Photo by Cortney White of “The Quiet Storm,” Alicia Monson
From the Department of Kool-Aid Men and Spoon Bending
Written by Intern 3014
The TEN has never known a women’s champion not named Elise Cranny. In the inaugural event, also her 10000m debut, she bested a small field, edging out her BTC teammate, Karissa Schweizer in 30:47- then the no. 3 time ever run by an American. In 2022, Cranny put on an exhibition, running the final 7,000m of the race solo to come within a few strides of the American record of 30:13.17, clocking 30:14.66.
This year, Cranny will not be in the race, but the American record still looms in the shadows of the coastal range of San Juan Capistrano for a woman On fire, Alicia Monson. Monson has already broken one American record this year, running 8:25 to win the Millrose Games 3000m. The 3000m is a far cry from the 10000m, but like her teammate Joe Klecker, Monson seems tailormade for the 10000m, trained in the image of her coach, the legendary Dathan Ritzenhein, who knew the thin red line that marked complete exhaustion better than anyone. He dined with it, had long conversations with it, if the red line followed him on Instagram, it would have a green circle around its profile picture sending him close friend’s messages daily. Alicia is in that friend group as well. She made the US Olympic team in the 10000m in 2021 as a new pro in her first year with the On Athletics Club on a day when the temperature on the track approached 120 degrees Fahrenheit and was taken to the hospital afterwards for heat exhaustion. There are runners who can reach the wall and keep going, because they know the wall well, and they know that it is not an actual wall, it is a wall inside their own minds that they can warp and turn horizontal, into a path for which to trample. It seems to be a talent of Ritzenhenin’s to show his runners how to find the path, and Alicia Monson is a prized pupil.
Monson will face Eilish McColgan, the Scottish Asics athlete who owns the British national Record in the 5000m (14:28) and has run 30:19 for 10000m. McColgan’s best in the 10,000m is currently 32 seconds better than Monson’s and she is also an athlete who is not afraid to take the lead and push the pace. Before running 30:19, she took third behind Cranny and Schweizer in the inaugural TEN in 30:58. McColgan is gearing up for the London Marathon this spring, so we not only will get a chance to see her strength on display, but it will also be a good checkpoint as she heads back across the pond.
Keep an eye out for Puma Racing Elite. Natosha Rogers won the 5000m at Boston University in dominating fashion in 14:52 less than a month ago, and her teammates, Sarah Inglis and Fiona O’Keeffe were not far behind in 14:59 and 15:01. O’Keeffe has a personal best of 32:12 in the 10000m but her times in the 5000m and half marathon (1:07:42) are superior performances. With her recent 5000m success, she could see a big drop. The three women are riding high heading into Saturday and carry the confidence not only from their performances but from having teammates on the line.
The South African, Dom Scott returns to San Juan Capistrano this year having clocked 31:00 last year, taking second. She ripped nearly 20 seconds off her personal best in the process. Much like Elise Cranny, she ran the vast majority of the way alone, coming within 8 seconds of the South African record.
The Mexican athlete sponsored by Hoka, Laura Galván has a chance to surprise here. Galván is notoriously hard-nosed at points in races where others might let the pace lag. She is not afraid to make it uncomfortable when all others are uneasy about taking the lead. She has 3 national records (1500m, 3000m, 5000m) and could add the 10000m on Saturday (31:10 NR). Her best is 31:29.
Check out the full field and the rest of the races at tracklnd.com/meet/theten.
Broadcast starts at 6:40pm PST
PPV tickets are $5.99 with $4 going into the purse to be given to the top 6 men’s and women’s athletes in the World Races.
Broadcast and fields at Tracklnd.com/meet/theten
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