The IMPACT of Halls 59:43 in 2007

correlation isn't causation

Was that Kansas City course just a killer? What's up with those winning times?

2004 Ryan Shay 1:05:04

2003 Ryan Shay 1:04:13

2002 Peter De La Cerda 1:05:57

Half champs had previously been held in warm conditions on slower courses. Houston is very fast and weather is generally good to excellent for a 1/2. Houston also took some ownership over the event and upped the prize money and support for competitors.

Unfortunately, Hall's 1/2 and full performances have not really inspired much of a breakthrough for US runners. Yuki Kawauchi runs more sub 2:10s in a year that all of the US marathoners. Only Meb crossed the finish line at the 2012 Olympics.

Hall's 59:43 came out of nowhere and got people REALLY excited. It's actually been one of the biggest events that has happened since I've been on this site. Before then, it was very normal for US guys to win half marathons in 63:xx. Sub 60 had never really even been thought about. The WR at the time was only something like 59:30.

I don't think Hall necessarily caused the change, but around the time he ran 59:43 was around the time people started to take the half marathon seriously. We started seeing a lot more guys run 61:xx or faster and Africans started running sub 60:00. The WR got lowered a number of times in only a few years. Before then it hadn't really been attempted much.

The impact was that Hall in his self glory started to live out his delusions in full.

Not even a correlation with Hall, more like Houston/Brian Sell.

And the WR at the time was 58:55 by Geb, to be lowered to 58:33 in April by Wanjiru.

yeah I was just browsing through some US top times lists when I saw this, and I thought his time stood out, after 2007 no one has run slower then 63, whereas previously 63+ won the championships. I had not researched courses/ season/ temperature factors, just wanted to throw this one out to be discussed.

Consider this year's winning time of sub-61 by Estrada, which gives favor to those supporting the theory that Hall, with his american record, did indeed launched a new era. An era where we see much more depth in the 61 - 63 range, but still missing regular sub 60 clockings.

Hall effect wrote:

The impact was that Hall in his self glory started to live out his delusions in full.

And then he went and ran 2:06:xx at London.

If that's "living out his delusions" then we need a little more of that.

Precious Roy wrote:

Unfortunately, Hall's 1/2 and full performances have not really inspired much of a breakthrough for US runners. Yuki Kawauchi runs more sub 2:10s in a year that all of the US marathoners. Only Meb crossed the finish line at the 2012 Olympics.

Do you realize how bad it was before? Only one guy qualified to cross the START LINE at the 2000 Olympics...

Badder Than Ghengis wrote:

Not even a correlation with Hall, more like Houston/Brian Sell.

And the WR at the time was 58:55 by Geb, to be lowered to 58:33 in April by Wanjiru.

You're right about the WR. I guess it had been 59:05 until Geb ran 58:55 in January in 2006. My main point was that not many guys were running under 60:00 at the time, and the fact Hall made 59:43 look easy suggested he could have run significantly faster with competition and pushing hard all the way to the line.

I think that we're on the verge of having frequent sub 2:10s with the large number of sub 63s in recent years. They just haven't moved up yet or haven't mastered the race yet. Even Ritz struggled for years before really breaking through to 2:07:47. Estrada, Puskedra, and many others are promising but it doesn't happen automatically. At least our sub 2:15 depth has improved.

Badder Than Ghengis wrote:

And the WR at the time was 58:55 by Geb, to be lowered to 58:33 in April by Wanjiru.

Geb and Wanjiru, two great runners with pretty much opposite life stories.

I ran in '03 and '04 at Hospital Hill and that course was pretty relentless in terms of heat, hills, and humidity.

I am not sure what the course record is, but I doubt it's under 62:00.

The Hospital Hill course is brutal, never-ending hills on a hot humid June day. To put it into perspective Marc Curp who held a world-record and was the US record-holder for 1/2 marathon ran the race several times (KC was where he was living) in his prime set the course records in 1983 and 1985 and Shay's time from 2003 was extremely good there.