Why can't Rupp kick in a 5k?

Rupp is better at long distance. He really needs to move up to the marathon and run more 1/2 marathons, as well as 10ks.

Brev wrote:

Seriously. A 57 last lap? Isn't that how fast he closed in his 26:44 race? It's always frustrating watching Rupp run cause he can't seem to seem switch gears despite having superior speed and stamina.

Great run by Rupp for an opener, a real rust buster. You phaggs are hilarious in the way you criticize him, when none of you could break 2:00 for 800, and if challenged, at any distance, all you would fold rather than battle it out man to man. Rupp will be fine this season, and you basement bois will continue to knead your monkeys to internet porn hop on LR to badmouth Rupp and other guys with talent. lol

He did well. He always has trouble accelerating. Maybe later he can get it down to 55

Jeffrey Spiccoli wrote:

Great run by Rupp for an opener, a real rust buster. You phaggs are hilarious in the way you criticize him, when none of you could break 2:00 for 800, and if challenged, at any distance, all you would fold rather than battle it out man to man. Rupp will be fine this season, and you basement bois will continue to knead your monkeys to internet porn hop on LR to badmouth Rupp and other guys with talent. lol

Ummm, the runner who trounced Rupp also busted rust. You fanbois are hilarious. Only Rupp busts rust when he gets beaten. Rupp will continue to be a mid-pack runner this season.

Oh, and fanbois are hilarious for noting Rupp is now 18-2 against Lagat. All Rupp had to do was wait for Lagat to hit 40 and slowing with age to finally log a second finish ahead of Lagat. Still, at age 40 Lagat is still batting .900 against Rupp.

But he kicks as fast in a 10k as he does in a 5k. The op has a point. Maybe he is the distance running version of the sundance kid. He had to move to be accurate shooting a gun. Rupp can only kick well after running 9000m.

Movin' on Up wrote:

Rupp is better at long distance. He really needs to move up to the marathon and run more 1/2 marathons, as well as 10ks.

Who cares about his 5K time or last lap kick. What's important is he can bust out during his post- race workout.

He is a front runner and should be race by Al Sal as such

Being faster than Mo over 100m has blinded his overrated coach to the fact that this is worth nothing if you cannot do it at the end of a race.

Rupp should have at least front run to sub 13 pace. if he's going to get out-kicked which he has in every big race since his Olympics Silver at least run a decent time

ukathleticscoach wrote:

He is a front runner and should be race by Al Sal as such

Being faster than Mo over 100m has blinded his overrated coach to the fact that this is worth nothing if you cannot do it at the end of a race.

Rupp should have at least front run to sub 13 pace. if he's going to get out-kicked which he has in every big race since his Olympics Silver at least run a decent time

Correct.

Rupp had several chances to take the lead and refused like a no-heart, even slowing to a jog, which the commentators and everyone else knew was a poor tactic for a faster 5000 runner racing better kickers.

And guess what? Another kickdown for Rupp, who hasn't won a major international RACE, ever.

I have been saying it for a long time: these poor tactics are the result of years of dodging RACES to time trial and beat up on domestic competition. As s result, he has zero tactical acumen. Runners with 10 seconds slower 5000 ability (almost a second per lap!) consistently finish ahead of him.

Just like Centro and Farah find ways to win races, Rupp can find a way to lose any race.

Ryan foreman wrote:

But he kicks as fast in a 10k as he does in a 5k. The op has a point. Maybe he is the distance running version of the sundance kid. He had to move to be accurate shooting a gun. Rupp can only kick well after running 9000m.

Your kick doesn't depend on the distance. It depends on how hard you've been running up to that point. There's no reason why his 5k kick should be any different than his 10k kick. The reason his kick wasn't there last night is because he isn't in peak shape yet. He hasn't raced in months, right?

Also, his typical 5k kick is likely slower than his 10k kick because the 5k is usually run harder than the 10k. He is in more sub 13 races than he is in sub 27 races.

I think this loss came for 2 reasons. The reason he generally does better in 10ks is probably because he has more strength to use his kick at the end. He ran a 57 in the last lap of the 10k at Pre last year (AR) and he ran a 57 last night. The problem is that in the 5k most guys have more left at the end than in the 10k so his kick is on more level ground with them. And the other reason, I think last night he went to early. He put down a pretty big surge with like 600 to go and if he had saved that until the bell I think this would have worked better for him.

