Nike releases some details - Breaking2 marathon course *will* be record-certified, but the race itself will not be record-eligib

In his June 27. 1953 attempt, he did.

He was referring to an earlier attempt:

On 27 June [1953], a mile race was inserted into the programme of the Surrey schools athletic meeting. Australian runner Don Macmillan, ninth in the 1500 m at the 1952 Olympics, set a strong pace with 59.6 and 1:59.7 for two laps. He gave up after 2 1⁄2 laps, but Chris Brasher took up the pace. Brasher had jogged the race, allowing Bannister to lap him so he could be a fresh pace-setter. At ¾ mile, Bannister was at 3:01.8, the record—and first sub-four-minute mile—in reach. But the effort fell short with a finish in 4:02.0, a time bettered by only Andersson and Hägg. British officials would not allow this performance to stand as a British record, which, Bannister felt in retrospect, was a good decision. "My feeling as I look back is one of great relief that I did not run a four-minute mile under such artificial circumstances," he said.

[quote]jjjjjj wrote:

Roger Bannister did not use lapped runners to pace him. Brasher led the pace the first two laps while Chataway hung on behind Bannister and then took the lead until about 1450y when Bannister took over. They never lap any runners.

this is almost as stupid as the "world marathon challenge" . No one will break 2:04

Think about all the publicity Red Bull has received from doing crazy stuff. This is the same. Though one has to wonder how many non-runners know what a 2 hour marathon is?

Jimmy21 wrote:

Am I the only one that assumed this would be most above board from the beginning? I assumed they didn't want to used a sanctioned race because they wanted to be able to say "the race is on Saturday morning and conditions will be pretty good but conditions will be perfect thursday evening. I also assume they will have pacers starting at the halfway point. I also assume they will be paced by a specifically designed moped to hold pace exactly to the nearest second. Other than that, I assume everything will be able board. I think their goal is to show that with perfect conditions and perfect pacing, the human body is capable of running sub 2. I'll be severely disappointed if it turns out to be a gimmick.

I did not also assume this... but that's interesting.

If the extent of the illegal interference is perfect pacing, perfect weather, and smart training -- then YES I'd actually be interested in the results. (I still don't think it would be close to 2:00)... but heck yea i'd want to see how close Eliud could get.

Anything beyond that is gimmicky stunt and doesn't mean anything.

Why don't you guys stop getting so pissed off at nike and just let them do whatever they want? The hate for nike on this site is so stupid. You guys are all old already, its time to grow up mentally too.

They need to get David Torrence to organize a downhill marathon.

The point I was making was that there was NO NEED TO CHANGE THE THREAD TITLE as the original title was sufficient to convey the information that has been stated.

Reversing course is merely an opinion and could have just been posted in the thread.

I am not the OP but this practice of changing thread titles or starting a thread on the same topic and then deleting other threads that already have numerous posts is quite irritating.

Alex good hearing from you. If you want a verified login we can give you one.

I should have stuck to what I said in my first post and this is we are left to split hairs on what Germano wrote because of Nike's obfuscation. We don't have to split hairs on what you wrote and that is because you cited the examples at the end. My initial read of it will "will be certified according to IAAF regulations" left open the possibility that the course could be certified to be 26.2 miles but not record eligible.

That is definitely a possibility.

However what she wrote is technically correct, "The company says that while the run won’t be world record-eligible on a sanctioned course"

The run is not "world record-eligible on a sanctioned course" and that is what I care about. Whether it's on a sanctioned course is just half the equation.

yourmom.com wrote:

I did not also assume this... but that's interesting.

If the extent of the illegal interference is perfect pacing, perfect weather, and smart training -- then YES I'd actually be interested in the results. (I still don't think it would be close to 2:00)... but heck yea i'd want to see how close Eliud could get.

Short of something preposterous like a big fan (not going to happen), what we will get from Eliud is surely a DNF.

He's obliged to go out a 2:00 pace because that's the whole damn point, and sustaining that pace for the full distance of a marathon is just not going to happen.

