In an extraordinary move to make sure the 2021 Tokyo Olympics indeed happen, the IOC and the organizing committee have announced that foreign fans (and volunteers) will not be permitted to attend the Games. How will this decision alter how the athletes experience the Olympics, and what will it be like for viewers around the world watching a one-third capacity stadium during, say, the 100m finals? Hosts Alex Cyr and Michael Doyle break it all down, and speculate on what will be different at this Pandemic-era Games.

On this week's episode of The XC's Top 5 Running Show, our panelists discuss a wild week of NCAA action, plus the IOC's plan to offer China's vaccine to Olympians.

Each week, two of our contributors or special guests face off in The XC's Top 5 Running Show, dissecting five stories from the week in the world of distance running and track and field. They offer their best and hottest takes to the host, Michael Doyle, who rewards them in points.

The panelist with the deepest knowledge and hottest takes will emerge from this five-lap sprint of ideas the victor. The prize? We give them the mic atop the podium to tell us something important or exciting they want to share with you. And seven days of bragging rights, of course.

Today's guests on The XC Podcast are both in quarantine, they are both fighting for a spot on the Canadian Olympic team, and they were both wearing the same new balance t-shirt. Charles Philibert-Thiboutot and Julie-Anne Staehli join host Alex Cyr from their respective homes in Edmonton, Alberta and Lucknow, Ontario.

Julie-Anne recently broke the Canadian indoor two mile record at the New Balance Grand Prix in Boston, running 9:22.66. Charles, meanwhile, recently ran a near-PB in the 1,500m of 3:39.64, making of him a front runner for a spot on the metric mile start line at these upcoming games.

The three had a in-depth conversation and covered a wide range of topics. You can find them in the show notes below.

Show Notes:

6:30 - Should athletes have to self-isolate for 14 days upon returning to their home country?

16:30 - Julie-Anne breaks down her Canadian indoor two-mile record-setting race

23:00 - Why CPT decided to go race in Europe during COVID-19

25:30 - The importance of World Athletics points in qualifying for races

33:00 - How CPT has found health in this past year

36:00 - How Julie-Anne kept training at a high level despite a race-less year

38:30 - CPT's good relationship with ASICS and his move to New Balance

43:30 - Julie-Anne's and CPT's relationship with Instagram

56:00 - Putting a price tag on one's athletic career

66:00 - How Julie-Anne and CPT plan to make Canada's Olympic team

68:00 - CPT, who is an athlete representative at Athletics Canada, breaks down the qualification system, and the rationale for giving the eventual winners of the Olympic trials a golden ticket to Tokyo.

The XC's Top 5 Running Show is back. This week, Jakob Ingebrigtsen catches a break, Yohan Blake wants nothing to do with a COVID-19 vaccine, and athletes reckon with the power of the Nike Dragonfly spikes.

Host: Michael Doyle

Guests: Alex Cyr, Justin Horneker

Each week, two of our contributors or special guests face off in The XC's Top 5 Running Show, dissecting five stories from the week in the world of distance running and track and field. They offer their best and hottest takes to the host, Michael Doyle, who rewards them in points.

The panelist with the deepest knowledge and hottest takes will emerge from this five-lap sprint of ideas the victor. The prize? We give them the mic atop the podium to tell us something important or exciting they want to share with you. And seven days of bragging rights, of course.

This week panelists Alex Cyr and Justin Horneker break down:

Tokyo's organizing committee chairman resigns

The state of North America's Olympic Trials

Nike's new too-good-to-be-true Dragonfly track spike, and two jaw-dropping times run in them

And, finally, we crown the king and queen of the 2021 indoor track season, so far

We’ll be pushing this show out both as a podcast on The XC’s feed each Monday, and as a video on our YouTube and IGTV channels, at around 7 p.m. ET. So be sure to follow us @thexcorg and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

In this episode of the Top 5 Running Show pits defending champion Justin Horneker against show veteran and nerd runner Alex Cyr.

In this episode, they debate:

Who took home the Prickly Pear?

The American Track League - a saving grace, but too soon?

The father-son 4-minute mile club - which duo did it best?

Colleen Quigley leaves world famous training group - good move?

And finally, what is the Super Bowl of running?

