VIDEO: Yenew Alamirew's 7:27.80 3000m indoor, 2 others sub 7:30

I'm American.

Are you claiming that Ethiopian runners are somehow unique in their disinclination to lead a race? Or is there more to what you mean by "their style of running" than following a designated pacesetter or another competitor?

name me one of them who when racing a similarly talented guy, tries to front-run it the hard way

I don't think athletes "front-run it the hard way" unless they think it gives them the best chance of winning. Normally it doesn't. Nationality doesn't really enter into it, for me.

which has greater proportion of sit'n'kickers :

kenya or ethiopia ?

ventolin^3 wrote:

which has greater proportion of sit'n'kickers :

kenya or ethiopia ?

So what? Ventolin, you are really allowing your bias to cloud your thinking. What is the object? The object is to win the race. Perhaps the Ethiopian stars have had better kicks. The other alternative is that they are more savvy at racing. Really, Ventolin, this is sad that you're making an issue of this, unless you're trying to tip your hat to the smarter or faster Ethiopians...

i see you are incapable of providing an answer to the question

ventolin^3 wrote:

i see you are incapable of providing an answer to the question

Yes, I am incapable of providing an answer to the question. Assuming arguendo that the answer is Ethiopians, so what? What does that prove other than they run smarter than the Kenyans, at least it is smarter if they have superior finishing bursts. Plus, Bekele and Geb could win most races either leading or following when they were in their prime. It's not Geb's fault that Tergat didn't have quite as good as kick as Gab had.

the aim of championships is to win anyway you can

the aim of these circuit meets, especially for the promoters, & they are king, is to get fast times to boost their rankings

they are not paying good appearance money to see sit'n'kick 3ks won in 7'45

choge's front-running earned that thopy probably a good few $1000 extra in breaking komen's meet record, something the promoter musta been eternally grateful to give away as his meet rankings improved greatly compared to a 7'45 - getting higher up the rankings to them is paramount

here are outdoor meet rankings for '10 :

1. Zürich Weltklasse SUI 94242

2. Bruxelles Memorial van Damme BEL 93750

3. Paris Meeting Areva FRA 93168

4. Crystal Palace AVIVA London Grand Prix GBR 93149

5. Monaco Herculis MON 93087

6. Lausanne Athletissima SUI 92854

7. Stockholm DN Galan SWE 92853

8. Oslo ExxonMobil Bislett Games NOR 92527

9. Eugene Prefontaine Classic USA 92429

10. Roma Golden Gala ITA 10.06 85468 11. 6925 6. 92393

11. Doha IAAF Diamond League Meeting QAT 91877

12. New York adidas Grand Prix USA 90909

13. Gateshead AVIVA British Grand Prix GBR 90891

14. Shanghai IAAF Diamond League Meeting CHN 90417

Yeah, but remember there are typically wabbits at these meets, so a fast time might happen partly due to that. The goal is still to win the race, however, unless a record attempt is being set up (and of course winning may set the record). Remember, the choice is often how best to utilize one's arsenal, and for some runners, forcing the pace can be beneficial. Either way, with the combination of wabbits and a few runners who might out of self interest force the pace, it is fairly rare for the pace to be excessively pedestrian, even if it transpires from the time to time.

But the larger point is, and I'll play amateur psychologist, is that it bothers you that the top Ethiopian stars have dominated the Kenyans with this sit and kick style, and I guess that is understandable, but the solution is not to disparage the Ethiopians...

your not getting it

promoters aren't interested in races no matter how exciting they may be in a blanket finish won in 7'45

they want fast times for more points & potential rise up the rankings

to them a bunch of guys strung out in 7'30 - 7'35 with the race a foregone conclusion from maybe even the getgo, is infinitely preferable

if the 2 choges had not been in this race, i can guarantee you that after passing thru in ~ 5'00, the thopy ( if he'd even bothered to follow the wabbits ) wouda done nothing but churn out 65s laps until last 200 where he wouda sprinted to a ~ 7'40 win

the promoter paid good money for the wabbits to go thru in an excellent 5'00 & he wouda been pissed that all that money was wasted with a 7'40

eventually, these promoters are going to penalise these sit'n'kickers, that if they provide wabbits thru in 5'00, they want an end-time of 7'30 ( which they are capable off ) or they will withold part of the appearance fees

if they got the talent to run the fast clocking, do it or get a pay cut

with that mandate, it's pretty obvious who's going to be the target of this warning & it won't be the kenyans

