i guess this wins as shocking story of the year...

[gh]

... and if you go to the front page, I'm sure you'll agree with me.

The mind boggles.

[DoubleRBar]

I checked my calendar and it says December 20 (not April 1), otherwise I wouldn't believe it.

[Marlow]

If (!) true, I absolutely don't get it . . . {identity deleted - you have to run the whole story to get the full impact!]

she expressed concern that her story would be “sensationalized” by a reporter [y'think?]

she described the escort business as “exciting,” an illicit midlife diversion from her routine existence, one in which she operates a successful Madison, real estate brokerage with her husband, delivers motivational speeches, and does promotional work for various businesses and groups, including Disney’s running series. [she gave] motivational speeches annually, raising her daughter, running her realty firm, and doing appearances for Disney and the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon series.

“I just know I’m happier than I’ve ever been. My life just keeps getting better,” she said.

Appearing resigned that her baffling double life would no longer be a secret, she said, “I want to handle this like an adult.”

[gm]

I, too, am shocked that Bowling Green is adding a coach! Never in a million years would I have thunk it

[preston]

If it's true, it comes as no surprise. 20 year old rumors confirmed...

[doug5321]

female athletes in sports that dont make money sometimes wind up in the sex industry especially female bodybuilders.

unusual yes-shocking not really it happens.

[TR]

I can honestly say this is one of the only times I've read a story with my mouth open. SMH.

[Marlow]

I can honestly say this is one of the only times I've read a story with my mouth open. SMH.

Indeed. I met her at the NCAAs once - sweet as can be. At least the fact that she's horribly embarrassed can silence the 'well, that's her lifestyle choice' pundits.

My take on this sort of thing has always been that all you have to do is walk around in a mall sometime and look at all the people with physical 'problems' (including morbid obesity) and remember that we all carry around just as many mental problems. She was beautiful on the outside, but scarred on the inside.

[aaronk]

Well, the sex industry DOES tend to attract......

FAST women!!!

[kuha]

times a billion.

If this is true, then its entirely likely the world WILL end tomorrow.

[JumboElliott]

If it's true, it comes as no surprise. 20 year old rumors confirmed...

There have been rumors about this exact thing?

[preston]

If it's true, it comes as no surprise. 20 year old rumors confirmed...

There have been rumors about this exact thing?

...She was beautiful on the outside, but scarred on the inside.

It isn't "funny", just a reality. Sex and the City and others can glamourize female sexuality all they want but there's a lot of low self-esteem and hurt behind a lot of that "sexual freedom". Almost always. If I'm not mistaken call girls/sex traders have one of the highest rates of suicide.

[Daisy]

If I'm not mistaken call girls/sex traders have one of the highest rates of suicide.

If I was her husband this is what would worry me. Especially since she has suffered from depression and her brother did kill himself

[Marlow]

It isn't "funny", just a reality. Sex and the City and others can glamourize female sexuality all they want but there's a lot of low self-esteem and hurt behind a lot of that "sexual freedom". Almost always.

TOTALLY agree!

If I'm not mistaken call girls/sex traders have one of the highest rates of suicide.

If I was her husband this is what would worry me. Especially since she has suffered from depression and her brother did kill himself

Indeed. How can she ever show her face in public again? This will be ALL over the social (and real) media. This can't end well (as in, she hasn't hit bottom yet).

[aaronk]

However shocking and incomprehensible this story is, one thing can not, and should not, be forgotten!!

Suzy Favor......
and then Suzy Favor Hamilton......

was, and still remains, one of the two or three best female middle distance runners in all of United States history!!!

But two things from this news shocks me......but in a different way than the story itself.

1. That her husband KNEW what she was doing, and remains married to her!!
2. That "gh" was the one to put a story like this on the MB!! (Considering that OTHER threads on the MB concerning the "extra-curricular" activities of women---the Michelle Jenneke thread and the SI "6 sexy pole vaulters" thread--were either locked up or entirely deleted!!)

Bottom line: I hope Suzy comes out of this in a good place!!! She DESERVES to be happy!!

[preston]

...
Indeed. How can she ever show her face in public again? This will be ALL over the social (and real) media. This can't end well (as in, she hasn't hit bottom yet).

Scarily, I agree with everything you've said so far (the world is definitely coming to an end) except the showing of her face. In a reality TV world? She can ride this to her own TV show and countless riches.

