"The only thing that I see that is distinctly different about me is: I'm not afraid to die on a treadmill. I will not be outworked, period. You might have more talent than me, you might be smarter than me. But if we get on the treadmill together, there are two things: You're getting off first, or I'm going to die. It's really that simple." -Will Smith In this episode, former Anchor Bay athlete and current MSU Spartan Thomas Westphal is back for his second interview, and wow, a lot has happened since he last came on the pod in June of 2024. If you haven’t heard our first conversation, it’s season 1, episode 14. I encourage you to take a listen, as it gives you more context, where we talked about his debut in the sport in his first cross country race as a high school freshman, running his first 5k in 22:23. Thomas then went on to overcome injuries and obstacles to chase dreams with determination, hard work, guts, and grit and become the most successful runner in Anchor Bay history and one of the best in the state, winning the Midwest Foot Locker cross country regional, a 3200 meter state title, setting multiple school records, and more. Since graduating high school, Thomas redshirted his first year at Michigan State University, training through the 2024-25 school year, and debuted this fall as a collegiate freshman. He immediately made an impact for the Spartans, turning the heads of the Big Ten conference and the NCAA as a whole. He was the Big Ten Freshman of the Week twice and helped MSU place second in the Big Ten Championships (their best finish since 2016), with an 8K PR of 23:25 to finish third overall and the highest-placing freshman. Thomas was later named to the Great Lakes All-Region team in his first attempt at the 10K distance, taking 12th in 30:06, then dropped that PR to a 29:19 at the NCAA Championships to finish 59th as the top runner for MSU on the Gans Creek course in Missouri. He was voted the Big Ten Freshman of the Year by Big Ten Coaches, the first Spartan man to do so since 2011 and only the fifth overall. Thomas will give us some insight into his phenomenal NCAA championship debut, his transition to collegiate life and running, a look inside his training, and what the future holds for him as he competes at the D1 level. Thank you so much for listening to the podcast: please share an episode to help spread the word about Blue Water Running’s mission, which is to feature and celebrate the achievements of high school and collegiate cross country and track/field athletes from our area. You can also subscribe and leave a review. You can find The Blue Water Running Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, and other major media players. You can also ask Alexa to play The Blue Water Running Podcast. You can follow Blue Water Running on Instagram, X, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube, along with athlete and meet reports and photography on the website at bluewaterrunning.org. A subscription to the website with unlimited access to all articles is $5 a month or $50 for the entire year and helps cover the cost of web, podcast, and photography site hosting. Blue Water Running coverage is sponsored in part by Elite Feet of Port Huron and Verlinde Insurance, both located in Richmond, Michigan. Send Blue Water Running a Message https://www.bluewaterrunning.org/ https://bluewaterrunning.buzzsprout.com Instagram and X @bluewaterrun Facebook/TikTok/Youtube @BlueWaterRunning
