Has a lapped runner ever come back to win a race?

Didn't read thread. Sounds pretty improbable, even for 5k or 10k. Maybe in one of those really long racewalking events if that counts. But even then I doubt it. The only way I could possibly conceive of this happening would be if there were ever a marathon on a track. Does such an event exist? Sounds like it would be pretty boring.

I'm going to venture a guess and say a marathon on a track

I'd never run a marathon in my home state of Ohio. So I found some races picked one out and called the RD to get some more info on it. I asked what the course was like. He said flat and fast. I thought excellent, till he uttered his next sentence, it's run on a track. I laughed and he got pissy about it saying lots of people like running marathons on tracks. I briefly considered it, then bagged it after friends talked me down. I think it was in Vandalia or Dayton, one of the two.

O man, never thought of that! What if instead of on the roads... it was a marathon on the track!?

I believe it can happen if at a village and plain of ancient Greece northeast of Athens, there was a mark or succession of marks left by something that has passed.

Haven't read the whole thread but I think it is possible. Just last weekend in the women's 5K at the ECAC Champs a Freshman (from Vermont?) took off at the gun and, for a time, was more than one half lap ahead of the field (which was very tightly grouped). Of course, they eventually reeled her in and then lapped her. She wabn't that far from lapping the eventual winners in her ill-advised start. So, poor race strategy/management could lead to the situation you describe, even in a shorter race.

Interesting question... And it makes me wonder if a lap-danced runner has ever come

back to win a race.

Joe Kerr wrote:

Interesting question... And it makes me wonder if a lap-danced runner has ever come

back to win a race.

Pre could have done it in the 1980 Olympics if there had been a track marathon.

I ran the Icebreaker indoor marathon in Milwaukee back in January 2011. It's run on a 443 meter track at the Pettit Ice Arena in Milwaukee. I seem to remember the lead runner (male) had lapped the second place runner twice by mile 20, then stopped off the track with an injury. The female runner was also down two laps to the second place female at the half-way point, but came back to finish first memale. (it's 96 laps for the marathon).

Rexing once did a marathon on the track. Footwear unconfirmed.

TypicalLetsrunner wrote:

Joe Kerr wrote:

Interesting question... And it makes me wonder if a lap-danced runner has ever come

back to win a race.

Pre could have done it in the 1980 Olympics if there had been a track marathon.

Right cause the US went to the Olympics in 1980

I had lapped everyone in this indoor thon after the first 400m, There were so many lapped runners on the indoor track that I spent most of the race in lane 2. Then on the bell lap some dude passed me about 10m from the tape. I was literally gutted. I must have run like 30 miles. Well my Garmin showed 29.68 although I think I lost the signal a couple of times.

So are we saying there will be a marathon on the track soon?

The only way this could conceivably happen would be if a marathon were to be run on a track.

Agree with the above poster that said this could probably happen in a marathon on a track

I had a Saturday to kill so I visited our local track. Low and behold they were holding a half marathon (on the track). So I decided to watch the event in entirety. I won't bore you with details but one of the runnners was lapped by mile 3. That same runner came back, was in the hunt, and by mile 13 he was neck and neck with the leader who had lapped him back at mile 3. Well they came down the final stretch but he came up short. Everyone was saying had it been a marathon on a track we would have witnessed a lapped runner coming back to win. So no never seen a lapped runner win. Maybe if there ever will be marathons on a track.

But even then, it has to be a marathon on an indoor track. I doubt it would happen at a marathon on an outdoor track.

Either way, a marathon on a track is the right answer. In fact, it's always the right answer.

Stick with eharmony wrote:

TypicalLetsrunner wrote:

Pre could have done it in the 1980 Olympics if there had been a track marathon.

Right cause the US went to the Olympics in 1980

The fact that Pre died five years prior might also have kept him from winning a marathon on a track at the 1980 Olympics.

Jason Rexing got lapped in an 800m race and came back to win.