Have any elite runners become elite cyclists?

Mick Woods is a great example.

Ran to a high level, ran 2:19 pre-Vapourfly and finished 7th in the Wimbledon 10 in 1979 behind prestigious talent like Alan McBrayne.

Now he is a top cyclist, often leading reps around Bushy Park for his athletes.

Watched some GCN wrote:

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Grampa Surf wrote:

I've never really heard of an elite cyclist changing to running and having success. I would think the physical impact of running would be hard for a cyclist to adapt to.

Emma Pooley was a 2010 World Champion, 2008 Olympic medalist, and won a half dozen UCI world cup races and is the current Everesting record holder as a cyclist. She ran a 2:44 marathon while still signed to a cycling team in 2013 and before going back to the Olympics in 2016 again as a cyclist. Shehe has won four long distance duathlon championships, several big triathlons, and is currently a Salomon running athlete, competing in mountain running/ultras.

2:44 ain't elite. High school girls have run much faster. The women's 50+ age group record is 13 minutes faster than that. Pooley would have finished TWO MILES behind a 50 year old woman. She would have finished A MILE behind a 65 year old man. Again, the fact is that no elite cyclist will ever become an elite runner, but many elite runners have become elite cyclists. If it could happen, it would have happened by now. But it hasn't and it can't. Running fast is harder than cycling fast, that is just how it is. I'm sorry if all you cyclists get butthurt by the truth that running is tougher than cycling. The fact that elite runners are tougher than elite cyclists. The fact that an elite runners have become elite cyclists but never has an elite cyclist become an elite runner. Not all elite runners are able to become elite cyclists, but many are able. No elite cyclist is able to become an elite runner, and none are able.

wow gramps, you tell them.

i think more have transitioned from running to triathlon.

Grampa Surf wrote:

Could most fringe elite distance runners, upper tier but not Olympic/World Champs qualifier level, transition to cycling and be an Olympic/World Champs/Grand Tour qualifier?

No, of course they can't. They don't have the necessary lifetime mileage that elite cyclists already accumulate in young years. Also racing experience matters a lot.

You got no idea how much young cyclists already train. Running does not prepare for that amount of activities, the elite cyclists need to use fat even much more as fuel than runners.

I had rides where I literally was out of energy and on emergency mode trying to make it home somehow. But I still had to start with 5 mile long runs like everyone else that's more fast-twitch and slowly build up, despite all I built up in my body from cycling, because my legs couldn't handle the pounding of 9 min pace initially.

The more relevant question is not - "can elite runners switch to become an elite cyclist", it's more like: "could an elite runner have decided to become an elite cyclist had he started at 10 years old". The answer is still just very few maybe, as the other VO2MAX thread showed is many people are great runners just because they are extremely efficient (excellent running economy), which doesn't transfer over as well as a high VO2MAX would (and Armstrong's VO2MAX did not make him a good runner either).

Forgot the name, but YES, Ian Stewart is a great example, you could ask Pre but......

LateRunnerPhil wrote:

Grampa Surf wrote:

Could most fringe elite distance runners, upper tier but not Olympic/World Champs qualifier level, transition to cycling and be an Olympic/World Champs/Grand Tour qualifier?

No, of course they can't. They don't have the necessary lifetime mileage that elite cyclists already accumulate in young years. Also racing experience matters a lot.

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Um, Mike Woods could and did. That is a fact. Of course an elite runner has a chance of becoming an elite Olympic/World Champs/Grand Tour qualifier. It has already been done. On the other hand, no elite cyclist will ever be able to transition into elite running.

gramps wrote:

LateRunnerPhil wrote:

No, of course they can't. They don't have the necessary lifetime mileage that elite cyclists already accumulate in young years. Also racing experience matters a lot.

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Um, Mike Woods could and did. That is a fact. Of course an elite runner has a chance of becoming an elite Olympic/World Champs/Grand Tour qualifier. It has already been done. On the other hand, no elite cyclist will ever be able to transition into elite running.

Except, Ian Stewart has done it!

And I think Jack Foster from New Zealand as well

gramps wrote:

2:44 ain't elite.

It is for a woman doing that off cycling training. She's a pro Salomon mountain athlete for performance, not instagram. Pro athletes are elite by definition.

spin city.. wrote:

gramps wrote:

Um, Mike Woods could and did. That is a fact. Of course an elite runner has a chance of becoming an elite Olympic/World Champs/Grand Tour qualifier. It has already been done. On the other hand, no elite cyclist will ever be able to transition into elite running.

Except, Ian Stewart has done it!

