This is not about running - Mary Cain - April 2026

 


Hard to read this book because of the subject matter. I don’t really know what to say. I would read the book by Kara Goucher on the blog first and then read this one because that is the correct chronological order. 

Basically Alberto Salazar sexually abused Kara Goucher. He weight shamed Mary Cain and overtrained her and bullied her and because of this her career was miserable and cut short. Basically, the whole coaching staff of the Nike Oregon Project was toxic. Most of her teammates were toxic too. 

My elderly friend at Fleet Feet used to race against Salazar and says he was a cheater. The Nike Oregon project team never failed a drug test. Kara Goucher basically says Galen Rupp and Mo Farah were cheating. Mary Cain never says anyone was cheating. She says she was bullied. 

A good look at the inside of Nike running and the pro running circuit. But a very hard book to read as there are not many happy moments. Yes worth reading, but prepare to frown a lot. 

Maybe this is mean but I kind of feel like Mary’s parents could have and should have done more to help her. I also feel that after so many years of being excluded and bullied Mary started to project bad intentions onto everybody even if they were just glancing at her or if they didn’t shake her hand after a race. 

This book is the opposite experience compared to Katie Ledecky’s book.

I am curious for Scott to read this and tell me if he agrees with my review or not. 

Comments

  1. Scott GogginsJuly 29, 2026 at 9:23 AM

    Is everyone a cheater? lol Between this and the Tour de France I'm not sure what to believe. It also seems like the most powerful people suck. Maybe power just naturally attracts bad people. I'll read it eventually

    ReplyDelete

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