Imagine being good enough to run a 2:06:36. Bekele is incredible. Hope to see him in Rio 10K.
Imagine being good enough to run a 2:06:36. Bekele is incredible. Hope to see him in Rio 10K.
rojo wrote:
larkimm wrote:Personally I don't believe a word of what bekele says about his prep, he's a matter of disinformation about his training build up. But his time was good today irrespective.
Why don't you believe it?
Our guy on the ground heard things hadn't been well with Bekele and he's close to Canova who used to caoch Bekele.
The BBC commentators heard the same things.
Bekele ran through a horrific calf injury and didn't want surgery so it may never heal. He's basically running on a flat tire on one leg. Did anyone see him sort of waddling from side to side? My question for Bekele fans is, "Has his form always looked like that? Or is it the the inujry?" I don't know what he normally looks like but he was rocking a bit today.
I do know one thing. The guy is an AEROBIC monster. Probably the greatest aerobic machine ever. How a guy on limited traininc could go out in 61 and run 2:04 pace for 35k is beyong me.
A great run.
your 2 hour marathon guy, right there.
Thedirty wrote:
Certainly not impossible for a great talent such as Bekele to come back into great shape quickly off limited training. He could sit on the couch for a year and still get up to break 30 for 10k based off his capabilities, which the naive and slow can't comprehend, obviously. I really don't understand why some running people think that you lose all your fitness after a few months off. Muscle memory works for running just the same as it does for any other sport. I guess that line of thinking is from the compulsively obsessed addicts who think they can't take a day off or else they'll lose all their fitness. Bekele is the man!
I doubt he (or anyone) would roll off the couch and run 30 mins. Give him 2 weeks of training though and he gets back to running a sub 30 and rapidly drops back to sub 28 shape.
I have missed 3 and 4 months streches with leg injuries. I wasn't running 3:30 off my PR the first day back (and this was with some Xtraining. No clue what Bekele was doing). I was within ~60s though after 12 weeks of base training.
Great run for Bekele.
Galen Rupp has his work cut out for him in Rio. I do see Rupp on the podium, if he brings his A+ game.
Bekele won't be in Rio.
He will be recovering from injury.
Thank you Renato, very interesting and valuable insight.
I'm glad the (sometimes) negativity of the boards has not scared you away. I always value your posts.
The bekele kipchoge rivalry is historic...2003 5k to kipchoge, 2008 5k to bekele, 2016 London marathon to kipchoge... I really hope they both line up in Rio.
Most importantly ... Wejo, rojo, someone please fix the thread title. All LRCers know it should read
Bekele is BACK!!!
Thanks Renato for the info on his health and training. Really hope he can stay healthy and run Rio or Berlin.
"Bekele is BACK BABY!!!" - Yea....over three minutes back!
Anyone who finishes top 3 in the most competitive marathon in the world (greater than the Olympics) is a medal contender.
Letsrun amazes me sometimes. Rupp runs 2:12 and is a medal contender.
Bekele runs 2:06 with a blistering first half off 6 weeks of training and he is "done."
Will Bekele be in the Olympics, who knows. Ethiopia's selection committee is wired that way but he deserves to be. But also, why would he? He has his gold medals. Why not run a fall marathon and collect a big pay day?
Renato Canova wrote:
Now that the race is over, I can write the truth about the preparation of Kenenisa.
After his injury in Dubai last year, HE DIDN'T RUN FOR 11 MONTHS, till the beginning of 2016, and was in treatment with an equipe of doctors and physios from England. His problem in the left Achilles tendon was almost solved, but he started to have a similar problem in his right tendon.
However, he started jogging at the beginning of January : one session per day, not longer than 1 hour till half of February, when started to increase the volume.
His REAL training started 7 weeks ago (so are practically 6 weeks of preparation).
Two days ago, Kenenisa asked me about the pace in London. When I told him the tartget was 61'45" at half, he told me "it's a little too fast for me, since I'm prepared at 50% only". So, I told him "there is also a second group with target 63' at half", and hi replied "my mind is not ready for running with weak athletes".
This is Kenenisa, and without this type of mentality, NEVER could be Kenenisa in the past.
The guy is really a "monster" under mental and organical point of view, and, if his tendons are ok, can open in the best way the second part of his unbelievable career.
IMPRESSIVE.
If he doesn't get selected for Rio (which would be stupid), he has two options: 1. Try to make the 10,000 team or 2. Train to break the world record in Berlin. Honestly, I think the world record means more to him than making another Olympic team. The Kenyans and Ethiopians value the world record more than Olympic gold, based on what many elites have said. If he ran this fast off 6 weeks of training, after a year completely off, he is definitely a contender to smash the world record if he can get a solid block of elite level training.
