I think you’re right he can definitely run a very fast 100m a very decent 200m but to run a fast 400m it will require a lot of specific training, but he could definitely train 3-4 mo and run a fast 400m too.
Mbappe would have a solid 100m time (not as quick as professional sprinters), maybe a decent 200m time but then anything longer than that he’s no better than the average population. It’s completely different to what he trains for, which are short fast bursts, and he likely wouldn’t have the endurance required to run a good 400m
I think Mbappe's best track event would be 110 hurdles.
Soccer players can't even jump over a leg, let alone do hurdles
Pele was 42 here and retired. He still comes second and beats Bjorn Borg, who was 25 or 26 here and who had ran a 12.1 100m on an earlier Superstars show.
Mbappe is a striker, not a mid-fielder! He's good at short sprints and being able to recover for the next one. There's nothing in his preparation or playing which would prepare him physically to run an extended sprint like the 400m. Jakob would destroy him.
Mbappe would have a solid 100m time (not as quick as professional sprinters), maybe a decent 200m time but then anything longer than that he’s no better than the average population. It’s completely different to what he trains for, which are short fast bursts, and he likely wouldn’t have the endurance required to run a good 400m
So you think he runs the 800m in 4 minutes like the average coach potatoe? A 0.000001% athlete known for his blistering speed, earning over 1.5 million dollars a week who sprints 20 x 50-100m in 90 minutes and jogs 8km?
OK.
Poor word choice on my part. What I meant was the average 400m runner. I could see him running 55ish but I can’t see how someone who trains in short bursts could run a sub 50 without specific training
The fact that people here are doubting whether Jakob could run under 49 just shows how very little time they have spent around world class athletes and training. Jakob runs a 47-46 no problem.
You are not mentally well for believing J.I. has a sub-48.25 f.a.t. 400m in him. 46.xx or 47.xx 400m, that's peak Ivo van Damme/peak S Coe 400m speed. Two 800/1500 meter men who were not afraid to kick against anyone, final 200m of 1500m race. J.I. has to lead with (700 to 1100)m to, 1500m race or he knows he will lose.
Yes, If Jakob could run 47 low he'd also run 1:41 and 3:25. not 1:46-47
It´s true that soccer players are normally not good runners especially not in distances longer than 200m BUT THERE ARE MANY EXCEPTIONS.
I was an elite soccer player from 10 to 51 so I know a bit about it.
I would say that soccer players like Bobby Charlton, Allan Ball, Rummenigge, Uli Hoeness who were all running a lot in their soccer matches would be good 400m runners too. And so will Mbappe.
A personal experience: I started to train for running when I was 51 because I wanted to compete in the National veteran champs that summer in the 800m and the 1500m. And to compete in the European champs next year in my home country.
I won the 800m and 1500m double at 51 and was finalist in the European champs the following year on both distances.
My 400m time after some structured training was 57 at age 52. That was enough to give me 3 golds in the 400m in the Nordic veteran champs the next years. But I wasn´t competetive on the 400m on top European level in my age group.
Sounds like you've had an interesting life would be keen to read more about it...
Jakob by about 8 seconds. I dont understand the delusion on this forum that footballers would make competitively fast runners.
It´s true that soccer players are normally not good runners especially not in distances longer than 200m BUT THERE ARE MANY EXCEPTIONS.
I was an elite soccer player from 10 to 51 so I know a bit about it.
I would say that soccer players like Bobby Charlton, Allan Ball, Rummenigge, Uli Hoeness who were all running a lot in their soccer matches would be good 400m runners too. And so will Mbappe.
A personal experience: I started to train for running when I was 51 because I wanted to compete in the National veteran champs that summer in the 800m and the 1500m. And to compete in the European champs next year in my home country.
I won the 800m and 1500m double at 51 and was finalist in the European champs the following year on both distances.
My 400m time after some structured training was 57 at age 52. That was enough to give me 3 golds in the 400m in the Nordic veteran champs the next years. But I wasn´t competetive on the 400m on top European level in my age group.
Interesting post. But dude, you were not an elite soccer player until age 51.
How do you define "running a lot"? Good aerobic condition is not necessary for 400m. Running a lot in a match is not enough. Running a lot in high speed though, thats something.
