Greatest Runner of All Time?

At least Bekele performed incredible feats of range, as well as performing long into the post EPO (full throttle) era.

Bekele's range is superior to El Guerrouj's. You have a firm grasp of the obvious.

What do you think Herb Elliott, Snell, Ryun, Ovett, Coe, Cram, would have ran loaded up on EPO on modern tracks?

I don't know (nor do I care), and I'm certainly not going to waste my time speculating. We're discussing the greatest of all time, not what could or might have been.

If Jakob were allowed to start loading up with as much EPO as he wanted, what 1500 times would you expect him to be running in 5 years time, given that he's just ran 3:31.18 clean at 17?

You don't know he's clean.

It has nothing to do with honesty. I never suggested any of my top picks were clean, because whether they are clean or not doesn't change the fact that they have produced the best results.

doctorj wrote:

Oh Lord! Soon you are going to get this idiot with the pseudo-sexual fixation on Ovett and Coe , Coevett arguing that El.G was a doper etc.

Hi nostradamus.

extreme runner/blogger/author/ good guy Dane Rauschenberg :

202 miles : under 51 hours.

pretty amazing.

Coevett

You write that Ovett is probably the most naturally gifted clean runner ever. Does this mean he is the most naturally gifted runner ever? Or are there dirty runners who were more gifted? Also, in case you had little schooling, darker pigment is not dirt. That is not dirt that makes some people darker.

doctorj wrote:

Topic wrote:

Title says it all. Who is your pick for greatest distance runner of all time and why? I think there is a strong argument to be made for Bekele, Komen, and El G (with Geb and Kipchoge as honorable mentions), but ultimately El G is the GOAT due to his untouchable world records and dominance. It's possible that this topic has already been beaten to death, but I'm curious to hear everyone's thoughts.

Oh Lord! Soon you are going to get this idiot with the pseudo-sexual fixation on Ovett and Coe , Coevett arguing that El.G was a doper etc.

What exactly is a 'pseudo-sexual fixation'? What kind of quack are you?

Jbdhehdhd wrote:

Coevett

You write that Ovett is probably the most naturally gifted clean runner ever. Does this mean he is the most naturally gifted runner ever? Or are there dirty runners who were more gifted? Also, in case you had little schooling, darker pigment is not dirt. That is not dirt that makes some people darker.

The point is there is no way of knowing how 'naturally gifted' somebody like El G was. There are 30 something threads here debating the impact of EPO on performance. Try some of them.

All the runners the OP mentioned ran in the EPO era.

Coevett wrote:

Well maybe you should have been honest and titled your thread 'greatest runner of the EPO era?'. Or even 'greatest responder to EPO in history?'.

+1

Overt ran in the steroid era. I guess he was a likely user. We will never know how fast he was as a clean runner. That is your logic.

Coevett wrote:

Jbdhehdhd wrote:

Coevett

You write that Ovett is probably the most naturally gifted clean runner ever. Does this mean he is the most naturally gifted runner ever? Or are there dirty runners who were more gifted? Also, in case you had little schooling, darker pigment is not dirt. That is not dirt that makes some people darker.

The point is there is no way of knowing how 'naturally gifted' somebody like El G was. There are 30 something threads here debating the impact of EPO on performance. Try some of them.

All the runners the OP mentioned ran in the EPO era.

Who cares? OP explicitly mentioned that he doesn’t care about your suspicion, just actual performances. Your input is irrelevant to the discussion, so why are you talking?

Talent is trash wrote:

Coevett wrote:

The point is there is no way of knowing how 'naturally gifted' somebody like El G was. There are 30 something threads here debating the impact of EPO on performance. Try some of them.

All the runners the OP mentioned ran in the EPO era.

Who cares? OP explicitly mentioned that he doesn’t care about your suspicion, just actual performances. Your input is irrelevant to the discussion, so why are you talking?

In that case, my top 3 runners of all time would be :

1 - Marita Koch - nobody has gotten within a second of her 400m WR in the last 20 years (on faster tracks).

2 - Jarmila Kratochvílová - Another incredible WR that only an intrasex athlete can get near.

3 - Ben Johnson - 9.79 on an inferior track, probably would have ran sub 9.7 if he had been allowed to continue doping.

If your answer was anything other than Yiannis Kouros it is wrong.

the question is "Greatest" and not "Best" which implies more than world records and medals. My answer is Emil Zatopek, and am very surprised he was not cited before.

Ed Whitlock. GOAT. 2:54 marathon at age 73.

Nope wrote:

If your answer was anything other than Yiannis Kouros it is wrong.

nuh uh

Ed Whitlock maybe deserves a mention. To run sub 3 hour marathons and 18 minute 5Ks when you're in your 70's is an incredible running achievement.

Imagine when Ed Whitlock turned up at his local 5K and seeing the looks of disbelief in the young ped using trash like ex-letsrunner when he whipped their butts? Lol!

Coevett wrote:

Talent is trash wrote:

Who cares? OP explicitly mentioned that he doesn’t care about your suspicion, just actual performances. Your input is irrelevant to the discussion, so why are you talking?

In that case, my top 3 runners of all time would be :

1 - Marita Koch - nobody has gotten within a second of her 400m WR in the last 20 years (on faster tracks).

2 - Jarmila Kratochvílová - Another incredible WR that only an intrasex athlete can get near.

3 - Ben Johnson - 9.79 on an inferior track, probably would have ran sub 9.7 if he had been allowed to continue doping.

Neither Koch nor Jarmila would be considered overall GOAT. Even with their records, and even with their hardware.

The OP also explicitly said we’re not taking potential into account. So your argument for Johnson is irrelevant.

Depends on how you define "greatest." On time alone? Or the complete person?

But in that rarefied air I would nominate Glenn Cunningham. The exact opposite of the snowflake society. From being horribly burned, never to walk again to setting world records. I imagine what he might have done on healthy legs.

In the challenged world, Jason Pisano. 52 marathon pushing himself backwards in a chair. Always thought himself a runner. Essence of fortitude. Would be hard pressed to say anyone greater.

This guy:

"...that he’s both the luckiest (running the most amazing race in the history of running) and unluckiest (not being photographed on the course) man in running history."