Are steeplechasers just rejects who couldn't make it in other distance events/cross country?

I see what you are saying but in general that can be said of anyone who does any event. People try several events and then they pick the one in which they were most successful. So, an athlete is decent in the 5000 but not the best and decides to try the steeple. Well, they find they have a natural talent for it and continue to compete in the event and do well. As far as your "get more attention" comment I'm not sure what to make of that. Are you saying that the main reason athletes compete is for attention? Are you saying athletes should stay in an event that they regularly place 15th in instead of running an event that they can be top 3 in? It is a ridiculous comment. It seems as though you are saying that the steeplechase is an event in which any semi talented 5k or 10k guy could switch to and dominate simply because they are a good distance runner. But this is ignoring the fact that there is a different and specialized skill set that allows a runner to be a good steeplechaser as opposed to being just a good 5k or 10k runner. In general you have to be more athletic and more skilled as far as your movements go. You have to withstand a mental challenge of clearing the barriers which are both tiring and break up your mental flow. You have to be efficient so you don't waste any energy with extra motion. For example, jumping too high, stretching out your steps, not falling into the water etc. There have been some athletes who switched to the steeple and found they were good at it even some famous ones. However, not everybody who switches to steeple is successful. For every one person who is successful there are plenty who are not and go back to their original event. Why is it that the Kenyans dominate the steeplechase more then any other event? They are used to uneven terrain and things being in their way which makes them mentally tough. Even though they don't always have the best form they are not thrown by the mental challenge. So the final question is have you tried the steeple and did you find you were more successful. If so, then know that you are more athletic then most other runners or that you have a talent for the event. If you were not successful then that should tell you something. And if you have not tried it then you definitely should.

the event was 'shown up' as early as 1972, when the great Kip Keino jumped into it at the Olympics and won, with practically no experience.

Saif Saaeed Shaheen is a good example of a runner who puts his focus on the steeple. But when he runs other events he does very well. Multiple top tens at World XC races, one of the fastest 5000 clockings ever running 12:48, another one at 12:51. He has run very good times over 1500. But when he is at a big meet he competes very well. He makes others look like rejects

obvious answer. wrote:

the event was 'shown up' as early as 1972, when the great Kip Keino jumped into it at the Olympics and won, with practically no experience.

Absolutely agree. Back then steeple & marathon were the graveyard of running.

Steeple WR in 1972 was 8:22.

Steeple became somewhat legitimized at 1976 Olympics when good runners with good hurdling technique (Garderud, Malinowski) took the WR down to 8:08.

Slats is a steeple specialist for a reason.

Steeple is a tough event, which is why many good runners avoid it....for that reason.

What's obvious is that it's just a different event. The whole reason there are different events in track is so people can excel in different events, or else only one event would matter. It's okay to be good at one event and not another that's the point of track.

The idea that steeplers compete in that event because they can't do others is ridiculous. I ran DIII steeple and did very well. I CHOSE the steeple after high school because watching Henry Marsh inspired me to run an event that I thought was for tough, gritty distance runners. Never was it because I thought I couldn't compete at 1,500 or 5,000 or cross country. I excelled in all of those, but they were never my main focus. As far as the marathon goes, since when is that the Holy Grail either? I always loved track and never had any interest in running 26.2 miles. That's a different sport altogether. You think a guy who covers 3k with barriers and a water pit doesn't have the speed, endurance, or tenacity for 1,500, 3,000, or 5,000 meters? Get real. In fact, on my college team, the two most talented, most accomplished outdoor track distance runners were my teammate and I. We were both steeplers; he was #2 in the country and I was #9. Could have smoked our 1,500 guy. Both of us.

This comes up from time to time on Letsrun. Yes, many who do the steeple weren't quite good enough to make the national meet or contend for an all-american or for the win in other events. Like it has already been said, this is normal, just like someone not quick enough to contend in the 1500 moving up to the 5k.

Great steeplers can be average athletes or they can be good athletes, you certainly don't have to be a great athlete to be great at the steeple. I have known many awkward athletes that have had great success in the steeple and great athletes that have not done well at the steeple.

yeah guys like stephen cherono aka saif said shaheen and henry rono, yeah guys like that could never had made it in other distance events or cross country (sarcasm)

Here is the way it is in America.

Everyone grows up wanting to make it big in the NFL, NBA or MLB.

Those who cannot want to make it as "The World's Fastest Man" (i.e., Usain Bolt)

Those who cannot try to make it as distance runners.

Those who cannot try to make it as steeple chasers.

So, unless you are in the NBA, NFL or MLB you are basically a loser who settled for your own level of incompetence.

Oh, and I readily admit that this goes for me as well.

Steeple and triple jump should be eliminated from T&F. 4x8 or DMR should be added to Olympic games. XC should be added to winter olympics.

While I agree that this is in general true about a lot of events, I also agree it is the most true (especially on the women's side) in the steeple. A good example is an athlete like Sara Hall. She has tried the 1500m and 5k and isn't competitive in either. She switches to the steeple, and she isn't very good at it, but some how she is a national contender. Have you watched her go over barriers? She looks like she loses 2 seconds to the field every lap just due to poor hurdling ability. The only explanation for her ability to compete in the steeple is the weak field.

For all those saying they did the steeple in college because they were good at it, that's all fine and dandy, but that's not what we are talking about. We are talking about professional runners, and the fact is that some runners try the steeple because they recognize that the field is weaker.

Well it depends...do sprinters not play basketball because they can't dunk, or do basketball players not sprint because they are too slow?

(i.e. do steeplechasers not do other events because they would be bad at them, or do people who do other events avoid steeple because they are afraid of the challenge/wouldn't be good at it?)

Are runners just rejects who couldn't make it in other sports?

and then there is Jenny who couldn't make it on the world scene as a steepler and moved down to the 1500 and got the gold.

another question wrote:

Are runners just rejects who couldn't make it in other sports?

indeed.

distance runners are middle distance rejects, who are sprinting rejects.

cx wrote:

Never done this event but my friends that did said is tougher than anything you'll ever experience in running event .

As a cyclist I regularly do cyclocross . In this event you run over 40 cm barriers , with your ~20lb bike in one hand or on your shoulder . Painful fun and lots of elements of xc running . Try it before your life is over .

Was this you?

That Henry Rono guy wasn't any good besides the steeple.

I wanted to play for Real Madrid when I was a kid. Screw the NBA, MLB, NFL. And I'm american!

Are 400m hurdlers 400m rejects and are 400m runners 100m dash rejects? If you are smart, you find an event you can excel at...I would gladly become a race walker if I could make a USOT in that event.