World Athletics Vaporfly Ruling Is Coming Friday

Rojo Speaks By Wearing Vaporfly Prototypes, Eliud Kipchoge, Galen Rupp, & Shalane Flanagan Are All Guilty of Mechanical Doping in 2016 – Will Anything Be Done About It? What happened in the 2016 Olympic marathons where several athletes including Eliud Kipchoge and American stars Galen Rupp and Shalane Flanagan were given secret shoes, made to look like other shoes on the market, that scientists believe produce 2% gains in performance was “mechanical doping.” Will World Athletics acknowledge this fact and potentially invalidate the 2016 Rio Olympic men’s marathon results?
*MB: Kipchoge, Rupp, & Flanagan Are All Guilty of Mechanical Doping in 2016 – Will Anything Be Done About It?

• Wall St Journal video on Nike Vaporfly controversy has more than 3.5 million views
• What the Wall Street Journal video didn’t reveal The video ends with a guy running a mile in the Vaporflys and a mile in the Adios Boosts. What it didn’t reveal was his HR was 5 bpm less in the Vaporflys and his stride frequency was about 3 strides/minute lower in the Vaporfly.
• The Telegraph Opinion Piece: “Nike’s Vaporfly Shoes Are Fine – But The Sport’s Integrity Is At Stake If Their Next Version Is Not Banned” Ben Bloom writes, “The Alphafly is a step too far. When five-time Olympian Bernard Lagat posted a photo of him in what appeared to be Alphafly shoes this week, someone asked how much they would cost. One reply summed up what is at stake for the sport: ‘the price is integrity.'”

Vaporfly Related MB Talk: 

• Ryan Hall finds a 2:09 in old school shoes more “inspiring” than a 2:01 in Vaporflys.
• Is Running turning into an Expensive Sport?
• Nike Pegasus 37 – Inspired by the Next%

Will Russia Ever Learn?

• Russia Edging Towards Blanket Track And Field Ban After Athletics Integrity Unit Suggests The Expulsion Of RusAF From Membership Of World Athletics The AIU said that in response to evidence officials forged documents to cover-up a whereabouts violation by high jumper Danil Lysenko, RusAF had not put “forward any material or evidence” to answer the case against it and showed a “total lack of contrition.”
• World Athletics Statement; Won’t Be Considering Any Applications For “Neutral Athlete” Status “Instead of admitting the charges and expressing contrition, RusAF has instead ‘gone to great lengths to deny any involvement in the matter, blame others and attack the process.'”
• Reuters: RUSADA Official Says Banned Race Walking Coach Viktor Chegin Still Working With Athletes RUSADA deputy head Margarita Pakhnotskaya: “Chegin is working to this day. He is hidden by security guards. He walks around in a hood and glasses. He changes vehicles. To catch him we would need the police, a law enforcement operation, wiretaps and so on.”

World Indoors Postponed

Nanjing, China World Indoor Championships Postponed Until March 2021 The World Athletics statement read, “We know that China is doing all it can to contain the new Coronavirus … [but] the advice from our medical team, who are in contact with the World Health Organisation, is that the spread of the Coronavirus both within China and outside the country is still at a concerning level.”
*MB: 2020 World Indoors in China is POSTPONED until 2021 due to Coronavirus

• JAAA Disappointed With Postponement Of World Indoors As Jamaican Athletes Will Have One Less Competitive Meet To Sharpen At Ahead Of Tokyo 2020
• European Athletics President Says That They Will Be Sure To Put At Least 2-Weeks Between 2021 Euro Indoor Champs And The Postponed World Indoors So Athletes Can Attend Both
• There Are No Plans To Cancel April’s Hong Kong Sevens (Rugby) Event Due To Coronavirus
• Chinese Leg Of FINA Diving World Series Cancelled Due To Coronavirus Outbreak
• MB: The coronavirus panic proves how easily manipulated people are and how the media sensationalizes everything
• MB: Will Coronavirus cancel the 2020 Boston Marathon?

World Athletics Shoe Announcement Coming Friday?