I'm sorry; I am generally a positive person and enjoy innovation and challenges and novelty but I remain in the sceptic camp here.

One might suggest, based on Dubai's history and last week's example, that going out blisteringly fast doesn't have to result in a DNF, just a big positive split.

Although probably anyone headed for a big positive split has little reason to continue, and plenty of reason to pull out and DNF...

Don't bother Alex, Rojo (and sometimes Wejo), have a serious anti Nike complex -where they default to the negative with ridiculous regularity.

Not sure why the Brojos are so worked up over this attempt. Sure it smells a bit tacky but why should we care? Doesn't matter if you're a hobby jogger or serious runner this will be must see TV.

As to other snowflake posters bemoaning other attempts (sprinting with fans/downhill 10ks): welcome to the new reality of a dying sport. These "barrier" attempts may be the only thing that saves us. If golf can have a silly season why can't T&F?

Also, the marathon distance is the most relatable distance and 2 hours is the last barrier - buckle up and let's do this! (I know, easy for me to say)

Boy am I relieved they are using a "super computer" to calculate the optimal pacing strategy! Plus, they're using GPS watches and uploading their data! With amazing tools like super computers, Global Positioning Systems, and "uploading," I don't see any way they WON'T break 2 hours! This is gonna be the greatest thing we've ever seen since Marty Mcfly's NIKE shoes tied themselves! Wow!

sadly, this is the reaction Nike expects.

sbeefyk1 wrote:

Think about all the publicity Red Bull has received from doing crazy stuff. This is the same. Though one has to wonder how many non-runners know what a 2 hour marathon is?

Lots of them. For example, my neighbor keeps telling everyone about her glorious 2:10 mary. She gets admired a lot, and a 1:59 would obviously be even better!

This still seems like a circus stunt.

celery wrote:

Boy am I relieved they are using a "super computer" to calculate the optimal pacing strategy! Plus, they're using GPS watches and uploading their data! With amazing tools like super computers, Global Positioning Systems, and "uploading," I don't see any way they WON'T break 2 hours! .

Flat road as possible

13.1 out against 12 mph wind in 1:00:24.35 (pacers breaking wind)

13.1 in with wind at back in 59:35

Temperature @ 48°F

Don't need a computer to figure that out.

13.1M Mondo track in Dubai desert with pacing lights implanted in surface. Race run at night. Kanye West delivers inspirational speech right before gun goes off. Jason Rexing jumps in and paces last 5K in 13:55 in trainers..

the joy of racing...... wrote:

Flat road as possible

13.1 out against 12 mph wind in 1:00:24.35 (pacers breaking wind)

13.1 in with wind at back in 59:35

Temperature @ 48°F

Don't need a computer to figure that out.

Record eligible courses don't even have to start and finish in same place, just within a certain percentage of the race distance. So it could even be like 11 miles into the wind and then 15 with it at your back.

jjjjjj wrote:

Roger Bannister did not use lapped runners to pace him. Brasher led the pace the first two laps while Chataway hung on behind Bannister and then took the lead until about 1450y when Bannister took over. They never lap any runners.

He did in his 1st sub 4 attempt which is what Alex H specified.

"In 27 June, a mile race was inserted into the programme of the Surrey schools athletic meeting. Australian runner Don Macmillan, ninth in the 1500 m at the 1952 Olympics, set a strong pace with 59.6 and 1:59.7 for two laps. He gave up after 2 1⁄2 laps, but Chris Brasher took up the pace. Brasher had jogged the race, allowing Bannister to lap him so he could be a fresh pace-setter. At ¾ mile, Bannister was at 3:01.8, the record—and first sub-four-minute mile—in reach. But the effort fell short with a finish in 4:02.0, a time bettered by only Andersson and Hägg. British officials would not allow this performance to stand as a British record, which, Bannister felt in retrospect, was a good decision. "My feeling as I look back is one of great relief that I did not run a four-minute mile under such artificial circumstances," he said."

I preferred the way Landy broke records, he just raced 'em.