[guru]

Her twitter account required reading today

https://twitter.com/favorhamilton

[huntinwr]

If it's true, it comes as no surprise. 20 year old rumors confirmed...

There have been rumors about this exact thing?

Yes, Preston, care to share?

[Mighty Favog]

Not gonna pile on. I have my own opinions that I'll mostly keep to myself.

I do have a small anecdote to share, though. When the story hit, I texted a link to my best friend from my college team. He and I went to the Trials together this year; he scored a pair of seats for a couple days while working as a coach for American Cancer Society charity runners at the Rock n Roll Seattle Marathon, which was on the opening Saturday of the meet.

He replied with "What happens in Vegas..." and a photo I'd totally forgotten about. He met SFH at the post-race party and of course asked to take a photo with her. She was...friendly. She draped her arms around him, he stiffened up in surprise and a little discomfort. The body language was funny at the time. Not so funny now.

[decafan]

If it's true, it comes as no surprise. 20 year old rumors confirmed...

What 20 year old rumors? Please explain yourself or delete this garbage. Isn't the confirmed truth bad enough?

[gh]

If it's true, it comes as no surprise. 20 year old rumors confirmed...

There have been rumors about this exact thing?

Yes, Preston, care to share?

I think I'll vote no on going down that road. This may add credence to whatever rumor is in question, but it doesn't in anyway confirm it.

[preston]

If it's true, it comes as no surprise. 20 year old rumors confirmed...

What 20 year old rumors? Please explain yourself or delete this garbage. Isn't the confirmed truth bad enough?

decafan, you have provided a lot of good info on this site at times, but as for what I wrote...STFU! If gh wants to delete it he can, but in the context that I haven't even posted what the rumor was you need to go read Mighty Favog's post (which for the record...I wouldn't have posted) and ... S-T-F-U!

[decafan]

If it's true, it comes as no surprise. 20 year old rumors confirmed...

What 20 year old rumors? Please explain yourself or delete this garbage. Isn't the confirmed truth bad enough?

decafan, you have provided a lot of good info on this site at times, but as for what I wrote...STFU! If gh wants to delete it he can, but in the context that I haven't even posted what the rumor was you need to go read Mighty Favog's post (which for the record...I wouldn't have posted) and ... S-T-F-U!

Favog wrote about a very specific story that happened within the last year- in Las Vegas. Nothing controversial about it. You made a reference to a 20 year old rumor about her that somehow was confirmed by today's story. I think you are smearing her with that vague post, so I asked for specifics. I don't know what "STFU" means. Maybe you could explain that too?

[jeremyp]

I remember commenting years ago that SFH had mental issues when it came to winning in big races. I had no idea!

[guru]

20 year old rumors confirmed...

Considering the facts in the story, that's a pretty big leap

[Dave]

... and if you go to the front page, I'm sure you'll agree with me.

The mind boggles.

I have to say, this beats Bolt winning the IAAF AOY or Eaton missing the Olympic record for most shocking story of the year.

[preston]

If it's true, it comes as no surprise. 20 year old rumors confirmed...

What 20 year old rumors? Please explain yourself or delete this garbage. Isn't the confirmed truth bad enough?

decafan, you have provided a lot of good info on this site at times, but as for what I wrote...STFU! If gh wants to delete it he can, but in the context that I haven't even posted what the rumor was you need to go read Mighty Favog's post (which for the record...I wouldn't have posted) and ... S-T-F-U!

Favog wrote about a very specific story that happened within the last year- in Las Vegas. Nothing controversial about it. You made a reference to a 20 year old rumor about her that somehow was confirmed by today's story. I think you are smearing her with that vague post, so I asked for specifics. I don't know what "STFU" means. Maybe you could explain that too?

STFU = mind your own damn business and don't tell me what to do (but it's not as polite). And, you need to re-read Favog's post; it says nothing about when the picture was taken, only about when he sent his friend a text. (clearly he forgot about the picture)

Many people need to stop thinking that athletes aren't real people and that they don't have dark/sad/bad/amoral sides. Some of the people who will be listed as "favorites" in mumps thread, will only be that BECAUSE their "fans" don't know enough about them. Athletes are not heroes (way to go, Chuck); they're people, and I'm sure that any number of posters to this site could tell you things about athletes, meet promoters, journalists, etc that they KNOW, HAVE SEEN, OR HEARD while at a meet, airport, bar, etc. Some of you need to grow up.

