Running Legends

Battle of the Greats

Reading time: 2 min

Have you ever wondered what would happen if a current world-class runner era went head to head with one of the all-time great runners from a by-gone era?

  • Sebastien Coe vs David Rudisha in the 800m
  • Hicham El Guerrouj vs Timothy Cheruiyot in the 1500m
  • Kenenisa Bekele vs Selemon Barega in the 5000m or 10000m
  • Zersenay Tadese vs Abraham Kiptum in the Half-Marathon
  • Haile Gebrselassie vs Eliud Kipchoge in the Marathon

Better yet, imagine that the greatest ever 1500/Miler, 5000/10000m runner, Half-Marathon and Marathoner were all in the same race!

Oh, wait.. that race happened!

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Of Records & Races

Reading time: 3 min

On the track or road, when a runner sets a world record, often he or she is far ahead of any rivals. The record becomes a time trial more than a race. Once the pacers have completed their duties, there is nothing to feed off other than the clock itself.

Time Trialling to a record is an incredible accomplishment. But when a record comes down to a drag race between two or more runners, the excitement you experience while watching is palpable.

In the runners’ attempts to outdo one another, they are each elevating each other’s performance. The result is a race that is “greater than the sum of its parts.” The results achieved are beyond what the runners could have done alone racing against the clock.

I love that.

There is a comradery underlying the machismo of racing for the win, the gold or the money. There is a tie that binds runners chasing mastery of their sport at the highest level – the spirit of competition. Aiming to be the very best a person can be. We are going to watch two such races today.

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The Forward Lean

Reading time: 7 min

Many articles on running cues or techniques discuss the Forward Lean. The fundamental idea is that by leaning the body forward, you improve your running technique.

The caveat in most articles is that the forward lean must come from the ankles and not from the waist. What does it mean to “forward lean from the ankles?” It is perhaps easiest to understand by experience.

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Peter Snell: Athlete

Reading time: 3 min

As a teenager I had no idea that I had the potential to win an Olympic gold medal and my athletic career developed only by lucky circumstances

Peter Snell

Peter Snell was a natural athlete. He excelled at rugby, tennis, cricket and golf among other sports. It just so happens that one day, coach Arthur Lydiard spotted the 19-year-old Snell run an 880-yard handicap race in 1957. Lydiard was impressed by Snell‘s natural speed and convinced Snell to drop his other sports and pursue track. The rest we shall say is history.

Snell’s impressive resume includes all of the following:

  • 800m gold medal at the 1960 Rome Olympic games
  • 880y and Mile gold medals at the 1962 Perth Commonwealth games
  • 800m and 1500m gold medals at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics games – a feat that has not been replicated since.
  • World Records in the 800m, 880y, 1000m, Mile and 4 x 1 Mile relay
  • Voted New Zealand’s Sports Champion of the (20th) Century

There is a lot to say about Peter Snell. But here are just two tidbits about the 1960 Olympics and his 800m world record.

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A Tale of Two 800m Races

Reading time: 3 min

The last few posts on Base Running. Fast but Not Hard drills, Rule #1 and Running Cues have been very dense. Revisit those posts often. There is a lot of “meat on the bones” and it’ll take time to implement the suggestions. So for today, something a little lighter, but still on point. We are going to watch two of the greatest 800m races in history: the 1972 Olympic final, and the 2012 Olympic final.

The 1972 Olympic final is one of the most thrilling races you’ll ever see by a true champion who is often considered the most “underrated” 800m runner.

The 2012 Olympic final is without-a-doubt the greatest 800m race ever based on the calibre of the field and the performance of every runner in the race.

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Spanning the Cadence Spectrum

Reading time: 2 min

I have prepared well and I have the confidence I can win.

Kenenisa Bekele

Ever heard the name Kenenisa Bekele? If not, it’s about time you hear it. Bekele is “arguably the greatest long-distance runner of all time.” There is much debate on who is the greatest, but without-a-doubt Bekele would end up on the short-list of candidates. Here are but a few of his accomplishments:

  • Current 5000m (12:37.35) and 10000m (26:17.33) world record holder.
  • Eleven-time world cross-country champion
  • Won every 10000m race he competed in for eight years straight winning four world championship titles in this time span
  • Gold in the 5000m and 10000m at the 2008 Beijing Olympics
  • Gold in the 10000m and silver in the 5000m at the 2004 Athens Olympics. In the 5000m he was beaten by another runner that is “arguably the greatest distance runner of all-time” Hicham El Guerouj
  • Fifth fastest marathoner of all-time with a time of 2:03:03

With this pedigree, you can imagine it was a bit of surprise when during the 2007 world championship 10000m final in Osaka Japan Bekele was distanced by his rivals in the final few laps and had to play catch-up.

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Name the Second Man to Break the 4min Barrier

Reading time: 3 min

Doctors and scientists said that breaking the four-minute mile was impossible, that one would die in the attempt. Thus, when I got up from the track after collapsing at the finish line, I figured I was dead.

Roger Bannister

I’m sure you’ve heard of Sir Roger Bannister. He was the first man to break the 4min barrier in the Mile by running 3:59.4 on May 6th, 1954. A remarkable achievement. In the video below you can watch the record attempt with insightful commentary from the man himself Roger Bannister

It is all the more impressive when you consider that he was running on a cinder track. According to investigative reporter David Epstein in his acclaimed TED talk Are Athletes Really Getting Faster Better Stronger, cinder tracks are 1.5% slower than modern synthetic tracks. If this is true, that means Bannister’s time in 1954 is roughly equivalent to a 3:55.8 today. I’d highly suggest you watch David Epstein’s entire TED talk. If you want to skip right to Bannister part, jump to 2:49.

You may not know the name of the second man to break the 4min barrier: John Landy of Australia. Forty-six days after Bannister ran his breakthrough race, Landy ran a scorching 3:57.9, 1.6 seconds faster than Bannister’s time. What I want you to see today is what Landy looks like when he runs.

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