• The Guardian Reports That Nike Vaporflys Will Escape Ban, But Rules On Running Shoes Will Get Stricter They say that World Athletics will announce its decision on Friday and that they are suspending any new shoe technology until after the Tokyo Games. Apparently the AlphaFly (which Kipghoge wore when he broke 2 hours) hasn’t been submitted to World Athletics for inspection yet. *Discuss
• Daily Mail Reports That The Nike Vaporflys Are Set To Be Banned By World Athletics After A Study That Will Prove They Enhance Performance To Unacceptable Levels Their sub-headline says “some variations” will be banned, but claims that the Next% Brigid Kosgei wore to break the WR is among them. *MB Thread
• Kara Goucher Talked To Forbes About The Possibility She Missed Making The 2016 Olympics Due To The Nike Vaporfly “I felt like something I had worked so hard for had been stolen from me, similar to how I felt when I learned people ahead of me were doping.”
  *MB: Goucher: I didn’t go to Rio because Shalane and Amy wore VFs (which is the same as EPO)
• Recent Reuters Article With Quote From World Athletics On Nike Shoes “It is not our job to determine the shoe running market for everybody. If people want to run a marathon in Vaporflys or any other shoe, it’s not our job to stop them. But if you want a ratified record, then you are classified as elite and have to abide by the rules.” *2nd Article
• MB: Official CHEATERFLY body count thread – List of pros injured by Nike Vaporflys
• MB: Nike and Vaporfly are why I’m quitting Competitive Running for Spartan Races
• MB: ALPHAFLY AT TRIALS – letsrun please get a definitive statement from USATF
• MB: Helmut Winter: Stats reveal elite marathon times have dropped 1:45 for men, 3:00 for women in last 2 years possibly due to VF
• MB: Can the owners of this site finally stop crying about/doing free advertisment for the Vaporfly all day long?

NCAA / HS Indoor News

• NAU’s Tyler Day And Texas’ Julien Alfred Are NCAA Athletes Of The Week Day ran 13:16.95 (#3 on the all-time collegiate list) while Alfred ran 7.10 in the 60m (#7 on the all-time collegiate list).
• Top Men’s NCAA Rankings Stay The Same With Florida State, Southern California And Texas 1-4
• Southern California Women Stay Ranked #1; Georgia Moves Up To 2nd And Arkansas Down To 3rd In Latest NCAA Rankings Texas is ranked #4.
• Event-By-Event Top-10 NCAA Marks From Last Week
• Leah Pasqualetti Clears 4.27m (14-0) To Move To #3 In NY High School All-Time List

Pro Track Is Back *NBIGP Results 

NBIGP LRC Donavan Brazier Dominates, Bryce Hoppel Starts A New Win Streak, & More Thoughts From The 2020 NBIGP Jessica Hull won a tight 1,500. Pro track and field is back.
*NBIGP Live Thread
*Post-Race Interviews

• World Athletics Boston Recap: Nia Ali Wins 60H In 7.94; Harvard Grad Gabby Thomas Wins 300m In 36.52
• Demek Kemp Cruises Past Asafa Powell In Boston 60m Kemp won in 6.50; Powell was 5th in 6.71.
• Jake Wightman Breaks GB 1,000m Record In Boston With 2:18.51 (2nd Behind Bryce Hoppel) He broke the previous record of 2:17.86 which had stood 28 years.
• Ciara Mageean Sets New Irish 1,500m Indoor Record In Boston With 4:06.42 (3rd place)

More Weekend Track Results *BU Terrier *All Weekend NCAA Coverage

• World Athletics Weekend Indoor Round-Up: Keni Harrison Wins 60H At Martin Luther King Invy In Albuquerque With 7.81 In Houston, Jenn Suhr cleared 4.75m in the PV.
• NAU’s Tyler Day Runs New American Collegiate Record With 13:16.95 At BU Terrier Classic Day was second behind Paul Tanui, who won in 13:15.72; Eric Jenkins was 3rd (13:22.32).
  *MB: Tyler MF Day 13:16.95 — takes down Galen Rupp’s American Collegiate Indoor Record
• 2020 BU Terrier Classic Results Besides the men’s 5,000m, some other highlights included Craig Engels winning the mile in 3:56.85, Raevyn Rogers in the 1,000m (2:39.00), Laura Galvan in the women’s mile (4:31.89) and Julie-Anne Staehli in the 3,000m (8:47.97).
• USTFCCCA NCAA Weekend In ReviewKansas’ Gleb Dudarev threw #5 all-time in the weight throw with 24.38m.
• Texas A&M Beat Out Baylor To Sweep Titles At Aggie Invitational
• Briana Williams Wins 60m (7.15) At Queens/Grace Jackson Meet In Kingston Oshane Bailey won the men’s race in 6.65; MVP’s Nesta Carter was 6th (6.75).
• Valerie Adams Secures Olympic Qualifier In First Competition In Almost 18 Months She threw 18.65m in her first competition since giving birth to her second child last March. Tom Walsh won the men’s event with 21.10m.

