Will this be Bernard Lagat's final national team appearance? Can he get Haile Gebrselassie's world master's record?

Forgetting his silver for 2004 there, champ?

Error rates for drug testing mean nothing to you, then?

Lagat actually could also make a U.S. marathon team for World's if he moves up to the marathon, because the U.S. always has difficulty getting its three best for World's in the marathon, given that they can make a lot more money in the U.S. majors.

JamesTheAmateur wrote:

Forgetting his silver for 2004 there, champ?

Why is that relevant?

I posted this in another thread, but should Lagat at age 43 run faster than the "distance oriented" Geb did at 40, surely he enters the conversation of "greatest range of a distance runner."

Consider:

3:26 faster than Mo's 3:28

12:53 same as Mo's 12:53 (at an older age mind you)

So how would you value a sub 61 at age 43 versus Mo's ~59:30 in his prime? Pretty close I think.

Anyway, seeing how I'm the same age as Lagat, and that he has been a great representative of our country, I can't help but root for him. Hope he does it.

There is a more than 0 percent chance Lagat makes the 2020 US Olympic Marathon team.

With a 62 flat half under his belt, Lagat could run a debut marathon fall 2018/Spring 2019 on a fast course like Berlin, Amsterdam etc with the B group at a smooth 2:12 pace. With his maiden out of the way Lagat could then get sharp for the Trials on his own schedule.

Rupp seems a lock for the team/win but after that nobody else is a sure thing. Ritz is the next best thing talent wise but he is white man old and not particularly reliable. There are a handful of WCAP guys that could go sub 2:10 on the right day/course, but historically speaking, that group is just as likely to DNF in a championship style race. Ward seems to have blown his wad and no other American seems likely to go sub 2:12 in a championship style race. If Lagat comes in fit and runs smooth, he's got a punchers chance of snagging a spot with a 2:10/ 2:11 type performance.

Of course, time defeats everybody eventually but if anybody can survive a few more rounds, it's Lagat.

JamesTheAmateur wrote:

Forgetting his silver for 2004 there, champ?

He means he first medalled in 2000, the 2004 silver came later (and what a race!).

Wejo,

I think Bernard could set the 15k or 20k road record. Those arent raced very often but are official usatf distance for guiness wr and the alltimeathletics wr website, which is what i use for all my references. Perhaps he could do it at the Tulsa run.

never forget wrote:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/3078642.stm

It's hard to watch him run and pretend he is clean

#cleansport wrote:

It's hard to watch him run and pretend he is clean

It is hard to see you post and pretend you were clean. ... Those who cry the most about others cheating, and the most likely cheaters; they refuse to let themselves ever be tested; better to give a world age best than be found out a cheater.

so cries wrote:

#cleansport wrote:

It's hard to watch him run and pretend he is clean

It is hard to see you post and pretend you were clean. ... Those who cry the most about others cheating, and the most likely cheaters; they refuse to let themselves ever be tested; better to give a world age best than be found out a cheater.

It's common knowledge he cheated. No shock value in that. Elites know it and talked openly about it.

the430miler wrote:

I think Bernard could set the 15k or 20k road record. Those arent raced very often but are official usatf distance for guiness wr and the alltimeathletics wr website

And no longer IAAF WR distances (since late last year). Good riddance for the 20k WR, it was always an "en route" time of a WR half marathon.

grox wrote:

the430miler wrote:

I think Bernard could set the 15k or 20k road record. Those arent raced very often but are official usatf distance for guiness wr and the alltimeathletics wr website

And no longer IAAF WR distances (since late last year). Good riddance for the 20k WR, it was always an "en route" time of a WR half marathon.

That's a shame. I've always wished we could go back to a marathon being 40km like it was originally thereby making 20km the half marathon distance. I know that is likely to never happen, but it's fun to think about it. Hell, 50km makes more sense as a marathon distance than 42.2.

#cleansport wrote:

never forget wrote:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/3078642.stm

It's hard to watch him run and pretend he is clean

Thank you for the reminder. There is plenty of dirt out there on smilin' Bernie. Just ask around.

Oh Please wrote:

grox wrote:

And no longer IAAF WR distances (since late last year). Good riddance for the 20k WR, it was always an "en route" time of a WR half marathon.

That's a shame. I've always wished we could go back to a marathon being 40km like it was originally thereby making 20km the half marathon distance. I know that is likely to never happen, but it's fun to think about it. Hell, 50km makes more sense as a marathon distance than 42.2.

what makes you think a marathon was originally 40km it wasn't

the marathon wrote:

what makes you think a marathon was originally 40km it wasn't

"Vast sums were expended in building a marble replica of the stadium at Olympia, and the first Olympic Marathon was run from Marathon Bridge to this stadium in Athens, over a distance of 40km."

smd wrote:

the marathon wrote:

what makes you think a marathon was originally 40km it wasn't

"Vast sums were expended in building a marble replica of the stadium at Olympia, and the first Olympic Marathon was run from Marathon Bridge to this stadium in Athens, over a distance of 40km."

http://www.aims-worldrunning.org/articles/427.html

Olympic marathon distances

Year Distance

(km) Distance

(miles)

1896 40 24.85

1900 40.26 25.02

1904 40 24.85

1906 41.86 26.01

1908 42.195 26.22

1912 40.2 24.98

1920 42.75 26.56

1924 onward 42.195 26.22

Olympic marathon distances

Year Distance

(km) Distance

(miles)

1896 40 24.85

1900 40.26 25.02

1904 40 24.85

1906 41.86 26.01

1908 42.195 26.22

1912 40.2 24.98

1920 42.75 26.56

1924 onward 42.195 26.22

The length of an Olympic marathon was not precisely fixed at first, but the marathon races in the first few Olympic Games were about 40 kilometres (25 mi),[42] roughly the distance from Marathon to Athens by the longer, flatter route. The exact length depended on the route established for each venue.

#cleansport wrote:

so cries wrote:

It is hard to see you post and pretend you were clean. ... Those who cry the most about others cheating, and the most likely cheaters; they refuse to let themselves ever be tested; better to give a world age best than be found out a cheater.

It's common knowledge he cheated. No shock value in that. Elites know it and talked openly about it.

Nope. He has been tested thousands of time. Unlike you, who refuses to let themselves be tested. Poof goes your age-group record.

Oh Please wrote:

grox wrote:

And no longer IAAF WR distances (since late last year). Good riddance for the 20k WR, it was always an "en route" time of a WR half marathon.

That's a shame. I've always wished we could go back to a marathon being 40km like it was originally thereby making 20km the half marathon distance. I know that is likely to never happen, but it's fun to think about it. Hell, 50km makes more sense as a marathon distance than 42.2.

The only reason it became 42.2 was so that the end of the 1908 Olympic marathon could end in front of the Queen of England's Royal Nursery. The prior distance was 25 miles (40km). Then England decided the race must start at Windsor castle--adding 1 mile--then the Queen decided it had to be longer to end where she wanted.

That the marathon became locked in to 42.2 because of the dumb reasons above. It is time to erase that nonsense and rest it to 40km, and then the half becomes 20 km.