Jared Ward, Sara Hall and 84 Qualifiers Want Olympic Marathon Trials Start Time Moved to 6 or 7am

I should be top 10, maybe 13th;)

If things go well, possibly top 6.

They are pansies for wanting to run at a cooler time. They should suck it up and run at noon (maybe for spectators?), but you are good with midnight. Did I get your point right?

Marathons start that early not due to the heat, but to get the 6-7 hour hobbyjoggers off the roads so they can reopen at a decent hour.

Hey soccer boy, the Trials Marathon is on SATURDAY February 3rd.

Uh Ward ran well in the heat of LA and was top 10 in Rio. Will he be a factor in Orlando, unlikely, but don't make false statements that the people petitioning know they can't run in heat. It is an ignorant generalization on your part. The Noon start has nothing to do with the possible conditions in Paris. It was likely dictated by NBC to try to maximize the tv/streaming audience as it will be smaller then any football or basketball game.

Bingo, this was an entirely self made dilemma. How much money was blown doing the site surveys only to have Maxie-poo and his brown-skid disciples decide they want to be in Orlando for the Pro Bowl? So that's another issue, anyone going there will be hit with crazy inflated hotel costs. Add in that there isn't a people's race to participate in gives runners another reason not to go. Clearly an all-around lousy decision by Maxie-pad and his that-time-of-the-month crew.

I've been there during school break in mid February for several years in a row and more than one morning was cool and crisp. Family friends went at the end of January a few years back and you couldn't buy a coat in Disney World (the park) as they were all sold out. There's no 100 percent chance that it'll be super hot and humid.

I talked about this topic in this week's version of the WTW. In it, I wrote:

letsrun.com

WTW: Sorry, Eliud Kipchoge, Kelvin Kiptum Is The Greatest Marathoner On Planet Earth

LetsRun.com

No one has ever started their marathon career like Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya. Plus are USA marathoners getting soft by requesting a 6 a.m. start time for the Olympic Trials?

Open link

How many runners can honestly say they'd prefer to start their marathon at noon in possible warm temperatures? I know I wouldn't. Why not listen to the dang athletes for once instead of the the fat-ass well-paid suits that are concerned with TV ratings? How many marathon majors start at noon?? None. But they seem to do OK in the TV ratings. Screw the suits and honor the athletes.

I can get behind a night race. My running club is hosting a race that afternoon. The bar that hosts our post-race bash would make bank if we hung around longer for the broadcast. Because Madison in February. Maybe I'll write a letter.

These professional atheletes are complaining about something that is a known factor many months in advance. Everyone can determine historical weather data for Orlando in early february. Deal with it. You are literally being paid pretty decent money to entertain and sell shoes. A lot of people have working conditions that better suit the business than their own individual preferences. Less people will watch the race in person or on tv if it is that early. Also, it will most likely not be that hot in February in Florida. It could be, but it more likely will be somewhere in the 50s to mid 60s with relatively low dew points which is pretty good for Florida.

Tired of all these pros complaining that the race will have even a tiny bit of challenge to it. They sound soft to me. Dont need them going to the olympics if they cant handle a bit of adversity.

“There’s no such thing as bad weather, only soft people.”
-Bill Bowerman

Higdon, Hal. The Gigantic Book of Running Quotations. Simon and Schuster, 2011, p. 492.

Find it interesting that Hall, Ward, amongst others, are twisting themselves into knots over the temperature.

Meanwhile a runner such as Des welcomes the conditions.

One has made two teams and showed up clutch under pressure. The other two have folded in similar spots. Accepting the noon start knowing you're strong and smart enough to outlast your competition likely means you'll outperform those whipping themselves into a frenzy before their training cycle even begins.

The Time of the Day that is coolest is best, We still need 1 more person to hit the Standard, and hopefully more, give them the best chance to run fast, and hopefully the top 3 go under The Standard AT THE TRIALS, so there is no confusion about who is on the team, as soon as the race is over. (Unlikely I know)

Athlete safety should come first. I think we've gotten a little too used to people like kipchoge making the race seem so easy. It's still a somewhat dangerous event in the heat.

Too early who wants to wake up that early

Just asking...doesn't Peacock/NBC carry Premier League matches around 9am eastern which is why the marathon trials are at noon?

Because EPL is worth waking up for. Trials marathon, not so much, although I don’t see a noon start time being a huge draw either.

I think 9-10 a.m. is a fair compromise. Warm / humid enough to emulate Paris conditions, but not dangerous.

I'll be very excited to see who prevails out of 80+ Americans who nearly all have no chance of medaling in the olympic marathon.

What's especially exciting is how the olympic marathon is limited to at most 4 Kenyans and 4 Ethiopians. That really gives hope to one or two Americans. I like how they make it fair by handicapping the best running countries. This could never happen in a fast marathon like Berlin, London, Chicago.