No, you cannot guarantee anything, as this Alamirew won in 7:28 in Milan last year, 11 seconds ahead of Silas Kiplagat, so don't give me your usual crap about what you can guarantee and trying to tell me that I'm not getting it. This Alamirew would have probably won in 7:32 or so if the Choges hadn't been there.

i'm sure you can then explain why this guy sit'n'kicked to a 13'16pb last year against a bunch of nobodies in belgium when he's clearly capable of close to 13-flat or better solo, which wouda got him automatic entry to diamond league meets & appearance money with it ??

The 13:16 was more than 3 months before the 7:28, so who knows what his condition was in June as opposed to the outstanding form he showed in September. I would guess that was a big factor, as there is not enough of a record on this budding star to know whether he is inclined to take the pace or not. But again, if the pace is fast and he is going for the win, so what if he sits and kicks? Perhaps the pace was fast enough for him in Stuttgarat, thanks to your beloved Kenyans.

Why not just enjoy this budding new superstar instead of coming across as a Kenyan with shriveled sour grapes for testes?

so

a guy can run 7'28 just 3/12 after a 13'16 mid-season

only a moron coud believe this rate of progression without discounting the huge likelihood he couda run close to 13-flat solo back then with all the entailing riches it woud engender & instead resorted to sit'n'kicking a 13'16 against nobodies which left him to fester in obscurity for 3/12 more

Maybe his coach wanted him to run for the win. After all, he does not appear to have a ton of experience racing in Europe. You are the King of Armchair Quarterbacks, and your criticism is nothing more than sour grapes, and makes you look like a little man with a little dick and little pea brain.

^Ventolin, you just don't get it do you? The purpose of a race is to WIN. Yes, running a fast time is important, but running a 7:32 and WINNING is better than running a 7:28 and loosing. Why would Yenew not sit on the shoulder of Choge and Kipchoge if he knew he WOULD MOST LIKELY LOOOSE if he led the front of the pack? Yes, maybe Choge was in better shape than Yenew, but the point of racing is to RUN SMARTER and Faster than your opponents.

The point of racing is to show who was the fastest man and smartest man on that particular day at that particular meet. It doesn't matter he drafted or any of that other stuff because he still won and ran a fast time. If he had done what you wanted he would have ran slower and possibly lost. So do you finally get the point?

jennifer cruz wrote:Maybe his coach wanted him to run for the win. After all, he does not appear to have a ton of experience racing in Europe. You are the King of Armchair Quarterbacks, and your criticism is nothing more than sour grapes, and makes you look like a little man with a little dick and little pea brain.

it's unbelievable how much of a f***ing moron you really are

a guy who can run 7'28 can beat a bunch of 13'17 nobodies virtually jogging around & then kicking at the end - you have to be an idiot to believe otherwise

it requires NO tactical nous to beat up on a bunch of relative 2nd raters

it also requires no tactical nous to set off from the gun & keep going at 62.5s pace/lap he obviously was capable off

according to you imbecile, he goes from a novice to ovett-like genius in destroying some top-runners in milan with sustained brilliance just 3/12 later ??!!

the pears of drivel you can come up with are astonishing

bobby e. wrote:

I don't care how you spell it - most posters here can't spell Americans' names right, much less those of Kenyans or Ethiopians.

I just think you should refer to the athlete in question, Alamirew Yenew, by name, and not by a term that is juvenile-sounding and even a little offensive.

I agree.

Only a racist pig would refer to people in such a disparaging manner.

jennifer cruz wrote:

your criticism is nothing more than sour grapes, and makes you look like a little man with a little dick and little pea brain.

That's a good name for him, El little dick.