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Galen
Rupp, 18, won the Junior Boys' 8K race at the 2005 USA Cross Country
Championships on February 13. Rupp graduated from high school last
spring and has opted to forego NCAA running (for now, at least)
and train under his high school coach, Alberto Salazar, in Portland,
Oregon. Rupp will lead the U.S. junior team at the World Cross Country
Championships in France at the end of March.
On
his race strategy:
I just wanted to make it as easy as possible, from the start —
kind of sit back the first two laps, and maybe the last lap and
a half pick it up. I threw in a couple of surges in the second and
third laps, just to kind of test everybody and see how they were.
On
his racing preparation:
I ran a 5K last weekend in Boise. I ran 14:08 there, and led most
of it. That gave me legs. Before that, I was kind of unsure of where
I was. I've also been doing a lot more training geared towards the
mile, more speed stuff.
On
the 8K distance:
I wanted to wait, to make it as easy as possible for as long as
I could. I started surging and trying to pick it up. [Salazar] wanted
me to wait a little longer, I think. I felt good.
On
his track experience with junior competition:
Yeah, some of the guys I raced against [at the World Junior Track
& Field Championships in 2004] will be at World Cross. It seems
a lot more tactical than track. A lot of those guys are running
close to 13 minutes [for 5K].
On
his injury troubles:
I think I'm over the hump with this thing. I've just got a couple
weeks from now. I've just got to try to stay as close to them as
possible, and that will make it easier next time I race those guys.
It
was a slight stress reaction, I think. I was able to train through
it, I didn't take any time off.
On
his current training focus:
More on strength right now. We're doing a lot of long intervals
and a lot of tempo runs. That's something that I've never done before.
Maybe last year, I could count on one hand the number of tempo runs
I did. We did them at least once a week since cross country training
started back in September. We've done a lot more strength stuff.
Right
now I train a lot with Scott Wall, [Adam] Goucher, [Mike] Donnelly,
Julius Achon — Alberto's older guys. It's a good group, they're
all really oriented on the team and working together as a group.
There's competition between us, but it's not something that makes
us hate each other. It's a good environment. Everyone has different
strengths. Some guys, like Julius and Mike McGrath, they're really
fast, and they can help us if we do a speed workout. We help them
in the long stuff. It's a really good environment.
On
being challenged to stay with the older runners:
It gives me confidence if I can stay close and stay with them on
most of the workouts. I see how they run on the track and how good
they are, and I've got to think I'm pretty close if I can do most
of the workouts with them. It's good to see them running well, and
it gives me confidence.
On
being ready for the fast start at World Cross:
We're going to be doing a lot more speed stuff and long, fast intervals
instead of the long, slow, boring stuff. I know it's been notorious
for going out pretty fast. I think you've got to get used to that
feeling, and be able to settle in as best you can after that.
On
whether he will race between the Nationals and the World Championships:
I doubt it. We're just going to try and get a good five weeks of
training in. Just to get my rhythm back fully and get used to running
fast on land again. [Note: Rupp raced a 3,000 at the University
of Washington Last Chance Qualifier on March 5. He finished fourth
in 7:58.02.]
(Interview
conducted February 13, 2005, and posted March 9, 2005)
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