Webb's Semi !!!!

nevermind, i watched the final. did baala intentionally push(was that baba?) or was he just trying to get through and his leg hit his? vicious. he did look strong though, and lagat looked really good. wednesday's final could come down to lagat and ramzi, because ramzi looked really good in his heat as well. and last time ramzi looked that good in the heats, he won.

Yes, people fell. with about 50m to go, Baala grabbed the morrocan and basically threw him down to get through where there wasn't an opening. the morrocan also took anothe guy down with him. the morrocan got up and had his arms raised in shock and anger at Baala and walked the last 50 to the finish line, all the way, looking for the officials. the walking was the reason for the 4:16.

That is not Alan's race at all, he started bad and never seemed comfortable. Maybe he is just playing possum for the final, but he better not get himself in that position in the championship. I agree with others who say he should try to get out front and run like he did in the US Championship. Hopefully Webb and Lagat can help each other out a little bit.

thanks for the link.

webb actually looked good when he got to full speed.

but, there was a moment (at 2:40 into the race) when the whole pack jumped and started to move. webb hesitated one beat, then responded.

i thought it very telling.

he will have to correct that tendency (if he's not in the top three he tends to zone out-many guys do) because it will be used against him.

looked like he had the wheels and confidence to do what he needed to do to get in.

He needs to get in much better position and that race was a little too close for comfort. He is not going to win that kind of sprint finish.

i think he ran 37.high for the last 300m. that's pretty amazing.

agree - webby was fine wrote:

looked like he had the wheels and confidence to do what he needed to do to get in.

Wrong!!! Lagat, yes, that is correct for him; Alan did not look good at all. He was very "rough" and struggled. He was either very nervous or he is not 100%. I hope that he can still be in the running for 3rd or 4th.

Alan Webb will be fine if he runs his race and that stumble in the semi threw him off big time.

I agree. He looked good. He was about 12.5 for the last 100. I believe he definitely didn't think so many guys would be there for the final kick, but he smartly sat back and waited as long as he could- and when he needed the extra little bit in the last 100 it was there. He ran that for all he was worth.

yeah it looked like he was putting himself into top gear. hopefully that doesn't come back and bite him in the butt on wednesday. people should remember that he was sprinting out in lane 2 the last 300m, so he was running a little further than those guys who had the cushy inside lane up front, and he ran the last 300m as fast as anyone else, except he was in lane 2 so he ran a little bit further. it looked like he was tightening up those last 100m though.

that really wasnt all that bad...he put himself in terrible position to begin with and really had to make up a lot of ground.

webb has never really looked smooth to me, thats just how he runs.

Here are some of his post-race comments:

" I wasn't aggressive enough at the start. I had to do something I don't like doing, being in the back the whole time. It almost cost me a spot in the final. That's why you don't do that. I knew I was really close. I tried to count the guys. The last 50, I tried to stay as relaxed as I could. It was hard and there was so much going on. I just didn't want to get left out."

I think he ran 37.high for the last 300m.

No. He was through in about 3:03 flat. He defnitely ran at least 38 for the last 300, and his 1400 split was about 3:28.5- but as pointed out elswhere- that 200 meters from 1200 to 1400 included all of the last turn in lane 2. So he actually covered at least 204 meters in 25.5

Again, i think he looks good. And to finish up so strong can only give him lots of confidence for the final.

Webb seemed like his head wasn't totally in it. You could see he'd slip off the back now and again and it'd be like, "Oops, didn't mean to do that," and then he'd get back on. He was obviously fine, though, given the late move he made.

In the future, perhaps it would be a little better for him - as Alan Webb, not everyone needs to do this - to maybe find a moment early and just move up on the outside a few spots if he finds himself in the back of the pack, again. It would mentally keep him in the race a bit more. I feel he'd be better off sacrificing a little energy for the peace of mind that comes with being in a reasonable position to respond to any moves, even if they never come, rather than chilling on the rail in the back.

As for Lagat, I don't think his semi tactics were all that stellar. Sure, he won, but with a lap or so to go he, too, was in a precarious position stuck in the middle of the pack - literally - with people to both sides, front, and back. You could see him go, "Oh shit," and start looking for a way out of there.

Baala is simply an ass and there is no way that Ramzi isn't on something.

If indeed Webb was battling a cold, then he did just fine. In a couple days he will be even stronger and he will be ready to run.

You all should be happy. People say that Webb isn't consistent, so maybe he got his bad race out of the way. Look what happened after his bad 2-mile race.

Nobody plays games when you're at this level. Everyone has excuses for him (Alan) but nobody wants to say that Webb will probably not medal in the final. Webb didn't look good. Nobody slowed down here, Alan barely edge his way into the final.

My predictions:

Webb will place 6th with a time of 3:41

Lagat will get the bronze medal with a time around 3:39 cause the race will come down to the last 200m

Webb just seems very nervous/anxious. At least he is in the final now. Go USA.