Bobby Kersee Article
Brooks XC Championships Results
European Cross Country Results
Euro XC finish video that Jon got 1 million views on
Kalakaua Merrie Mile Results
The Marathon Project Info
LetsRun Supporters Club Gift subscription
LetsRun Suporters Club subscription for yourself
Shop LetsRun

Timestamps:

00:00 LetsRun Holiday Merch Plug — Shop.LetsRun.com
01:27 Introductions
03:00 Grand Slam Track Bankruptcy — Creditor list breakdown, athletes owed money
03:23 Flashback: Jonathan Gault's question to Michael Johnson in Jamaica
05:44 Citius Mag paid $272K by Grand Slam Track — Disclosure controversy
08:07 Grand Slam's financial relationship with media outlets
11:37 Athlete Appearance Fee Analysis — Reverse engineering what stars were paid (Sydney McLaughlin, Gabby Thomas, Josh Kerr, etc.)
15:23 How much did Grand Slam actually raise and spend?
19:42 Production costs & other creditors — $3M to TV production, $690K for graphics
24:55 Athing Mu Leaves Coach Bobby Kersee — Moved to Dallas, no new coach announced
26:06 LetsRun Supporters Club plug — Emergency podcast for members
28:36 Speculation: Is Athing Mu retiring? Pregnant? Finding a new coach?
31:46 Top Coach Candidates for Athing Mu — Justin Rinaldi, Chris Catton, Chris Cappo
35:27 Training group concerns for Mu in Dallas
38:36 Brooks XC Championships Recap — Jackson Spencer wins boys, Natasha Dudek wins girls
39:54 NXN vs. Footlocker/Brooks — Do we need two national championships?
45:02 Purpose of dual national championships debate
49:25 Jakob Ingebrigtsen Skips European Cross Country — Injury concerns
53:11 European Cross Country Recap — Jimmy Gressier vs. Thierry Ndikumwenayo, Nadia Battocletti wins women's
55:31 Jonathan's viral tweet of the men's finish
57:51 Nick Griggs (Ireland) & Innes Fitzgerald (UK) — Rising young stars
61:19 Kalakaua Merrie Mile Recap — Josh Hoey wins men's (3:55), Sinclaire Johnson wins women's (4:21 American Record)
65:43 Analysis: Hoey, Hobbs Kessler, Yared Nuguse, Nico Young, Ollie Hoare
71:43 Women's Mile: Sinclaire Johnson dominates Nikki Hiltz
75:23 USA Indoors 1500m Preview — Could be one of the greatest races ever
77:08 The Marathon Project Preview — Paul Chelimo's marathon debut
79:26 Interview: Yared Nuguse — Wanamaker Mile preview, going for 4th straight title
83:00 Will Yared step up to the 2-mile at Millrose?
85:13 Reflecting on the 2025 season — Highs and lows
87:40 Changing tactics for USAs
90:05 Thoughts on the World Championship 1500m Final
92:12 Was Cole Hocker's DQ fair?
95:49 Indoor Season Plans — Targeting the 1500m at World Indoors
97:53 Training dynamics with Geordie Beamish
100:26 Racing the Merrie Mile in Hawaii
102:43 Goals for the 2026 Season — 5K attempt, mile record chase
108:06 The collapse of Grand Slam Track — Yared's perspective as an athlete
115:12 Yared Nuguse on coming out publicly — Reaction from Notre Dame, Ethiopian community, and the running world
121:52 Closing & Holiday Gift Plug — Shop.LetsRun.com