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

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

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