Olympic 800m champion Athing Mu’s bid for a repeat at the Paris 2024 Olympics ended abruptly during the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials on Monday.
In the 800m final, Mu got tangled in a tightly packed group of runners and fell hard on the first lap. Although she managed to finish the race, she was over 22 seconds behind the winner, Nia Akins, who clocked in at 1:57.36.
Mu’s long, loping stride has been a key to her dominance in the 800m, but it may have contributed to her fall in this race. Racing on the outside of a tightly bunched pack, she veered left and tripped, causing three runners behind her to stumble.
Dramatic final in the #TrackFieldTrials24 women's 800m.
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) June 25, 2024
American record-holder Athing Mu falls 200m into the race and Nia Akins wins, running the fastest time of her life (1:57.36). pic.twitter.com/j0SCWtGjA3
After the race, a visibly upset Mu quickly left the track without speaking to the media. This was her first competition of the season after having dealt with injuries all year. Despite showing her form in the earlier rounds, her hopes were dashed within the first 200 meters of the all-important final.
The U.S. Olympic Trials are notoriously unforgiving. Regardless of an athlete’s resume and accolades, only the top three finishers earn a spot on the Olympic team.
Bob Kersee, Mu’s coach, reported that Mu was clipped from behind, resulting in track burns and an injured ankle. A protest was lodged, but USA Track and Field (USATF) has not yet responded.
Kersee acknowledged the harsh nature of the trials system, “And here’s another indication that regardless of how good we are, we can leave some better athletes home than other countries have. It’s part of our American way,” he said the Guardian.
“She’s going to be licking her wounds for a couple of days,” Kersee added.
Mu may still join the US relay pool for Paris, having been a crucial part of the gold-medal-winning 4x400m team in Tokyo.
Mu’s impressive career includes college, national, world, and Olympic titles, all achieved before she turned 21. Last year, she won a bronze medal at the World Championships but admitted she needed a break from the pressures of her rising fame.
Reflecting on her 2023 season, Mu told the Guardian, “For sure, I wasn’t really happy to be there. Mentally, I just wasn’t really there. I just wasn’t present. I didn’t appreciate being there. I didn’t really enjoy what was happening to me.”
Mu is not alone in facing such setbacks; Alysia Montano suffered a similar fate in the same event eight years ago, tripping in the homestretch and ending her Olympic dreams.
