Short Strides

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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