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EUGENE, Ore. — At the end of every track race, the faces, bodies and souls of weary, drained participants tell the story of a sport where pain is both endured and expected. Some grimace, eyebrows lowered, noses wrinkled, eyes closed, mouths open. Some slump shoulders; or bend over, hands on knees, gasping for air; or collapse in exhaustion.
Then there is Athing Mu, the 20-year-old middle-distance runner from New Jersey who specializes in what’s arguably the sport’s most brutal race. There’s not even a lot of argument. The task: sprint almost as hard as she can, for two full laps around the track, saving enough energy to separate over the final 100 meters but not so much that she’s not in position to separate at all.
