Official: Eliud Kipchoge Appreciation and GOAT Thread

I disagree that the OG marathon is critical to GOAT. Sure a wr is, it he's 7 seconds off the fastest time ever ran. And I don't think Kimetto's Berlin run was nearly as impressive as Kipchoge's run this morning.

For other distances, the OG is the big one. But the marathon is a different event. Like soccer or tennis, the OG isn't as competitive as some of the other competitions.

It might be early to call Eliud the GOAT, but he's clearly up there. This mornings run was simply awesome.

To be honest, after these races are over, I never think about or care about any African , anything about them, there lives ,even the white South Africans.

In the beginning...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GehPeN3mjVs

NativeSon wrote:

messinat wrote:

He's gotta win the gold in Rio to be GOAT, in my opinion.

So, that makes Stephen Kiprotich the greatest of all time. Right?

I am only going by your logic.

Apologies to all for stating the obvious but it's not obvious to NativeSon.

"He's gotta win the gold in Rio to be GOAT"

messinat was replying to Wejo, so win gold in Rio in addition to:

"Spring 2013 Hamburg 2:05:30 1st

Fall 2013 Berlin 2:04:00 2nd

Spring 2014 Rotterdam 2:05:00 1st

Fall 2014 Chicago 2:04:11 1st (CR)

Spring 2015 London 2:04:42 1st

Fall 2015 Berlin 2:04:00 1st

Spring 2016 London 2:03:05 1st (CR)"

"to be GOAT".

I think he is the greatest marathoner ever also, but barely.I think HE IS the GOAT because he beats back these other incredible marathoners consistently (world record holders) when it matters. If you wikipedia Haile and you wikipedia Kipchoge, you'll see a lot of wins in the marathon chart. Haile had 2 world records, which is amazing, especially considering his track world records and times. So, he is better in the overall GOAT distance runner conversation for me. no problem but the marathon....who else is in the conversation?! Kipsang, right? his wikipedia is glaring with wins in the marathon as well. I'd say Kipchoge, Haile, and Kipsang and Wanjiru. Some will argue Mutai but that's not as good of a case in terms of wins against other greats and average timesAlso, to point out, only Wanjiru ran the marathon in the olympics of those above i believebut, just based on Kipchoge's reactions today, he certainly could have run faster than the current marathon world record. he probably could have beaten it by 10-15 seconds if he was aware of his trajectory. for this, i am heartbroken for him. i know he didn't do it, but in my opinion he's the runner most capable of running the fastest marathon of all time based on what I saw today.his average time for the last 7 marathons is remarkable. 2:04 low?! WTFhe is so smooth and powerful looking. kimetto and other dudes look so frail and delicate. Kipchoge has that strong stride and big upper legs that make you think he is possible of accelerating forever.i'm impressed.

wejo wrote:

Eliud Kipchoge is the best marathoner in the world right now and the best marathoner the world has ever seen in my opinion.

There is no debating the 1st point, debate the second one if you want.

Kipchoge's greatness deserves its own thread.

He's now run 7 marathons and won 6 of them, none slower than 2:05:30.

The one marathon he lost was his second one and Wilson Kipsang set the world record in it to beat him.

Spring 2013 Hamburg 2:05:30 1st

Fall 2013 Berlin 2:04:00 2nd

Spring 2014 Rotterdam 2:05:00 1st

Fall 2014 Chicago 2:04:11 1st (CR)

Spring 2015 London 2:04:42 1st

Fall 2015 Berlin 2:04:00 1st

Spring 2016 London 2:03:05 1st (CR)

slo-twitch wrote:

I agree with both of your points, but Kipchoge does not own the course record at Chicago- Kimetto ran like 2:03:45 in Chicago & that's the course record.

You are correct. My error. He set the record at year before Kipchoge ran.

Agree with this. OG marathon not too important. Not as unimportant as in cycling or tennis, but still less important than a marathon major.

Therefor Kipchoge already GOAT.

what a treat that was wrote:

Also, to point out, only Wanjiru ran the marathon in the olympics of those above i believe

Kipsang bronze 2012.

training flats wrote:

Agree with this. OG marathon not too important. Not as unimportant as in cycling or tennis, but still less important than a marathon major.

Therefor Kipchoge already GOAT.

Everyone is entitled to their own point of view. Mine is, you are not even in the conversation of GOAT if you do not own Olympic Gold. 100-marathon. It does not matter. In running, the Olympics is what counts. Then World championship, then major races.

Times do not always tell the whole story. You could have a tail wind early in the race which dies down later...or visa versa. WR are the least important. Each day, each course is different. Winning, and winning on the most important days is the most important. The Olympics are the most important race in ones life.

