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LetsRun.com's Track Talk: The Home of Running and Track and Field

Diamond League is back, Birnbaum 1:44, Valby's return, Gout Gout, Hocker vs Fisher

May 13 · 1 hr 26 min · 72.7 MB
0:00-1:26:22

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The 2026 Diamond League season kicks off Saturday in Shanghai as the outdoor track calendar heats up. Oregon's Simeon Birnbaum lowered his 800m PB to 1:44.67, strengthening his case as NCAA 1500 favorite despite a 12-man curse on NCAA record holders. Australia's Gout Gout got a 60 Minutes profile, reigniting debate about sprint phenoms and Erriyon Knighton's four-year trenbolone ban. The hosts preview a loaded Diamond League season, debate whether Cole Hocker or Grant Fisher will finally win a DL meet, rank teen phenoms Lutkenhaus, Myers, and Gout Gout, and ask whether any world records will fall in 2026. Late-breaking news: Parker Valby enters the Sound Running 5K for her first outdoor track race since the Paris Olympics.

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LINKS

TIMESTAMPS

  • 00:00 Supporters Club Promo and Intro
  • 00:55 Welcome and Episode Preview
  • 06:35 Simeon Birnbaum's 800m PB and the NCAA 1500 Curse
  • 12:18 Bicarb, Super Shoes, and the 800m Revolution
  • 16:03 Birnbaum as Centro 2.0 and Marco Langan's 3:32
  • 23:00 Bodey Lutes: The New Fastest Runner From Coos Bay
  • 26:22 Wilma Nielsen's Oregon Debut and Quincy Wilson's Hurdles
  • 29:07 Gout Gout Gets the 60 Minutes Treatment
  • 35:42 Gout Gout vs Erriyon Knighton and the Name Factor
  • 37:53 Erriyon Knighton's Doping Ban and the Trenbolone Cases
  • 38:30 Mike Holloway on Botswana Doping
  • 40:41 The USADA vs WADA Battle Over Knighton's Case
  • 46:02 Diamond League Season Preview and Cole Hocker vs Grant Fisher
  • 50:36 Grand Slam Track and Athlos Updates
  • 56:23 Who Will Be the Best Men's 1500 Runner in 2026
  • 60:56 Teen Phenom Rankings: Lutkenhaus, Myers, and Gout Gout
  • 67:04 Will Any World Records Fall in 2026
  • 71:18 Femke Bol's Move to the 800 Meters
  • 75:22 Josh Hoey Concerns and Top US 800m Runner
  • 80:19 The Athing Mu Mystery
  • 82:18 Shanghai Diamond League Preview and Sign-Off
  • 85:50 Parker Valby Enters the Sound Running 5K

CONTACT

  • Email: podcast@letsrun.com
  • Call or text: 1-844-LETSRUN (1-844-538-7786)

ABOUT THE LETSRUN.COM PODCAST

Since 2000, LetsRun.com has been the independent home of elite running. Described by the New York Times as the "influential website that serves as something of a superego for American running," the podcast is the weekly deep dive into the world of track and field and elite distance running.

The show is hosted by LetsRun.com co-founders Weldon Johnson, a 2-time Team USA member, and Robert Johnson, a former Cornell coach who helped pace the marathon world record, along with award-winning senior writer Jonathan Gault. Together they move beyond PR headlines to provide insider reporting and unfiltered debate serious fans rely on.