Alan Webb 3:38.99...good!! but not enough to make the team.

dean moriarty wrote:

Nice double for Webb! Racing himself into shape- old school.

This is classic Cerutty at its finest.

it is fantastic to see webb back.

and also the way he's doing it.

he's swallowed his ego, it seems and is running to his own lever at the moment & not trying to emulate a fitness that isn't there, and with the inflated ego that comes along with it.

the 1500 5000m double is good stuff. no doubt useful training when it comes to surviving the rounds of the trials.

if webb stays healthy, he might just make the #3 Q-spot in the trials.

with continuing good health, he could even make an impact at the OG and squeak into the finals. we are talking 331 shape.

sorry to say there is no shot at gold, that will take 329 shape or better. bronze however is always open to long shots...

I was there in person. Webb did not look at his best in the 1500, was boxed badly, had to drop out the back of a long line--never a good thing for 1500. Lots of physical. Time was decent. In the 5000 he looked great, paced it, pulled to the side and then not jogged but moved on to finish in 13:49 looking like he could have run 10 seconds faster were it not a workout. All in, I would estimate, 40 minutes or less, including both races and the wait for the women's 5K. I have to say, after the 5K I was impressed, and I was not alone thinking that in the stands. We shall see.

Lomong miscounted laps, sprinted too early, came to a full stop for 2-3 seconds before folks could get him back in the mix, and then won (again?) the 5000 after winning the 4600. Pretty impressive, and odd, way to run a 13:11. He and David Torrence took off and sprinted with 2 to go and I thought maybe there was a miscount in both their minds. Torrence might have had a 2nd if they had been on the proper count, but the crazy sprint left him spent.

Yeah, that is how it looked.

I wonder if Webb would have made more of an effort FTW etc., in the 1500 if he knew he was not following up with that 5,000 in another 25 minutes?

What I mean is, that I think he know that the 1500 was going to be a good enough time for his workout double, so he just went with it and did not sweat staying up front...being mindful that he was coming back in a short 25 minutes.

It showed some mean fitness to be able to run that 1500, cool down, and warm up and then LEAD the 5,000 and stick in and run it under 14.50.

Talent doesn't go away.

And, that is a lot of running, his achilles must be doing well.

Alan Webb will round into amazing shape by the time Trials roll around!! He is on the right path. He will make the Olympic team and there is no telling what he is capable of. Let me remind you....he has run 3:30! What American is capable of that right now?

You have to assume with all of these doubles, Alan and his coach are preparing him properly and he will peak this summer when it counts! I am guessing he has done little speedwork and is gearing for the Olympics. The best is yet to come.

Good Luck Alan!!!!

I may be wrong and this may have already been stated but I'm pretty sure he was running the 5k in flats. (thats what it looked like on the stream)

Granted flats aren't worth to much however to me it shows that they are being very smart about this doubling. Doubling can be very hard on the body (as we all probably know)

BooooooooooooooooYAH!!!!!! wrote:

Alan Webb will round into amazing shape by the time Trials roll around!! He is on the right path. He will make the Olympic team and there is no telling what he is capable of. Let me remind you....he has run 3:30! What American is capable of that right now?

Wheating?

Lomong?

Centro?

Wheating?

Likely

Lomong

Possible

Centro

Unlikely

webbmaster wrote:

Sick progression from Webb in the 1500 this year. Knocking 3/4 seconds off his time whenever he steps on a track.

I look forward to his sub 3:30 come the end of the summer.

Webb is progressing infinitely better than probably anyone would've predicted just 3 weeks ago, but come on, sub 3:30? Even in 3:46 mile shape (ie, really really fast), he didn't break 3:30. If he runs sub 3:33 this year, that would have to be considered a phenomenal result after all the setbacks he's had. I actually have a lot of confidence in him making the Olympic Team this year, but that doesn't mean a sub-3:30 from him.

I guess progression is all relative.

Webb ran 3:37 last year earlier in the season than this.

Wannabe Goldbug wrote:

Wheating?

Likely

Lomong

Possible

Centro

Unlikely

What indicates that this is likely for Wheating right now?

flofan wrote:

also, he ran that double with 40min rest in between. Webb is, improbably, showing signs of life!

More like 30 minutes.

Who else is capable of 3:30 *right now*?

Centro

More likely than Lomong

Lomong

Possible

Wheating

Not likely

Webb

Not possible

If they all progress without interruption, any of the first three would be a medal threat, which implies 3:30 shape, IMO. Webb is doing great, but 3:30 is still worlds away. Longshot at best.

giffypop17 wrote:

There was an entire heat of the women's 5000, plus it seemed like it took them an eternity to line up and start the men's heat.

According to the schedule, his 1500 started at 7:46, and the 5000 started at 8:13. They've been within a minute or two of schedule. So, he started that 5000 within about 25 minutes of finishing the 1500.

Which is great. Don't get me wrong, I'm not dissing it. It's awesome, especially in light of his recent performances. But let's not start exaggerating and saying he did the double on 10 minutes recovery. If we do, let's wait a couple years before embellishing it to legendary status. Or at least let it get through the night.

I heard he ran both with his shoes full of rocks.

Bullet the Blue Sky wrote:

Anyone know what his splits were? That might tell more of a story than his finishing time. Did he run even? Did he fade? How did he finish?

I think everyone knows that the real question is, was he relaxed?