All kidding aside, Herb Elliott was no slouch.
All kidding aside, Herb Elliott was no slouch.
Speaking of Herb Elliott, when was the last time someone tore the rest of the field a new a@#hole in a Olympic 1500 final like this from 1060 in Rome? Total domination.
i think i read in one of Peter Coes books that Seb runs with one shoulder slightly higher than the other and his arm carriage doesn't quite match up, similar to Geb.
I say Jim Ryun minus the head wobble.
Bernard Lagat at 65+ per lap
Bekele for the perfect combination of power and fluidity
Emil Zatopek.
Seriously, how is this even a question?
Always admired Lagat's racing form especially his finishing kick.
Billy Konchellah = Gazelle
Coe is a great choice but for distance runners Haile Gebrelassie is amazing in a sprint.
Sprinters tend to have better form because their entire race requires optimal force production. Among the best of those is Bolt for men and Florence Griffin Joyner for women. It's not an accident that they have the world records. In Joyner's case, and maybe Bolt's, layering artificial strength onto near perfect mechanics resulted in an amazing product.
Bolt:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nbjhpcZ9_g
(world record)
His feet are amazing levers. Everything is aligned to throw the greatest amount of force into the ground.
Joyner:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVSmPBLnSXY
(world record, but notice the strong winds blow her hair around)
Slow Mo close up right at start of video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6q9_N8YzZ6U
At 2:11, the head on view shows how her knees track in - like most women - but then her legs move to hit the ground in near perfect strike.
Centro. Smooth as silk. Never even strains while finishing in 51.
Kim smith
just kidding
Wilson Kipketer, he floats over the ground.
Cram had much better form than Coe. I always thought Coe was a little too tight in the upper body.
Fast forward to 3:45
Paul Ereng clearly had the best running form ever.
This is a better one to watch of Ereng
Depends on the distance.
For 5/10K Lasse Viren wins in a landslide - sooo smooooth and looked easy even when sprinting pretty fast.
For 8/15 someone mentioned Coe was the same build as Aouita. Yes but the two had different form. Aouita looked more rubber-legged. I'd say Coe looked best although some argue Ovetts effortlessness was more fun to watch (true).
Actually ewhen I was in college there was an 800 guy with an absolutely gazelle-like stride that was better than anyone I've ever seen. Never looked tired. best of about 1:55 I think!
how has noone said lagat???
Good /better/best can be argued endlessly, but when you look for "Iconic" in distance running, there are only two: for the men, Coe (already well covered), and for the women, Decker/Slaney:
Mary Slaney
Chelsey Sveinsson.
Wonder if we'll ever see her at the same level again.