For cycling, it's the major tours or the classics. Those are more important than the Olympics.

On the track yes, the OG is what matters most. The marathon not so much. How many of the greatest marathoners over the last 20 years have won a OG gold (serious question)?

What amazes me most about Kipchoge is he out-kicked the 2011 world 5,000m champion Mo Farah to run 8:07 for 2-miles in 2012, and a year later was running 2:04:00.

wejo wrote:

Eliud Kipchoge is the best marathoner in the world right now and the best marathoner the world has ever seen in my opinion.

There is no debating the 1st point, debate the second one if you want.

Kipchoge's greatness deserves its own thread.

He's now run 7 marathons and won 6 of them, none slower than 2:05:30.

The one marathon he lost was his second one and Wilson Kipsang set the world record in it to beat him.

Spring 2013 Hamburg 2:05:30 1st

Fall 2013 Berlin 2:04:00 2nd

Spring 2014 Rotterdam 2:05:00 1st

Fall 2014 Chicago 2:04:11 1st (CR)

Spring 2015 London 2:04:42 1st

Fall 2015 Berlin 2:04:00 1st

Spring 2016 London 2:03:05 1st (CR)

Apart from Sammy '08, this run still may beat Eliud's win :

New York not possible to run 2"05-flat !!!

( Geeoffrey did all of hard running in last 10k !!! )

You are correct, I was just saying that the Beijing performance by Wanjiru was maybe one of the the best performances given the fast time and the heat that day.

Kipchoge is off the charts when you look at what he has accomplished at all distances and his consistency in the Marathon.

Amazing race today, one for the ages.

Wtfunny wrote:

On the track yes, the OG is what matters most. The marathon not so much. How many of the greatest marathoners over the last 20 years have won a OG gold (serious question)?

Why the last 20 years?

Abebe Bikila won two OG's Gold and broke the WR twice.

The OG's matter, at any time.

Bikila is the GOAT.

Second is Carlos Lopez, one OG Gold, one WR.

wejo wrote:

Eliud Kipchoge is the best marathoner in the world right now and the best marathoner the world has ever seen in my opinion.

There is no debating the 1st point, debate the second one if you want.

Kipchoge's greatness deserves its own thread.

He's now run 7 marathons and won 6 of them, none slower than 2:05:30.

The one marathon he lost was his second one and Wilson Kipsang set the world record in it to beat him.

Spring 2013 Hamburg 2:05:30 1st

Fall 2013 Berlin 2:04:00 2nd

Spring 2014 Rotterdam 2:05:00 1st

Fall 2014 Chicago 2:04:11 1st (CR)

Spring 2015 London 2:04:42 1st

Fall 2015 Berlin 2:04:00 1st

Spring 2016 London 2:03:05 1st (CR)

Wejo-

Do we know anything about Eliud Kipchoge's training or preparation for these marathons and for this great run of consistent marathons!

Thanks!

rafarafa wrote:

The thing that strikes me the most about Kipchoge and something that sets him apart from the excellent field of current marathoners is that he has superb running economy. He doesn't move anywhere else but forward. The only other runner I've seen resembling this is 2011's G. Mutai when he shattered Boston and NY (honestly I think the WR will fall plenty of times before NY's does).

If you strapped a glass of water to the top of his head there would probably still be water in the glass at the end of a marathon…

I agree. His form reminds me of another great track runner (LOL), the great Haile. This was his half-marathon WR in Phoenix back in 2006:

He's the greatest flat course, paced marathon runner. I'd like to see him run a tougher course, Boston or NYC, or a hot weather marathon. I think he'd still kick ass, but I'd want to see it before saying he's the all-time best.

wejo wrote:

Eliud Kipchoge is the best marathoner in the world right now and the best marathoner the world has ever seen in my opinion.

TUE wrote:

In the beginning...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GehPeN3mjVs

My thoughts exactly.

The TALENT SUPERCOLLIDER that was the 5000m final of the 2003 Worlds & 2004 Olympics is beginning to look like the greatest race(s) ever. Greatest 1500m runner ever, just before sunset. Greatest 5000m & 10,000m runner ever, just after sunrise. Greatest marathoner ever, yet to rise. In the article below, there is a picture of them together.

If you ran that race between Hicham, Kenenisa, and Eliud 10 times, I think you'd get 10 different results. It's like a mythical battle that never finished, endlessly playing out in different dimensions, as an infinite list of possibilities is sequenced. Over 5000m, with talents that good, the outcome is a roll of the dice.

But in the marathon, at least for now, Eliud Kipchoge reigns supreme.