Stewart became a cyclist after he quit running. Another elite runner who transitioned into cycling.

In 1965, at 16 years of age, he ran a British age best of 9.12.8 for 2 miles and two years later set a European junior 3 miles record of 13.39.8. In 1968, he broke European junior records at four distances: 3000m, 2 miles, 3 miles and 5000m.

transitioning from an elite runner to an elite cyclist would be easier than vice versa largely because of running economy and durability developed over years of experience/mileage, but I would say most elite runners that can't cut it would be much better off (and more commonly) transition to triathlon. Most of the ITU triathletes are sub 14 5k guys that ran in school.

Saying it is easier to become an elite cyclist is incredibly foolish tho. I would agree running is more competitive and there is no doubt that there are an abundance of athletes that couldn't compete in cycling simply because they don't have access to the sport. However, cycling is a unique beast. Professionals train 30+ hours a week and the major stage races would bring anyone to their physical and psychological limits. It's not just about power output either. A lot of people can put out good numbers on the trainer, but have you tried in a peloton nudging shoulders and maneuvering down slippery hills at 100km/h. On paper cycling may seem like an easier route to the elite level, but there are a lot of intangibles that most people will never have despite physical limitations playing a lesser role.

Watched some GCN. wrote:

gramps wrote:

2:44 ain't elite.

It is for a woman doing that off cycling training. She's a pro Salomon mountain athlete for performance, not instagram. Pro athletes are elite by definition.

Kilian is also a pro Salomon athlete. When he tried to do a normal 10k race, he was beaten by 17 Norwegian club runners and a child. I wouldn't call that elite by any stretch. Some 22 minute 5k turkey trot winner takes home $20 and thus is a pro. I guess by definition he is elite.

spin city.. wrote:

And I think Jack Foster from New Zealand as well

Jack Foster is a good example. Was he an elite Olympic/Grand Tour caliber rider?

1990s Domestic Bike Stud Mike Engleman was a 2:18 marathoner before he took up cycling. Very very few in North America could go uphill faster

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Engleman

Leah Thorvilson has an impressive running record, then won the Zwift Academy and got a contract for the Canyon-SRAM team a few years back.

Zersenay Tadese was a good cyclist.

gramps wrote:

Watched some GCN. wrote:

It is for a woman doing that off cycling training. She's a pro Salomon mountain athlete for performance, not instagram. Pro athletes are elite by definition.

Kilian is also a pro Salomon athlete. When he tried to do a normal 10k race, he was beaten by 17 Norwegian club runners and a child. I wouldn't call that elite by any stretch. Some 22 minute 5k turkey trot winner takes home $20 and thus is a pro. I guess by definition he is elite.

Of course Kilian is elite. If you are the OP, what you asked was, "I've never really heard of an elite cyclist changing to running and having success. " You didn't say track only, or road only. Mountain running has elite athletes too.

gramps wrote:

Um, Mike Woods could and did. That is a fact. Of course an elite runner has a chance of becoming an elite Olympic/World Champs/Grand Tour qualifier. It has already been done. On the other hand, no elite cyclist will ever be able to transition into elite running.

It's very unlikely because the big question you need to ask is 'why would you want to?'

Being a top level pro cyclist is more prestigious and pays better than being a top runner.

Also, runners go to cycling because of injuries. A cyclist is unlikely to go to running because of injuries, because any injury that get from cycling is likely to cause problems while running too.

Watched some GCN wrote:

gramps wrote:

Kilian is also a pro Salomon athlete. When he tried to do a normal 10k race, he was beaten by 17 Norwegian club runners and a child. I wouldn't call that elite by any stretch. Some 22 minute 5k turkey trot winner takes home $20 and thus is a pro. I guess by definition he is elite.

Of course Kilian is elite. If you are the OP, what you asked was, "I've never really heard of an elite cyclist changing to running and having success. " You didn't say track only, or road only. Mountain running has elite athletes too.

Of course the world champ at tiddlywinks is elite at tiddlywinks, but not at running. Kilian is not elite at running. He is a club level turkey trot runner who runs mountain races. Kilian is elite at mountain races but is not an elite runner. Let's put it this way, Kilian will never have a faster PR at any event than I ran in high school. Mountain running might have elite athletes, maybe even some elite runners and Kilian may be an elite athlete at something like SkiMo, but Kilian is not an elite runner. An elite distance runner doesn't get smoked over 10K by 17 Norwegian club dudes and a child. Based on how many Norwegians alone are better than Kilian at distance running, there must be at least 10,000 men, women and children distance runners worldwide who he is behind. Is being ranked 10,000th in anything considered elite?