I don't remember who it was but it was a person with an at least moderately well known sport science blog who some years ago estimated that the typical pattern of a soccer player was like 20x50m sprints or so with jogging pauses. Even if it might be more than 15x40m sometimes (for strikers a bit less than for midfielders), it's still closer to 400-800m interval training that to any other track/running workout. So that blogger concluded that 400-1500m should be among soccer player's best events and there is lots of evidence from teenage sports for this.
I don't remember who it was but it was a person with an at least moderately well known sport science blog who some years ago estimated that the typical pattern of a soccer player was like 20x50m sprints or so with jogging pauses. Even if it might be more than 15x40m sometimes (for strikers a bit less than for midfielders), it's still closer to 400-800m interval training that to any other track/running workout. So that blogger concluded that 400-1500m should be among soccer player's best events and there is lots of evidence from teenage sports for this.
Its true and Im well aware having played it myself. But being faster than everyone (not always 60-100m but would crush them all in a 400m) I'd say theres huge differences in what works for a 400m in training and what a football/soccer player do. The guys running the most in a game is not the faster guys with best potential for the 400m.
I think its clearly the guys with more aerobic talent and great speed who would run the 400m best without any special training. Meaning: Not the fastest guys, even though they have the most potential.
Mbappe would have a solid 100m time (not as quick as professional sprinters), maybe a decent 200m time but then anything longer than that he’s no better than the average population. It’s completely different to what he trains for, which are short fast bursts, and he likely wouldn’t have the endurance required to run a good 400m
If you break 60 seconds for 400m you are far far better than the average population. Mbappe wouldn't be breaking 50, but I'm sure he'd be well under 54.
Mbappe is a striker, not a mid-fielder! He's good at short sprints and being able to recover for the next one. There's nothing in his preparation or playing which would prepare him physically to run an extended sprint like the 400m. Jakob would destroy him.
As stated in another post above I was an elite (amateur) soccer player from age 10 to 51 so I know a bit about soccer players, including how they train.
Even though my senior years were back in the 1970-1980s before there was professional soccer in my country I have done the following RUNNING training in the built up period in the winter/ early spring (the competition season didn´t start before april):
A. Long runs in the forest (about 10KM)
B. Shorter tempo runs (3-4km). All times were registered and you were supposed to improve along the line.
C. 300 and 400m reps.
D. Hill sprints
Most players hated it but some took it as a challenge, acknowledging the benefits when the season started.
------------
During the season we ran many sprints from short ones up to 50-60meters.
So don´t say that soccer players aren´t doing running training which could produce a fast 400m. And my experiences are from long ago. I suppose that the professionals of today are doing even harder running training.
And I would say that a 90 minutes soccer match can be rather good running training. I was a wing player who went far down on our own half of the soccer ground when the opposite team was attacking. When we had a chance for counter attack I ran with an 110% effort the other way ideally finishing with a goal or an assist in the opponents´ end of the field.
Doing such 110% sprints 10-20 times in a soccer match is excellent training for the 400m.
I was not only a good 400m runner when I started to do serious running training in my early fifties. I also ran fast in the 600m, the 800m and the 1000.
It´s true that soccer players are normally not good runners especially not in distances longer than 200m BUT THERE ARE MANY EXCEPTIONS.
I was an elite soccer player from 10 to 51 so I know a bit about it.
I would say that soccer players like Bobby Charlton, Allan Ball, Rummenigge, Uli Hoeness who were all running a lot in their soccer matches would be good 400m runners too. And so will Mbappe.
A personal experience: I started to train for running when I was 51 because I wanted to compete in the National veteran champs that summer in the 800m and the 1500m. And to compete in the European champs next year in my home country.
I won the 800m and 1500m double at 51 and was finalist in the European champs the following year on both distances.
My 400m time after some structured training was 57 at age 52. That was enough to give me 3 golds in the 400m in the Nordic veteran champs the next years. But I wasn´t competetive on the 400m on top European level in my age group.
Interesting post. But dude, you were not an elite soccer player until age 51.
How do you define "running a lot"? Good aerobic condition is not necessary for 400m. Running a lot in a match is not enough. Running a lot in high speed though, thats something.
I was an elite palyer relative to my age both as a pre teenm as a teen, as a senior (20-30 years old) and as an "old boy" and a "veteran" (official terms in the soccer organization of my country).
About my training and my soccer matches : See above!
Pele was 42 here and retired. He still comes second and beats Bjorn Borg, who was 25 or 26 here and who had ran a 12.1 100m on an earlier Superstars show.
