elite 800 females -- speed requirement

Training Advice/Discussion 800

9 years ago 02/25/2015 8:16pm EST

I'm wondering how much speed is required to truly excel as a female 800 runner, in college (D1) and post-collegiately. Can list in terms of 200 time or 400 time.

Follow-up question: If the runner doesn't have the required speed, do you (early in the career):

a) work on speed

b) work on strength

c) move up to the mile

I suppose for some it doesn't make sense to move up to the mile if they are true 400/800 types, and you just have to work with what you've got. not everybody can just keep moving up in distance until they win (ultra runners being the exception)

As I write this out it is seeming more and more like a stupid question, but if anyone has insightful responses i will be happy to read them.

9 years ago 02/25/2015 8:36pm EST

re: eight hundred best hundred

To run sub 2 you have to run about 54, and to run 54 you have to run about 25 low. More or less.

9 years ago 02/25/2015 10:24pm EST

re: Bad Wigins

Bad Wigins wrote:
To run sub 2 you have to run about 54, and to run 54 you have to run about 25 low. More or less.

This is incorrect. There are a few sub 2 women who ran 57s in the 400.

Remember Julie Brown from the 70s? Her fastest 400m time was 58-59 and she ran a 2 flat 800.

9 years ago 02/25/2015 10:52pm EST

re: bobby sss

bobby sss wrote:
Bad Wigins wrote:
To run sub 2 you have to run about 54, and to run 54 you have to run about 25 low. More or less.
Remember Julie Brown from the 70s? Her fastest 400m time was 58-59 and she ran a 2 flat 800.

what? no. think about it - that makes no sense. she probably split under 59 to run 2 flat.

9 years ago 02/26/2015 12:02am EST

re: bobby sss

bobby sss wrote:
Bad Wigins wrote:
More or less.
There are a few sub 2 women who ran 57s in the 400.

Hence the "more or less."

If you run 57 you have some slim hope of sub 2. But odds are that once you get there, you'll actually be in 55 shape. Most 800 runners don't go off and run an open 400 at their peak.

9 years ago 02/26/2015 12:16am EST

re: Bad Wigins

I know this thread is about female runners, but I don't think you need to run a 25sec 200 to hit 54. The fastest 200 I've hit is 25.2 and I've run 51.8 in an open 400 and 1:53.7 in an 800. I'm more of a 1500m runner, but I figured I'd point this out.

9 years ago 02/26/2015 12:44am EST

re: eight hundred best hundred

9 years ago 02/26/2015 7:41am EST

re: bobby sss

You maybe could go 2:00 with 55 speed, 56 or higher, no way.

bobby sss wrote:
Bad Wigins wrote:
To run sub 2 you have to run about 54, and to run 54 you have to run about 25 low. More or less.
This is incorrect. There are a few sub 2 women who ran 57s in the 400.
Remember Julie Brown from the 70s? Her fastest 400m time was 58-59 and she ran a 2 flat 800.

9 years ago 02/26/2015 10:52am EST

re: crete

crete wrote:
bobby sss wrote:
Remember Julie Brown from the 70s? Her fastest 400m time was 58-59 and she ran a 2 flat 800.
what? no. think about it - that makes no sense. she probably split under 59 to run 2 flat.

How old are you? Do you remember Julie? Anyway her pb 400 is no faster than a 58. I know this because I know her.

Here are her prs:

800m--2:00.8, 1500m--4:06.4, Mile--4:30.23, 3000m--8:58.27, 5000m--15:39.5, marathon--2:26:24[

9 years ago 02/26/2015 2:57pm EST

re: bobby ssss

His point was, she probably didn't run a flat-out 400 for time when she was running her peak 800 times, and therefore probably could have run faster than 58 but just never tried.

9 years ago 02/26/2015 3:04pm EST

re: crete

Elite women and decent high school male are synonymous

9 years ago 02/26/2015 7:31pm EST

re: Ritz Raff

Ritz Raff wrote:
Elite women and decent high school male are synonymous

As a general rule I feel like HS male 800m runners (running 1:57-2:00) usually have more speed (200-400) than the elite women. But to be honest I've always wondered why female elite 800m times in general are so poor compared to both longer (5k-10k) and shorter (200-400m) performances. If a decent number of elite women can run 49-51sec for 400m and sub 15 for 5k, I would think more would be in the 1:54-55range for 800.

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