Ole Klaebobakken Einar Dahlen Bjornstruddel wrote:
Well years ago at either the Bislett Games or the Oslo Games (I don't remember which) They had a two mile race for the Norweigian men's cross country ski team. Legendary Bjorn Dahlie ran 8:58.
Holy crud. That guy is a complete and utter animal of an athlete - that is something like an 8-20 3k for some absolutely huge monster dude with very little running training. I just can't quite get my head around that, it would be like Arnold Schwarzenegger hammering out a 4-minute mile or something...
The other athletes I wonder about regarding the OPs question are the CrossFit athletes. I guess you could call them endurance athletes as they seem to be doing pushups and chinups for several minutes non stop so they must be the endurance equivalent to at least 5k runners or something. I remember there being a trail distance running event and duathlon at one of the CrossFit games and the guys and girls were literally hammering through the first mile in just over 5 mins which is hugely impressive when you consider the amount of weight they have to lift for their events. But still not quite as good as Bjorn MF Dahlie....