LetsSprint.com

• Briana Williams Says She Doesn’t Feel Burdened By Expectations “To me it isn’t pressure, I’m young but I have the mind of a professional, and I know others are expecting me to be at the top this year since I’m a fresh new pro. But I always remind myself to just go out there, have fun and do my best.”
• February 15: Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce And World Indoor 60m Champ Murielle Ahoure Going Head-To-Head At The Muller Indoor GP In Glasgow
• South African Relay Coach Wants Under 37.60 And A Medal For The Men’s 4 X 100 At Tokyo 2020 They ran 37.73 seconds for 5th in Doha, after setting an African record of 37.65 in the heats.
• Matthew Boling Named High School Athlete Of The Year (All Sports) At Houston Sports Award
• 17-Year-Old Malaysian Sprinter Gets 4-Year Doping Ban For Steroid Use

Random Other News

• Former Premier League General Secretary Nic Coward Appointed Interim UK Athletics Chief Executive Originally, Zara Hyde Peters was given the permanent role but decided not to take it up when allegations about her husband came out in November.
• Hong Kong Marathon Cancelled In Wake Of Coronavirus (Potentially Lethal Virus) Outbreak
• NBC Renews Snapchat Partnership For Tokyo 2020

Japanese Distance News

• Former Japanese Marathon National Record Holder Yuta Shitara Wants To Run 2:04 At The Tokyo Marathon March 1st But he doesn’t just want to run 2:04. The 2:06:11 man says hif he doesn’t run 2:04, he won’t “deserve to run in the Tokyo Olympics” and went as far as to say that if he runs 2:05, he’d “probably turn it (the Olympics) down.”
• Sunday: Haftamnesh Tesfay Leads A Quartet Of Sub-2:22 Women While The Japanese Battle It Out For An Olympic Spot At The Women’s Osaka Marathon *Japan Running News Preview: A Sub-2:22:22 Will Earn The Japanese Women An Olympic Spot

Vaporfly News

Interesting Read Helmut Winter: Stats Reveal Elite Marathon Times Have Dropped 1:45 For Men, 3:00 For Women In Last 2 Years, Possibly Due To VF

• MB: Can the owners of this site finally stop crying about/doing free advertisement for the Vaporfly all day long?
• Unfit Journalist Puts On Vaporflys, Knocks 2.5 Minutes Off A 42-Minute Run
• Paula Radcliffe On Vaporflys: “I’m kind of sitting on the fence a little bit with how much the shoes on their own are distorting the competition.” Go to the last 35 seconds of the interview from Radcliffe, who is doing the commentary in Dubai.
• From Paul Tergat’s Filas To Eliud Kipchoge’s Alphaflys, AW Shoe Guru Looks At History Of Carbon Fiber-Plated Shoes Tergat set his marathon WR in shoes that had a fiber plate.
• Wall Street Journal Produces 8-Minute Video On Vaporfly Controversy

Women’s News Of Note

• Foot Locker Champ Zofia Dudek Has Long-Term Vision For Track She wants to be competing in the middle of the summer – at World Juniors in Kenya – but is feeling good after taking 2 weeks off following XC.
• Saitama International Marathon To Be Discontinued The women’s elite race which was only 5 years old featured a $6.4 million budget but only 1 elite Japanese woman ran it last year as the pros didn’t like it as it was so hilly. Amateurs, however, love it and it may be brought back in 2021 as it’s one of Japan’s biggest races with 20,000 runners.
• What’s A Week Of Training Like With Team Boss (Joe Bosshard’s Group)? Aisha Praught-Leer Shares A Week Of Her Training The hard days are hard and include weights and the easy days are easy.
• How Katie Izzo Has Gone From Breaking Her Tibia And Fibula In 2016 To A 15:13 Indoor 5,000 For Arkansas Her PR for Cal Poly was 16:08.
• Olivia Baker Talks About Her Bittersweet 2019 Campaign Her first year as a pro saw her finish 4th at USAs but she didn’t have the 2:00.60 standard which would have gotten her to Doha as Ajee won the DL. The Stanford grad now trains in Austin, TX where she has a running book club with Keturah Orji.
• After Making The 800m Final In Doha, Ce’Aira Brown Is Considering Doubling Up In The 800 And 1,500 At The 2020 Trials “I’m with the 1,500 girls on strength days and the 800 girls on speed days.”

Better Running Shoes

LRC The 10 Most Popular Running Shoes On LetsRun.com Before we do our final call of shoe reviews in 2019, we decided to take a look at what shoes are the most popluar on LetsRun. Four shoe lines dominant, the Nike Pegasus, the Brooks Ghost, the HOKA Clifton and the Saucony Kinvara. These four might be a great place to start when looking for a new pair of shoes.