Why are elites never tired at the end of a race?

Until the 40's, almost all Olympic Marathoners ran totally out of gas after 30k...just ask Dorando Pietri or Ettiene Gailly. The long distance training knowledge exploded in the 60's I think.

doesn't make any sense wrote:

So, what is it exactly you're saying causes a runner to have adrenaline at the end of a race? And why would this apply to elites but not your average hard-training runner?

Oh, an emotionophysical response. If I'm not mistaken, adrenaline is always caused by the same thing - excitement and effort. So, people are are really pushing themselves and very emotionally attached to the race will have adrenaline.

But, this is not the only factor. The other factor is that these guys are in stellar shape. I would also suspect that they have good, resilient core strength which keeps them from falling over right after the race.

These are all things that don't only go with being elite. An average runner can PR without looking tired also.

I agree with the guy who said that they are just holding it together. I'm pretty sure at the end of my races I could give a smile and accept a bouquet of flowers if I had just run a fantastic race, and I'm no elite.

having efficient running mechanics looks easy, but that doesn't mean that it is. the best runners are naturally efficient and have an effortless appearance, but they're also strong enough physically and mentally to maintain that efficiency even when they're hurting like hell. the combination of natural and trained efficiency, and the ability to maintain it, is a major contributing factor as to why they are elite.

aerobic development wrote:

My favorit video is when Hicham sets the world record in mile. He crosses the finish line and doesnt even stop, just grabs flowers and continues running.

This^^^

So good -

Also, after the 2009 WC steeple in Berlin, Kemboi was messed up for a few seconds after winning, but then on his victory lap was JUMPING THE HURDLES set up for the 400H. You know, just for fun.

@running_comment wrote:

Also, after the 2009 WC steeple in Berlin, Kemboi was messed up for a few seconds after winning, but then on his victory lap was JUMPING THE HURDLES set up for the 400H. You know, just for fun.

Yeah, from what I hear about the difficulty of working with Athletics Kenya(?) and the supposed difficulty of living in Kenya in general, I bet that EVERY 1st place Kenyan experiences an emotional adrenaline rush

Most of the top runners have such high V02 maxes that the average runner will never experience, regardless of training. All these runners really have to do is train their muscles to withstand the fast pace for the whole race and get them ready for a kick, lungs are never part of the question for these guys

They are better conditioned than high school athletes. They have been running for more years and they run 100+ mpw while (most) high school athletes run about 25-50. That doesn't mean you can just jump to high mileage and become elite. Some high school athletes can handle more mileage, but there's a thin line between balance and over-training. Many high school athletes run too hard every day to handle running more mileage. Elite athletes know how to balance intensity with volume and they get enough recovery to perform when it counts.

On the track, the guys are so strong that they their anaerobic limits are nowhere close to their musclulo-skeletal limits. So, when they finish, their bodies are not that badly beat up. Once they catch their breath, they feel pretty decent.

However, recent finishes in the marathon do raise some questions. At Worlds, Kirui crosses the finish line looking fresh as a daisy, while many non-E. Africans finishing minutes later basically drop dead at the finish and are carted off by medical staff. Same for many of the super fast marathon finishes in the past two years. This is new. I have seen many E. African runners in the past win big races and have to be held up at the finish line. But, now, it seems like the marathon just got shorter for them.

aerobic development wrote:

My favorit video is when Hicham sets the world record in mile. He crosses the finish line and doesnt even stop, just grabs flowers and continues running.

Tempo pace victory laps were Seb Coe's signature.

The answer is: endorphins.

Is this really limited to elites? Most high school runners don't pass out or fall down or whatever. Most just sort of walk around after a race.

High VO2. Elites essentially hardly seem able to run fast enough to really go anaerobic.

You would have probably noticed that the super gifted high school athletes we all ran also seemed to find it effortless.

Look at Wang Junxia running THROUGH the finish line, also in the WR.

I think what others said is correct - they are so very much more aerobically fit than high schoolers. And they are doing this as their job, so people are watching, media is watching, so they won't show their tiredness. Good example that they are tired is Kemboi after WC 2009, as has been said.

So, I imagine El Guerrouj can breath a lot of oxygen with one breath and pump a lot of blood with one heartbeat of his big heart...

Thank you. Very interesting article.

So, basically, elites have extremely high VO2 maxes, have incredible form, and are extremely strong mentally.

I definitely don't disagree with any of these points but it is just mind-boggling for me to watch El Guerrouj set the WR in a sprint to the finish... and then just keep going! The unknowing viewer would certainly think he didn't use up all he had in the tank.

Also, some of you indicated that elites' legs are no match for their own aerobic systems. I can easily see how this is the case in sprinting but in distance, this doesn't really make sense to me. Again, I'm not trying to say this is wrong - I'm sure anyone who said this is more knowledgeable than I - but, really, why don't they spend a little more time on their legs then? Do elites have the proportion of aerobic training to leg-strengthening correct?

This is a ridiculous thread. Of course they are exhausted, just like everyone else.

Why dont they keel over at the end of races? Because they are not drama queens. When you are used to heavy suffering, it becomes normal. No need to put on a show, for yourself or others. Just move on.

Beethoven wrote:

This is a ridiculous thread. Of course they are exhausted, just like everyone else.

Why dont they keel over at the end of races? Because they are not drama queens. When you are used to heavy suffering, it becomes normal. No need to put on a show, for yourself or others. Just move on.

No, sir, but I believe that was a ridiculous post. I have acknowledged, of course, they are exhausted and in certain races when it really matters down to the wire, they could not have possibly gone a second faster. They give it everything they've got, without a doubt. But there is some major difference, physiological, psychological, or both, that allows them to look fresh at the finish line that many younger athletes lack. These younger athletes are most certainly not being "drama queens" - some literally do not possess the strength to continue standing - and I was hoping to get to the bottom of it because I think it's fascinating, and very important to understand in order to be able to train and race optimally.

Must be the tactical races or/and their aerobic shape.

I agree with the comparison between distance runners and decathletes, and I remember when I started running and didn't have any endurance at all, I would feel like I'd been hit by a truck the entire day after a race. Now I still end up exhausted but recover much faster. I have also noticed when I start doing lactic acid tolerance workouts I feel terrible after the first couple of them, but after a few sessions even if I give it all out I feel I can handle it much better.

I respect your opinion, but why did they "possess the strength to continue standing" 10m before the finish line, and in fact were able to do something much more difficult like run, but not after?

Instead of random ideas, perhaps we could ask an elite to tell us how they feel at the finish line? Im going to guess it is not "fresh", more like "about to pass out".