[bambam]

2. That "gh" was the one to put a story like this on the MB!! (Considering that OTHER threads on the MB concerning the "extra-curricular" activities of women---the Michelle Jenneke thread and the SI "6 sexy pole vaulters" thread--were either locked up or entirely deleted!!)

In Garry's defense, I sent him the original thread from my twitter followings, which I saw earlier this afternoon. He had not seen and after a couple e-mails I said I would leave it to him to post it as a thread. It could have easily come from me. I hardly think he could not post something like this, even if it eventually gets deleted/blocked. I actually made a bet with him about the over/under for how long it will take before it gets blocked.

[gh]

....
2. That "gh" was the one to put a story like this on the MB!! (Considering that OTHER threads on the MB concerning the "extra-curricular" activities of women---the Michelle Jenneke thread and the SI "6 sexy pole vaulters" thread--were either locked up or entirely deleted!!)...

since this is the thread for blunt talk, please wake up!

The Jenneke thread and the vaulters thread were both examples of outsiders objectifying athletes who had no intent to be the subject of leering posts.

The Favor thread is hard news, and she chose to put herself in that position. The person in question makes, the choice, not you.

get it?

[polevaultpower]

This was one of the top stories on the CBS radio news at the top of the hour.

Could she face potential consequences with the IRS? If this all started this year, I guess she hasn't filed or misfiled any taxes yet, but now she's got the attention of the national media, I would think she's going to have to figure out a way to declare some of this income on her taxes?

Her husband reportedly knew about this, but it doesn't mean that he knew the full extent of it, or that he's necessarily going to stick around now that the shit has hit the fan.

At the end of the day, prostitution and such are based on lies and fantasies. It appears that she made the mistake of believing in the fantasy. It blows my mind that she trusted so many of these men enough to reveal her real identity to them, believing that they would keep her secret.

[gh]

at the risk of playing armchair shrink, I'd say she felt compelled to tell who she was, because it somehow made her feel less guilty about the whole thing, because she was being honest about it.

[decafan]

STFU = mind your own damn business and don't tell me what to do (but it's not as polite).

Yeah, I'm afraid I can't do that. So back to your implication that you have a 20 year old rumor about Suzy being confirmed by today's story; I think are full of crap. Smearing through innuendos. Lying for sport.

[Pego]

I would urge utmost caution to anybody who wants to analyze this news item. I am positive there is a lot more than what anybody around here even remotely knows. I will say no more.

[Master Po]

Looking at the headlines in the Day's Best Reading section... well, yes, this is a bit more shocking than (a) ongoing revelations of corruption in big-time college football, and (b) the news that VIPs took a lot of the seats for the London OG.

This is a sad story. I would expect it to have legal consequences for her and personal ones that affect not just her, but her family as well. She has a child in grade school and a husband whose professional life will likely be affected. I feel sorry for her, and especially for her family.

[nicest person ever]

To me the saddest part is how intensely stigmatized prostitution is in current society.

That said, if she was married at the time, I'll admit that part is kind of messed up, if she was keeping it secret from her husband (if she wasn't though, then it's not, as far as I'm concerned).

But, as for just being a prostitute, it makes me sad how everyone is (correctly) noting that "this is gonna end up so bad for her, imagine all the horribly things everyone will say about her etc, she is yet to hit her bottom etc". Like, I kinda wish our society was a little less prude about sex stuff, to where it wouldn't really be that big of a deal. Oh no, someone had sex a bunch of times, and made a bunch of money doing it. That's sooooo terrible! Not...

Obviously closed minded people will be unable to comprehend how it could possibly not be evil/sinful/immoral to fuck people, cuz of ancient ways of thinkings we still have about it from The Bible and other religions and stupid stuff like that, but, I just think it is really archaic and dumb. If two people want to have consensual sex, and one of them is hotter than the other, and thus wants to charge a fee for it, so that they both feel they are getting a fair deal, I mean, wtf, go for it, lol, I'm serious.

Anyway, Suzy, if you're reading this, and are feeling bad that everyone is dissing you, I hope you realize that your life isn't over, and that this is basically just society overreacting to stuff that we feel we are "supposed" to be outraged about cuz of oldschool traditions/ways of thinking. If we had been born 100 years from now, this thing would probly not have been that big of an issue. Hope you realize that, and are able to live a happy life.

-Nicest Person Ever