Didn't Nick Symmonds just have a breakthrough year in the 800? Why would he move up to 1500?

Maybe he looked at the current Olympic champ and thinks he can run a similar style race.

800 is crowded with guys with better top end speed. He has good technique but I doubt he'll ever be fast enough to flat out beat rudisha and coe (pun intended), while in the 1500 he might just have enough to win a silver or gold and maybe a world best time at some point in a year or two.

Speed kills...

Come on guys...dont you pay attention to his race style? What is crazy about how good he has been in the 800 is that he is a pacer. The 1500 slow pace and kick fits him perfect. He will be racing guys with way less speed and should mop up.

u guys are dumb wrote:

Come on guys...dont you pay attention to his race style? What is crazy about how good he has been in the 800 is that he is a pacer. The 1500 slow pace and kick fits him perfect. He will be racing guys with way less speed and should mop up.

Ummmm...No.

Symonsays wrote:

800 is crowded with guys with better top end speed. He has good technique but I doubt he'll ever be fast enough to flat out beat rudisha and coe (pun intended), while in the 1500 he might just have enough to win a silver or gold and maybe a world best time at some point in a year or two.

Speed kills...

BWAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

- Though I consistently log 60+ miles per week, the longest run I have ever finished is a 14 miler.

60 mpw, I'm telling ya he's in 3:33 shape right now.

"Run a sub 5 minute beer mile"

Dude's got his priorities in order. hahaha

It's the typical experimenting with neighboring distances. He's a good 1500 runner already and he's getting older, so giving the 1500 a serious try makes sense, and with Solomon coming on, it's going to be harder to be the top 800 guy in the US. I can't see him doing better at the 800 in 2016 than 2012.

Unfortunately for Nick, the 1500 is even deeper in the US than the 800, so I think he'll get soundly beaten by Centro et al. a few times and then re-focus on the 800 as long as he can.

Nick does not strike me as a 1500 guy.

rupp-certified saladbar wrote:The 800 is probably the event in all of athletics where PEDs have the LEAST potential influence, for a number of obvious reasons.

i'd disagree

it's just the odd event where you need to take probably 2 drugs to get full doping effect : epo + steroids, hence double the chances of a +ve compared to taking just 1 drug

it's probably much riskier to do the doping in the 800 because of the cocktail needed compared to the 1 drug traditionally either used by sprinters or distance guys - doubling chance of a +ve

taking just epo or steroids for the 800 probably won't get the "full" doping advantage sprinters or distance guys get from their 1 drug

keeping it basic, sprinters upto 400 woud normally take steroids & 1500 & above, epo

there shoud certainly not be any reason 800 guys can't dope as well as sprinters or distance guys - it's just a riskier proposition

I don't know why everyone is so stumped by this. Symmonds was 5th place in the race of his life in the 800m. He actually has a shot in the 1500m.

sohcahtoa wrote:

I don't know why everyone is so stumped by this. Symmonds was 5th place in the race of his life in the 800m. He actually has a shot in the 1500m.

Actually, Nick Symmonds has no shot whatsoever in the 1500m. He would need to get lucky just to make the US team - forget about medaling in a WC/OG.

He had a good career. It will be obvious within a year or two that 2012 was his peak and it is all downhill from here. At any rate, no need to feel sorry for him - he competed in his best event, got the absolute most that he could out of his talent, and was #1 in the US year after year. He had a hell of a run.

you don't know what you're talking about. Matthew Kisorio was busted for steroids and he's a marathoner.

Makes sense to me. Been running for 15 years. Serious fan for 12 years. Coaching a highly successfull hs program for 8 years. Hey what do I know?

He's short, and he always even-splits, he should have been running the 1500 all along.

ignorant turd wrote:

As opposed to that walking chemistry lab Makhloufi in the 1500?

His performance-level is not off the charts. On his 2012 form, he is beatable by clean athletes.

ventolin^3 wrote:

i'd disagree

it's just the odd event where you need to take probably 2 drugs to get full doping effect : epo + steroids, hence double the chances of a +ve compared to taking just 1 drug

it's probably much riskier to do the doping in the 800 because of the cocktail needed compared to the 1 drug traditionally either used by sprinters or distance guys - doubling chance of a +ve

taking just epo or steroids for the 800 probably won't get the "full" doping advantage sprinters or distance guys get from their 1 drug

keeping it basic, sprinters upto 400 woud normally take steroids & 1500 & above, epo

there shoud certainly not be any reason 800 guys can't dope as well as sprinters or distance guys - it's just a riskier proposition

Short sprinters and throwers can get by on only anabolics (steroids + HGH + insulin, IGF-1, SARMs, etc.).

Endurance athletes take anabolics + EPO/blood doping, etc. EPO does nada, nothing, Jack Shit for recovery, injury prevention, gaining or retaining LBM during hard training, etc.

backflips all day wrote:you don't know what you're talking about. Matthew Kisorio was busted for steroids and he's a marathoner.

because steroids are cheap & easy to get hold of

they likely did bugger all for him, except give him a slight sprint at the end

if had a clue, he wouda been taking epo - much more expensive for pharmaceutical grade & difficult to get hold off

get a clue :

$10s for steroids

$1000s for epo

lol lol lol lol wrote:Endurance athletes take anabolics + EPO/blood doping, etc. EPO does nada, nothing, Jack Shit for recovery, injury prevention, gaining or retaining LBM during hard training, etc.

look at what the majority of elite distance guys have got busted for in past decade - epo or steroids ??

then add in factor that it is also much harder to get a +ve for epo with a 48 hour detection window than steroids nearer 1/52

the use of steroids for distance running has minimal effects compared to epo