This was a very good opener for Rupp. He looked to be in shape to run faster, but he does not have the mental willpower to follow the pacers in a competitive race. You have to practice habits of fortitude, and Salazar does not let his runners do that. They will follow pacers only if there is no strong competition. Rupp has actually closed very fast in a 5000m before, the Olympic Trials 5000m in the Year of L-Carnitine, when he ran something like 52.5 to edge out Lagat. Obviously, if Salazar wants Rupp and Farah to run a fast race, he'll have to arrange something like Webb's Belgium race, just pacers and also-rans.

ukathleticscoach wrote:

if he's going to get out-kicked which he has in every big race since his Olympics Silver at least run a decent time

The only big races in track are the Olympics and World Championships. There haven't really been that many big races since Rupp's Olympic silver.

I agree with what most are saying here. I went last night and the 10k race was quicker through 3k than the 5k. Rupp was content to sit until he made his move a little before 600m to go. He tried to make it a race from a little longer out than 400 but when the pace is slow (for them) he needs to attack it a little more and try to take the kick out of the other runners. He did beat a 40 year old Lagat though! All it took was Lagat aging a bit

Therr haven't been that many races were rupp has had a world class kick (sub 55).... He had the USAs 5k were he beat Lagat and his silver medal (thats all I can remember).

One thing I'll say is it seems like rupp almost never runs through the finish line, so that could be 0.1 off his last lap

Brev wrote:

Seriously. A 57 last lap? Isn't that how fast he closed in his 26:44 race? It's always frustrating watching Rupp run cause he can't seem to seem switch gears despite having superior speed and stamina.

Know whats frustrating, idiots like you that come on here to critize others running performance.

Brev wrote:

Seriously. A 57 last lap? Isn't that how fast he closed in his 26:44 race? It's always frustrating watching Rupp run cause he can't seem to seem switch gears despite having superior speed and stamina.

You have to be a clueless person to make a post like that. It was his season opener. And the last lap on its own its that relevant.

Lot of big names in that race who can drop low 50's at their peak. It's the end of May coming off his worst indoor season in years due to illness (at least that's what they say) closing in 57 in 13:12 isn't shabby at all. Last year he got crushed in a 5k to start the year then ran 26:44 shortly after.

xcguy0988 wrote:

Brev wrote:

Seriously. A 57 last lap? Isn't that how fast he closed in his 26:44 race? It's always frustrating watching Rupp run cause he can't seem to seem switch gears despite having superior speed and stamina.

Know whats frustrating, idiots like you that come on here to critize others running performance.

That's what any forum and message board is for. I came here to read what others thought about the meet from last night. The only thing silly about it is we don't know what is really going on in his life. Meaning that performance could have been good or bad.

The lap before the 57 was 55. So he closed in 1:52, and likely sub 4. I don't know if Salazar wanted a 13:10 race. But as a spectacular, i would have liked to see them attempt sub 13.

It was exciting seeing Galen take the lead with 600 out, but I don't think that works unless your really just that much better than everyone else.

historyzzz_ff wrote:

xcguy0988 wrote:

Know whats frustrating, idiots like you that come on here to critize others running performance.

That's what any forum and message board is for. I came here to read what others thought about the meet from last night. The only thing silly about it is we don't know what is really going on in his life. Meaning that performance could have been good or bad.

The lap before the 57 was 55. So he closed in 1:52, and likely sub 4. I don't know if Salazar wanted a 13:10 race. But as a spectacular, i would have liked to see them attempt sub 13.

It was exciting seeing Galen take the lead with 600 out, but I don't think that works unless your really just that much better than everyone else.

Yeah people keep saying it was only a 57 but they fail to realize the pace had picked up the lap before, with Rupp starting to work hard from 700ish out.

Brev wrote:

Seriously. A 57 last lap? Isn't that how fast he closed in his 26:44 race? It's always frustrating watching Rupp run cause he can't seem to seem switch gears despite having superior speed and stamina.

I suspect it was 57 and not 55 because Rupp made that massive move going from 4th to the lead in the span of about 30m during the backstretch of the penultimate lap. That was a seriously big move with not very far to go.