said88 wrote:
sprinting - in any moment during the race you try to (almost) run as fast as possible (60m - 400m)
distance running - you always have to save some energy in order to finish (800m and longer)
Sprinters start from blocks, distance runners not.
Sprinters run in lanes, distance runners not.
Sprinters always run "their own race", distance runners react to the acting of the competitors - yes, that's on both sides not 100% true.
For me 800m always was distance running.
800m - 1 Mile: middle distance running.
3000m - 10000m: long distance running.
Where belongs 2000m?
There is not an ultimative answer, since there doesn't exist (as far as I know) something like an official definition. But that's my understanding.
If you type "Distance Running" into Google, the first entry is, Long-distance running - Wikipedia, with several other entries on the first page referring to LONG Distance rather than just distance.
If you click on the Wiki definition it says, ..'In the sport of athletics, long-distance events are defined as races covering three kilometres (1.86 miles) and above. The three most common types are track running, road running and cross country running, all of which are defined by their terrain – all-weather tracks, roads and natural terrain, respectively. Typical long-distance track races range from 3000 metres to 10,000 metres (6.2 miles), cross country races usually cover 5 to 12 km (3 to 7½ miles), while road races can be significantly longer, reaching 100 kilometres (60 miles) and beyond. In collegiate cross country races in the United States, men race 8000 or 10000 meters, depending on their division, whereas women race 6000 meters [2]. The Summer Olympics features three long-distance running events: the 5000 metres, 10,000 metres and marathon (42.195 kilometres, or 26 miles and 385 yards).'
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long-distance_runningIf you look up, "Middle Distance Running", the first entry on Google is the Wiki definition, which states, 'Middle-distance running events are track races longer than sprints, up to 3000 metres. The standard middle distances are the 800 metres, 1500 metres and mile run, although the 3000 metres may also be classified as a middle-distance event.'
Of course, if you want to use a very general term of 'Distance' meaning non sprints, then 800m can be included under this very big umbrella, but I stand by my point that a specialist 800m runner would not consider themselves a 'distance runner'; having far more in common with a 400m runner than a 5k runner.
For me we have:-
sprints - 100, 200, 400m;
middle distance - 800, 1500m (including 1000m and 1 mile);
distance - 5000, 10000, Marathon.
Distances like 2000m and 3000m are in a no man's land, but it is reasonable to include them in either of the 2 latter groups.
Aouita's career spanned very much both middle and distance events, the Oliver Twist of running, whereas Coe was very much a middle distance man.