Derrick and Fernandez will renew their rivalry this year

Jager and Centro are already at the Ritz, Teg... level.

Derrick and Fernandez may or may not get there.

Heath and Bumby will never get there - it is silly to suggest otherwise.

Centro, Jager > Ritz, Teg

Bumbalough was 4th the last two years at USA's and ran the Olympic A two years in a row. That suggests otherwise.

Heath has run 13:20's and has a deadly kick. He has a lot of potential.

162430 wrote:

Centro, Jager > Ritz, Teg

True. That is why I put in the three dots (like this ... ). This was meant to indicate that I was including Lagat, Rupp, Hall, Webb but was too lazy to type all of these names. With that I would suggest that it is accurate to say that Centro and Jager are already in the same class as these folks.

Also, just for old times' sake ...

;dakjsdfsaldktj wrote:

Bumbalough was 4th the last two years at USA's and ran the Olympic A two years in a row. That suggests otherwise.

Heath has run 13:20's and has a deadly kick. He has a lot of potential.

No, that does not suggest otherwise. 4th at USA's is a world away from 4th at Worlds (sorry for the pun). And Teg is among the weakest of the group of six noted.

Heath's deadly kick is great against college kids. It will never get him anything against the big boys.

This is nothing against Heath and Bumby. I am sure they are both great kids and times around 13:15 - 13:20 with some room to improve are something to be proud of. But ten years from now people will be comparing the up and comers to Hall, Lagat, Rupp... while Heath and Bumby will be the answer to trivia questions (even among hard core running fans). Sorry, that is just the way it is.

;dakjsdfsaldktj wrote:

...the Ritz, Teg, Solinsky, Webb, Rupp, Lagat, Hall era.

I can't imagine a category where Lagat would be included with any one of those runners.

The Master Troll wrote:

;dakjsdfsaldktj wrote:

...the Ritz, Teg, Solinsky, Webb, Rupp, Lagat, Hall era.

I can't imagine a category where Lagat would be included with any one of those runners.

Human?

better running through chemistry.

> Jager and Centro are already at the Ritz, Teg... level.

Centro medalled at Worlds. The others are wannabes!

His sister told me so wrote:

> Jager and Centro are already at the Ritz, Teg... level.

Centro medalled at Worlds. The others are wannabes!

ritz has won bronze at world half marathon, and world junior xc. very tough to medal in global championships.

His sister told me so wrote:

> Jager and Centro are already at the Ritz, Teg... level.

Centro medalled at Worlds. The others are wannabes!

ritz has won bronze at world half marathon, and world junior xc. very tough to medal in global championships.

[quote]Should be noted wrote:

No, that does not suggest otherwise. 4th at USA's is a world away from 4th at Worlds (sorry for the pun). And Teg is among the weakest of the group of six noted.

Bumbalough was 9th in his heat at the 2011 World Champs.

http://www.iaaf.org/results/iaaf-world-championships-in-athletics/2011/13th-iaaf-world-championships-in-athletics-4147/men/5000-metres/heats/result

It's a decent result. Give him some credit. Jager did not make the final in '09 either and last year he nearly medaled in the steeple.

I think Bumbalough is underrated. The last three years at USA's, he (along with Lagat, Rupp, Lomong, Teg, Solinsky) was part of the group that separated from the pack once the real race started.

McGoñez wrote:

[quote]Should be noted wrote:

No, that does not suggest otherwise. 4th at USA's is a world away from 4th at Worlds (sorry for the pun). And Teg is among the weakest of the group of six noted.

Bumbalough was 9th in his heat at the 2011 World Champs.

http://www.iaaf.org/results/iaaf-world-championships-in-athletics/2011/13th-iaaf-world-championships-in-athletics-4147/men/5000-metres/heats/result

It's a decent result. Give him some credit. Jager did not make the final in '09 either and last year he nearly medaled in the steeple.

I think Bumbalough is underrated. The last three years at USA's, he (along with Lagat, Rupp, Lomong, Teg, Solinsky) was part of the group that separated from the pack once the real race started.

9th in his heat is not comparable to 4th in the final (Teg) in any universe that I am aware of.

Look, I'm not trying to knock Bumby. Great runner. Great competitive spirit. For all I know a great guy. But realistically he will never be at the level that folks are talking about here.

You compare Bumby in 2011 with Jager in '09, both missing the final. Do you also note that Bumby was 24 years old in '11 while Jager was 20 years old in '09? I'm sorry, but that is a HUGE difference. By 24 years of age you are typically about as good as you are going to get. At 20 you've still got a few more years in NCAA.

Another point of reference, age-wise, Bumby is less than a year younger than Rupp. If he is going to be at Rupp's level he should be there NOW, not perhaps four years from now.

I do give Bumby credit. But I give him appropriate credit for one at his level. He may well make several World Champ and Olympic teams. That is great. But he will not be setting American records, he will not be a threat internationally, and he will not be medalling in the OG or WC. That is the level that these other folks have run at (Jager and Centro included). It is simply not a level attainable by Bumby.

Should be noted wrote:

It is simply not a level attainable by Bumby.

Why do you speak with such certainty? Why exactly can't Bumby reach that level? He may take longer to reach it but I see no reason why he can't reach it someday.

jsjs wrote:

Should be noted wrote:

It is simply not a level attainable by Bumby.

Why do you speak with such certainty? Why exactly can't Bumby reach that level? He may take longer to reach it but I see no reason why he can't reach it someday.

OK. Granted it is a matter of conjecture. It is my belief, based on the facts available today, that it is extremely unlikely that Bumby will reach that level.

On a related note, I do wish folks would respect and appreciate athletes like Bumby without feeling the need to insist that they will get to a level that in all likelihood they will not.

Yeah, if they can both stay healthy, it will be so fun to watch Derrick and Fernandez go at it. They get to train everyday as teammates. When do you think they'll next race?

;dakjsdfsaldktj wrote:

I think Derrick and Fernandez are going to be ones to watch this year on the pro circuit. The Stanford 5k is going to be incredible this year. It would be great to see Derrick, Fernandez, Jager, Centro, Heath, and Bumby battle. Also interesting to see when those six will surpass the Ritz, Teg, Solinsky, Webb, Rupp, Lagat, Hall era.

If they both stay healthy, Fernandez will be well clear of Derrick.

If Fernandez continues to struggle with injuries, they'll have a "rivalry."

In other words, Derrick is only able to remain competitive with Fernandez if Fernandez is experiencing setbacks in training.