Sometimes posters don't realise that they are talking about the best human being there has ever been running long distance.
Marathons aren't as simple as a 2+2=4 but if this guy is able to train properly and toes the line healthy and against some worthy competition there is no way something special isn't going to happen.
Kenny LIVES!
This was one of the most impressive races ever by Bekele. To do what he did with such limited training is absolutely incredible. He is the best runner I have ever seen.The greatest natural talent I have seen in my life has come with the last names of Dibaba and Bekele.Go Kenenisa Bekele!!!
somebloke wrote:
Renato Canova wrote:Now that the race is over, I can write the truth about the preparation of Kenenisa.
After his injury in Dubai last year, HE DIDN'T RUN FOR 11 MONTHS, till the beginning of 2016, and was in treatment with an equipe of doctors and physios from England. His problem in the left Achilles tendon was almost solved, but he started to have a similar problem in his right tendon.
However, he started jogging at the beginning of January : one session per day, not longer than 1 hour till half of February, when started to increase the volume.
His REAL training started 7 weeks ago (so are practically 6 weeks of preparation).
Two days ago, Kenenisa asked me about the pace in London. When I told him the tartget was 61'45" at half, he told me "it's a little too fast for me, since I'm prepared at 50% only". So, I told him "there is also a second group with target 63' at half", and hi replied "my mind is not ready for running with weak athletes".
This is Kenenisa, and without this type of mentality, NEVER could be Kenenisa in the past.
The guy is really a "monster" under mental and organical point of view, and, if his tendons are ok, can open in the best way the second part of his unbelievable career.
IMPRESSIVE.
I hope KB gets to run in Rio. It would be great to see Wilson Kipsang on the start line as well.
dfadfa wrote:
...: 1. Try to make the 10,000 team or ....
I thought about that too. That'd be something ... An in shape Bekele, Kamworor and Karoki and Mo.
rafarafa wrote:
the best human being there has ever been running long distance.
End of thread.
rjm33 wrote:
This was one of the most impressive races ever by Bekele. To do what he did with such limited training is absolutely incredible. He is the best runner I have ever seen.
The greatest natural talent I have seen in my life has come with the last names of Dibaba and Bekele.
Go Kenenisa Bekele!!!
somebloke wrote:IMPRESSIVE.
Couch to marathon WR?
rjm33 wrote:
This was one of the most impressive races ever by Bekele. To do what he did with such limited training is absolutely incredible. He is the best runner I have ever seen.
The greatest natural talent I have seen in my life has come with the last names of Dibaba and Bekele.
Go Kenenisa Bekele!!!
somebloke wrote:IMPRESSIVE.
Agreed! Including Kipchoge.
Watch out for Tirunesh Dibaba in the Marathon....in the near future. Her, Bekele, and Kipchoge! They will be the three to watch for the next couple of years.....
KB fan wrote:
His performance today off of limited training, as well as Kipchoge's amazing show, are a demonstration of the other worldly talent that the top track runners of the 2000's possess. You could speculate that this generation of runners is so talented due to PED. However, what they are doing in the marathon now is showing just how much more talented they are compared to all other runners. I personally would be shocked if these two men were using PEDs in today's threatening testing environment. But you never know. I personally like to think that these two men are simply a demonstration of extreme outliers of God given talent. If only he could stay healthy, we could witness more of his greatness.
KB was a better runner than Kipchoge on the track/XC, so it's possible that he could be as dominate in the Marathon as Kipchoge has shown himself to be. Although I suspect that even if things went perfectly for him over the next few years, he would not do what Kipchoge has done in the Marathon. But maybe he could come close. A healthy KB still has the capability of breaking the current WR, but by the time he gets there, Kipchoge may have lowered the WR beyond anyone's reach.
On the same topic of Bekele's extreme talent, His London time is about 2 minutes faster than Mo Farah. Even if you ignore the limited training, this is more indication that Mo Farah should not be a candidate in the GOAT conversation (unless you limit the conversation to just WC/OG track medals).
They are as talented as they are because of their natural ability. Talent and current performance are at opposite poles. They are as good as they are because of PEDs. Without PEDs they would still have their talent ... get it?
But if everyone was clean I still see these two as two of the best runners of all time.
Also, "dominate" is a verb. You meant "so it's possible that he could be as dominant in the Marathon as Kipchoge..."
So...dude takes a year off, trains 7 weeks and runs faster than any Native born American ever. Except maybe one.
Uh huh.