That was the most pathetic mile I’ve ever seen

Also remember this isn't an open race that they had weeks to prepare for, they all had to run prelims the day before. Nobody was completely fresh, which adds to the intrigue of race strategy.

But it was tactical - it's just that everyone used the same tactics. Quality is in the eye of the beholder. Do you think the runners were less motivated to win than they would have been in a fast-paced race? While the race was in progress every runner ran in the way they believed optimized their chances to place as highly as possible.

I think the group dynamic is interesting. Any experts in game theory and its relevance to these types of "tactical" races?

Hocker closed faster than that when he ran 3:53 last year lmao

Funny, I don't remember any time requirements being listed for this race, I thought the object was to win the race. Could you point to where I could find those requirements so I can be better informed for next year?

Tactical races are so much more interesting to watch than time trials. That's why everyone hates what BTC does. That's why when Cheptegei broke the world record in 5/10k it didn't get much hype because it was just him running with the wavelight.

Tactical races make it interesting. Anything could happen.

Well, take your pick. I'll go for Maryam Yusuf Jamal since that race was notorious.

I like the fact the mid-d races are tactical and think that's part of being good at the event. Look at Jenny Simpson.

Why are you lying? Mario closed in 25,83 the last 200m (not 26 mid) and 53 flat the last 400. If you are going to hate at least get your stats right

Sure. And then would have been lapped pretty quickly. I prefer faster races myself, but runners run to win. And the mile/1500 has this a lot vs 800 or 5k.

My mistake, no hate intended. I didn’t look for the official splits and just did my best to gauge what I saw on the clock and correlate what I was seeing on the track.

A race where everyone runs slow isn't tactical - it is merely slow. In fact, it shows an absence of tactics, which is to introduce elements of surprise in a race to keep opponents guessing and to counter their strengths. For everyone to simply adopt the same "tactics" - to jog for 3 laps - rather suggests a flock of sheep on the move. "Oh, I'll wait and let the fastest sprinters win".

If the object was to win the race how did jogging for 3 laps work out for everyone? I guess it was a good tactic for one runner, but not so much the others.

It's a little 'funny' and weird that entry into the NCAA Indoor Track Championship Mile Run was based totally upon the fastest qualifying times (not based on winning races or placing well in races).

And two runners made it into the final based totally upon their faster finishing times in the heats.

It was required that runners had to be one of the 16 fastest NCAA D1 milers just to be allowed to compete at the National Championship.

But being a fast miler means little one you get there.

And the fast milers that are not happy with their result in the final have only themselves to blame for allowing that race to be very different from the type of race that got them into the championships.

At Big Ten indoors in about 2004 with Nick Willis, the Jefferson twins at Indiana and a few other sub 4 guys, they went out in 2:25 and closed in 1:55.

A friend who saw the race live said that the guys were laughing during the race since they were going so slowly.

Clearly that is not what he said

How many people would the strategy have worked for had they run fast?

The top two fastest milers this year finished first and second this meet, so their strategy still paid off - yeah, maybe Beadlescomb could have beat Garcia-Romo had it been an all-out effort, but who knows. I'm not sure why people think that if the race was a TT, that SLOWER guys would have had a better chance of winning. Unless you think you can break 3:52, I'm not sure why the strategy would be to try and make the race a TT.

How the race played out was the exact right move for the slower guys, because the odds of out-kicking Garcia-Romo and Beadlescomb in a slow race are much greater than trying to set a PR against a 3:52/3 guy. In fact, I'm sure the 3rd-7th guys are all super happy about their strategy as they were able to place well above their seed times in a sit-and-kick race. The only guy who really screwed himself was Kipsang.

The high schoolers at New Balance ran faster than the Division 1 Championships. Think about that for a second.

+1000

armstoglivs you’re a moron.