Each week, two of our contributors or special guests face off in The XC's Top 5 Running Show, dissecting five stories from the week in the world of distance running and track and field. They offer their best and hottest takes to the host, Michael Doyle, who rewards them in points.

The panelist with the deepest knowledge and hottest takes will emerge from this five-lap sprint of ideas the victor. The prize? We give them the mic atop the podium to tell us something important or exciting they want to share with you. And seven days of bragging rights, of course.

We’ll be pushing this show out both as a podcast on The XC’s feed each Monday, and as a video on our YouTube and IGTV channels, at around 7 p.m. ET. So be sure to follow us @thexcorg and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Host: Michael Doyle

Guests: Alex Cyr, Justin Horneker

Today's guest on The XC Podcast is Andrea Seccafien, one of Canada's most accomplished distance runners who now trains in Australia. Seccafien, a 2016 Olympian from Guelph, Ontario now trains under coach Nic Bideau with the Melbourne Track Club. In 2019, she became the fourth Canadian woman to dip under the 15-minute barrier for 5,000m and three months after that, she set a new Canadian half-marathon record of 69:38.

The 30-year-old is currently navigating the highs and lows of the pandemic in Australia, which involved a 111 day lockdown last summer, followed by a nearly COVID-free fall and winter. Through it all, she's built some great fitness. She recently competed in a road 10k and set a personal best time of 31:45.

In this episode, Alex Cyr asks Seccafien about her current training, how she clawed out of a nasty injury cycle in 2018, how life in the Southern Hemisphere is different than in North America, and how she used baking to keep her mental health in check during a long lockdown.

Host: Alex Cyr

Guest: Andrea Seccafien

Each week, two of our contributors or special guests face off in The XC's Top 5 Running Show, dissecting five stories from the week in the world of distance running and track and field. They offer their best and hottest takes to the host, Michael Doyle, who rewards them in points.

This week's topics:

The Gamestop Reddit mastermind was a near 4-minute miler!

Will the NCAA ban wavelight technology?

HBO's Real Sports takes a look a the Nike Oregon Project scandal

The American Track League is pulling all-star talent

The 2021 Florida Summer Olympics?

The panelist with the deepest knowledge and hottest takes will emerge from this five-lap sprint of ideas the victor. The prize? We give them the mic atop the podium to tell us something important or exciting they want to share with you. And seven days of bragging rights, of course.

We’ll be pushing this show out both as a podcast on The XC’s feed each Monday, and as a video on our YouTube and IGTV channels, at around 7 p.m. ET. So be sure to follow us @thexcorg and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

Host: Michael Doyle

Panelists: Andrew Cruickshank, Justin Horneker

Last week, amid a recent spike in COVID-19 cases in Japan, reports in The Times of London stated that the Japan government privately concluded that the 2021 Olympic games be cancelled due to the Coronavirus. That led to immediate pushback from the IOC and Japan's own Olympic committee, and the Japanese government, which called the reports “categorically untrue.”

Organizers and I.O.C. officials have said that no further postponement is possible and that if the Games do not proceed in the summer of 2021 they will be canceled, which would be the first time the Games have been scrubbed since World War II.

Hosts Michael Doyle and Alex Cyr speculate about the logistical and financial feasibility of the 2021 Olympics, how the IOC could use this trying year as a springboard for a better Olympic model, and what changes in sports, customs and traditions would make the Games better for 2021 and beyond.

Each week, two of our contributors or special guests face off in The XC's Top 5 Running Show, dissecting five stories from the week in the world of distance running and track and field. They offer their best and hottest takes to the host, Michael Doyle, who rewards them in points.

The panelist with the deepest knowledge and hottest takes will emerge from this five-lap sprint of ideas the victor. The prize? We give them the mic atop the podium to tell us something important or exciting they want to share with you. And seven days of bragging rights, of course.

This week's topics:

What is going on with the Tokyo Olympics?

Heartbreak, as a 100K world record is missed by just 12 seconds

The London Marathon is going big this October

Racing is back, sort of

And one running streak for the ages

We’ll be pushing this show out both as a podcast on The XC’s feed each Monday, and as a video on our YouTube and IGTV channels, at around 7 p.m. ET. So be sure to follow us @thexcorg and subscribe to our YouTube channel.

This week:

This third episode of the Top 5 Running Show pits two of The XC's regulars against each other: Alex Cyr and Andrew Cruickshank.