Trenton’s Athing Mu is setting running records
Is it weird for a 47-year-old man to be jealous of a 16-yearold girl? Yeah? It is? Well, I don’t care. When I grow up, I want to be Athing Mu.
Mu, a Trenton Central High School junior, spent her Monday in class just like everyone else.
But less than 24 hours earlier at the USATF Indoor Championships in Staten Island, Mu had some racing to do. She was running in the 600 meters. And guess what? She won. So good for her, right? And this wasn’t a high school meet or anything; she was racing against the best America has to offer.
Well, not only did she win the 600-meter race, she set a new high school record while doing so, clocking in at 1:23:57. Oh, and this also: Her time made her the fastest American woman to ever run the 600. Ever. And she was a mere .13 seconds off the world record. As it stands, she is the currently the fastest woman on Earth right now in the 600 meter indoor race. Period, end of story.
And again, to be clear, Mu is 16 years old. Most female runners in the 200-to-800 meter races peak in their mid-20s. Mu is setting records as a teenager. This does not happen in this sport. To say the sky’s the limit for Mu might be underselling it a bit. We’re talking outer space here.
I first spoke with Mu over the summer, when she came within .06 seconds of becoming the first athlete ever, in any sport, to win four gold medals at the Junior Olympics. She was soft-spoken and without airs. She knew she had talent, and she told me she was hoping to be in the 2024 Olympics, but that 2020 was not entirely plausible.
Well, I spoke with her again Monday.
“I still have the same perspective, still on the same page,” Mu said. “We’re just going to have to see what happens when we get there.”
This was maddening to me. I mean, come on! She just went bonkers at this race, beating out world class athletes who are 6, 7, years older than her. So I pressed her. I asked her if her chances for 2020 were better today than they were six months ago.
“Yes, definitely,” Mu said, which is as close to bragging as I was able to get from her.
Now understand this: This was an indoor meet, and the Olympics are outside. Furthermore, there is no 600 meter race at the Olympics. But Mu said the 800 is what she’s aiming for come 2020, and all eyes will be on her in less than two weeks when she competes in that event at the National Scholastic Athletics Foundation New Balance Nationals. Mu currently holds the fourth fastest high school time in that event at 2:03:98. The record is 2:01:78, held by Samantha Watson. At Mu’s current form, it’s fair to say she has a shot at the record on March 10. And remember she’s
still got another year of high school racing ahead of her. That record is going to fall.
OK. So Mu is ridiculously fast. That’s reason enough to be jealous of her.
But back in August, when I first spoke to her, I asked her what her post-racing plans were. In short: What did she want to be when she grew up? She said she thought she wanted to be an orthopedic surgeon, but she wasn’t sure. So I asked again.
“I’m still in the surgeon mode, but I might be switching it up to neuro maybe. I don’t know,” she said.
So yes. Mu may one day become the fastest woman in the world, and then when she’s done with that, she’ll become a brain surgeon. (I feel compelled to tell you I get out of breath bringing the laundry up the stairs and the bulk of my job can - and usually is - done in my pajamas.)
Finally, I asked Mu - again, I can’t stress how poised, soft-spoken, and cool she is - if she was able to concentrate in school on Monday. She finally cracked - a bit.
“I’ve been thinking about it all day,” she admitted. “It hasn’t left my mind yet. My phone is still blowing up.”