Spend a day in the life with 2025 NCAA cross country All-American Allie Zealand at Liberty University! 🦅🔥 The former high school star and rising collegiate standout takes us through her full daily routine as a collegiate student-athlete! From attending classes and getting in her training to fueling throughout the day and navigating everyday life on campus, Allie takes us gives us an inside look at what it's like to attend Liberty. Get an inside look at what it really takes to balance academics, athletics, and life at the NCAA level. 🏃‍♀️🎓📚🏋️‍♀️🍽️

Written by Aimee Morganti, edits & additional commentary via Garrett Zatlin The Stride Report has confirmed that the reigning NCAA individual cross country champion, Habtom Samuel, has been added to the 2026 Millrose Games men's two-mile field. The meet will be held at The Armory in New York City on February 1st. The full lineup for that two-mile race includes names such as Cole Hocker, Grant Fisher, Josh Kerr, Jake Wightman, George Beamish, Ky Robinson, Edwin Kurgat, Graham Blanks, Ethan Strand, Drew Hunter and Cooper Teare.   The two-mile race at the Millrose Games is expected to feature a 3000-meter en route split which will be eligible for the official NCAA record and the official NCAA all-time list. There is currently no official men's indoor two-mile collegiate record that is recognized by USTFCCCA . The University of New Mexico distance standout and Hoka NIL athlete holds personal bests of 7:39 (3k), 13:04 (5k) and 26:51 (10k). Samuel is also coming off of a win at the Houston Half Marathon where he ran a time of 59:01. The 10-time All-American athlete will face tough competition, as many of his opponents in New York are Olympic medallists, world champions, world record holders and area record holders. Hocker is the Olympic 1500-meter champion and the world 5000-meter champion while Fisher is an Olympic medallist, the indoor 5000-meter world record holder, and the previous champion of the men's 3000 meters at Millrose Games last year. Josh Kerr is the current indoor two-mile world record holder, a two-time Olympic medallist, the 1500-meter 2023 world champion and the 3000-meter 2024 world indoor champion. The Great Britain athlete, Jake Wightman, was the 2022 world champion over 1500 meters and claimed silver over 1500 meters at the World Championships last year. Two Oceania athletes bring strong resumes to the race including George Beamish, the 2025 3000-meter steeplechase world champion and the 2024 world indoor 1500-meter champion. Aussie Ky Robinson took 4th place over 5000 meters at the 2025 World Championships. Meanwhile, Kenyan runner Edwin Kurgat placed 7th in that same 5000-meter World Championship race and currently holds the Keny an #10 all-ti me mark for the outdoor 3000 meters. The American athletes in this race are Olympic 10,000-meter finalist Graham Blanks, 2025 World Championship 1500-meter semi-finalist Ethan Strand, 2025 USA Outdoor Championship 4th-place 5000-meter finisher Drew Hunter and Cooper Teare who holds the USA #9 al l-time indoor 3000-meter mark.

Written by Aimee Morganti, edits & additional commentary via Garrett Zatlin Oregon’s two-time All-American, Simeon Birnbaum, has inked a NIL deal with Italian sportswear company Diadora. He now joins Villanova’s Marco Langon as NCAA distance stars who have signed NIL deals with the brand. On Instagram, Birnbaum explained his decision to sign with Diadora, stating... “I chose to partner with Diadora because I believe they want to win as badly as I do.” Recently, the Oregon athlete placed 33rd at the 2025 NCAA XC Championships, earning individual All-American honors. He also helped his team to a 5th place finish. He later went on to run 7:39 for 3000 meters at the 2025 Boston U. Season Opener back in December. Birnbaum placed 16th in the mile at the 2025 NCAA Indoor Championships as a redshirt freshman and later earned 7th place All-American honors over 1500 meters at the NCAA Outdoor Championships the following season. The Oregon athlete holds personal bests of 3:37 (1500), 3:52 (mile) and 7:39 (3k). Upon signing Birnbaum , Diadora said the following... “A top performer in both NCAA cross country and track & field, he has emerged as one of the most exciting athletes of his generation, defined by his immense talent, fearless racing, and signature style. Diadora welcomes @simeonbirnbaum , a fierce young competitor with the poise of a veteran, to its community of athletes.”

Production via Wyatt Barnsley On this week’s episode of The Stride Report Podcast, Ben and Garrett reopen the altitude conversion debate after another wave of fast performances sparks controversy. They break down big converted mile runs from Hayley Burns, Isaiah Givens, and NAU’s Tor Hotung-Davidsen and Ford Washburn, before diving into a blazing stretch of 1000m performances, including Hayley Kitching’s NCAA record. The guys also highlight Washington’s Tyler Billiard, Penn State’s depth with four sub-2:20 runs, Juliette Whittaker’s latest statement win, and Mia Cochran’s strong mile showing. Fast times, strong opinions, and plenty of debate in a packed episode. Be sure to listen, subscribe and review! (2:24) Hayley Burns Runs Converted 4:25  Mile (11:03) Isaiah Givens Runs Converted 3:51 Mile (14:41) Hayley Kitching Sets NCAA 1000m Record (19:22) NAU’s Hotung-Davidsen & Washburn Run 3:53 & 3:54 Converted Miles  (24:38) Washington’s Tyler Billiard Runs 2:17 (1k) (29:38) Penn State Has Four Men Go Under 2:20 (1k) (33:37) Juliette Whitaker Finds Another Gear, Takes 1k Win Over Chloe Foerster (38:37) Mia Cochran Runs 4:30 Mile You can listen to that episode (and others) on our PODCASTS  page! You can also find the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Soundcloud. If you like it, be sure to leave us a rating  and a review ! Note: If you're having issues loading the episode on the site via mobile, try refreshing  the episode page. We will look into this issue for future episodes.