Without ANY specific training, I'd guess Mbappe runs 52 mid or a bit faster. There are enough highly athletic high schoolers who run 52 without a ton of track training that it's not hard for me to see a freakishly good and professionally trained athlete like Mbappe doing that. But also with no racing/sprint training experience, your ceiling is going to be low.
With a couple of specific training sessions and maybe a practice time trial, I think Mbappe takes ~1.5 secs off and runs 50 high or 51 low. Figuring out how to pace a 400 and doing a couple longer sprinting sessions makes a big difference for anyone.
Give Mbappe a season of 400m training and I think he has a good shot at running 49.x. That maaaaaybe gives him a shot at beating Jakob if he's not very sharp. My guess is Jakob's often in 49 low-mid shape, but when doing more speedwork (presumably at the end of his seasons) could run solidly in the 48s.
Pele was 42 here and retired. He still comes second and beats Bjorn Borg, who was 25 or 26 here and who had ran a 12.1 100m on an earlier Superstars show.
Celebrity track times mean nothing. These guys have literally no idea how to start and are easily losing a second, possibly more due to their start. Even trained sprinters lose half a second without blocks and they know how to start without them.
They need to start doing 200 or 400s for these events or just track top speed and people can get a better idea of their running ability vs their starting ability.
Almost any young fit male can run under 60s. Almost any professional soccer player can run 52. Mbappe with a top speed of 10.6 m/s could hit 48 in a sit and kick race.
High school teammate of mine ran 52 as a sophomore. He was a soccer player who played year round and didn’t even make it to track practice every day.
He was good, but not good enough to play D1.
Mbappe is much faster. Could definitely drop a 49-50
52 as a sophomore isn't that rare or amazing. Natural talent can get you there pretty easily. Dropping to low 50. or sub 50 takes training or atypical natural talent.
If you have never run 48, 49, 50, 51 in the 400m, I worry you don't really have a good sense of what you're talking about on this thread. There is a massive difference between running 51's and 50.low/sub 50's. Running a 51 is the 4:30 mile of 400m running and pretty ordinary.
I've been playing soccer since I was 5 years old. I watch professional soccer players a lot. Have been playing soccer 2-3 times a week since 2017.
Very rarely are there other players I play with who are in better shape or running as much/fast as I am after 90 minutes. Have kind of always been this way since I was a kid. I only bring this up because I think I'm a good example of how fast a well above-average fit, speedy soccer player would do in these Letsrun hypothetical scenarios you dream up. I always feel like I would beat these professionals in a 5k or whatever distance you guys imagine, and I'm not that exceptional as a runner.
Soccer fitness is super different than running fitness. It's not like soccer players are going on prolonged runs during the season. You can run 4-7 miles a game, but you also get to walk when you're tired, and that's where endurance training differentiates itself. You don't get breaks.
I'm 40 now. Haven't trained for running since early 2017.
I go on a 4-5 mile run only 3-4 times a month. It would be difficult for me to run under 18:00 minutes in a 5k right now despite running 15-20 miles worth of miles playing soccer. I simply never run a fast pace for more than 15-20 seconds at a time.
At the beginning of COVID I was running 3-4 times a week and did a hilly 7-miler, a 2-mile tempo at 5:30 pace, and easy 4-5 mile runs as my routine. Strides once a week for soccer speed. I did a solo 5k time trial and ran 16:50 after 3-4 months of pandemic running and was hurting in that effort. When I was training, I could do 5-6 mile tempos at that pace.
Mbappe is really fast, and probably works on 50-80 yard burst of speed with his trainers. But that doesn't necessarily translate. (Think about doing 150m strides versus repeats 200's. 150's use a different energy system and are not difficult.) He can definitely run sub-50, but it would take time and training and he may not have the pain tolerance or interest in doing it. Might take years. Runners are specialists and a different breed who can live with suffering that most other sports do not enjoy. Soccer players are not able to hop into running races and do well as a general rule.
High School PB's: 50.6 open 400m, 49.8 split, 1:55 800m, 4:28 1600m, 16:19 5,000m XC; Ran 22.9 200m my senior year based on 400-800m training against my 800m training mate w/ same 400/800 pb's. Ran 4.7 in the 40 dash as sophomore when 400m pb was 53.
College: Had a lousy time, overtrained or injured most of the time. 49.1 split, 1:52 800m, 4:10 mile (my best pb i think) and 25:49 8k were my bests. Never ran faster than 15:35 in the 5k...
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