By: Jacob Yang

Many people think of Galen Rupp as the greatest American distance runner of the 21st century. However, after his former coach Alberto Salazar was caught with drugs and doping, suspicion fell upon Rupp.

Galen Rupp was born in Portland, Oregon in 1986. Growing up, he was about the fastest teenager in the city. pursuing a professional career. However, in 2015, he and his coach, Alberto Salazar, were accused of drug doping, and in 2019, his coach was permanently banned from any marathons or competitions for four years. He was believed to have given out steroids to athletes right before a competition.

Now, even though Galen Rupp was never identified as taking any steroids, believe that Rupp was, due to his connection with Salazar. As New York Times author Matthew Futterman puts it, “an association with someone who has been found guilty of cheating can cause eyebrows to forever be raised.”

Travis Tygart, chief executive at the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, stated in Galen’s case that “Every athlete is entitled to the presumption of innocence, unless and until proven guilty through the legal process, that they have committed a violation. It’s not fair to convict any athlete otherwise, but the reality is, in today’s world, it’s the same lesson I tell my kid, your choices do have consequences, and not everyone accepts that principle, and the choices of who you hang out with, you will be viewed by the company you keep.”

Rupp has never failed a drug test in his entire career. His records in high school and at New York and the Boston Championships in 1982 were all done legitimately. At the London Olympics in 2012, Rupp and Farah, who was also trained by Alberto Salazar, finished and won first and second against many great runners from Ethiopia and Kenya, where most American runners are from. Rupp later finished seventh in a 5,000-meter race, while Farah was first. Rupp then competed and won at the U.S. Olympic Trials marathons in 2016 and 2020, both Rupp completely decimated. He won the bronze medal in the marathon at the 2016 Games. He also won the Chicago Marathon, one of the world’s fastest, in 2017.

Rupp, now age 36, has acquired a new coach, Mike Smith, and is planning to take on the World Athletics Championships in his hometown in Oregon on Sunday. Through all the accusations, Rupp has learned that running is never that easy, both on and off the track.