Faith Kipyegon GOLD. Dibaba Silver. Simpson Bronze

The notion that East Africans don't know what they're doing is like saying Kemboi is a 'horrible' hurdler. Complete idiocy.

Le Grande Orange wrote:

Trying to figure out Muir's race strategy, or the lack thereof. Dumb, dumb, dumb. As opposed to Simpson, who's a real smart racer.

She left the final at the semifinals.

fan the flames wrote:

not a chance. Rowbury is gonna want it even more now. it just got real.

joho wrote:

Should put to bed the debate over Jenny vs Shannon

Then maybe she should try and run her own race instead of just shadowing Jenny. Doesn't she have any confidence in her own tactics?

your explanation is so amateur that it is not worth commenting on.

Does Simple Explanation not see that I was responding to Rojo who said we needed to drop the Dibaba doping query?I was addressing whether there is an indication that Dibaba is part of a doping program when after he argues that this race disproves that.

Middle Wast distance Runner wrote:

your explanation is so amateur that it is not worth commenting on.

simple explanation wrote:

You don't have to talk about drugs in this race, because the race was won in 4:08 with silver and gold running 4:10. Everyone in the field could have run that fast. Dibaba just paced herself like an idiot and Simpson paced herself better. Maybe Dibaba is doping, but doping isn't helping you much if you run a stupidly paced 4:10 race. Dibaba looked almost like Alan Webb sprinting in the middle of the 1500 at the 2005 World Championships.

She didnt look injured in the semis. The WR is a joke. You saw the real Dibaba tonight, Frankly I am sick of the name the arrogance they portray. Now it gone. Thank you

Helping you out on doping wrote:

Does Simple Explanation not see that I was responding to Rojo who said we needed to drop the Dibaba doping query?

I was addressing whether there is an indication that Dibaba is part of a doping program when after he argues that this race disproves that.

Middle Wast distance Runner wrote:

your explanation is so amateur that it is not worth commenting on.

Faith Kipyegon is coached by Bram Som from the Netherlands. I have heard a rumor on this board that he was also the coach of former 1500m world champion Abeba Aregawi... who tested positive for meldonium. I do not know if that rumor is true.

Faith Kipyegon's manager is…Jos Hermens from the Netherlands. Here is a little history of some coincidences involving Mr. Jos Hermens:

OK?

May I go back to Ms. Jemima Sumgong and Mr. Federico Rosa for just a minute?

I think Claudio Berardelli may have been her former coach. I think she also maybe used to train with Rita Jeptoo…who tested positive for EPO…and was banned.

There is also this other Ms. Jemima Sumgong coincidence:

Please note that Mr. Gabriel Dolle has had to step down from his position as the head of anti-doping at the IAAF…because he is under investigation for allegedly taking BRIBE MONEY.

It is just a coincidence.

There is nothing to see here.

Please go back to sleep... and have nice dreams.

What fun!

Nailed It wrote:

I think it's less the final 800 splits and more the vials full of EPO that were found in Aden's hotel...

Haha. I had the same thought. Do people need to calm down about the suspicions of a coach who sneaks around discarding broken up syringes in trash cans across Italy?

titaniumbolt wrote:

Glad to see Rowbury stuck to her guns (shadow Simpson and try to outkick in the last 100). Jenny pulled her through.

She really has become a one trick pony.

Do you guys think it was a good race? It was SO slow, but those last two laps really picked it up. Simpson won bronze with a 4:10x which is well below her PB. But, races take different forms. This was exceedingly flow and then fast. So, was it a good race?

I hope rojo checks my post for spelling errors.

(He is a spelling bee champion.)

klubkip1 wrote:

Seeing Dibaba beat in the 1500m has made my year. Hasnt made up for Felix losing to a cheater but still. I am happy to see that arrogant smirk wiped off her entitled face.

Felix didn't lose to a cheater. She just lost.

The joke is on us wrote:

I think that alot of the other countries dont take it as seriously as the Americans. Watching the Marathon and how undisciplined the African runners were on the tangents and pacing and the hydration made think they really weren't paying attention to the little things that cumilatively add up.

In this race Jenny and Shannon seemed to know what was going on and how the race was setting up while the Africans were making it up as it went along.

There are so many statements in this thread that I take issue with.

Do the East Africans sometimes make tactical decisions that make me shake my head? Yes. Do the East Africans, on the whole, destroy the Americans both in fitness and in tactics? ALSO YES.

I've seen plenty of bonehead tactics from all types of runners. The infamous Webb WC final comes to mind. However, he did that in the trials and it worked beautifully. He was RACING. You see, that's what the East Africans do... They RACE. The Americans can't really race most of the time because they are barely hanging on for dear life. I noticed Shalane taking a turn more efficiently than the others once. Didn't watch much of the marathon. But having watched tons of track races for years, I can assure you that the Africans have plenty of race savvy. Again, what you consider "just feeling it out as they go along" is actually something called RACING...

Dibaba knew EXACTLY what she was doing. Masback or whoever it was had just said that her coach told her to go for it in the last 800. And what do you know - that's what she did. But she went too hard too early and possibly went too hard in the semifinal. She bonked. Oh well, it happens.

Another issue I have: why do you assume we think Jenny Simpson is clean? I'm not saying she's dirty, but your saying that just reeks of American exceptionalism.

I'm far from PC, and I think tons of the Africans are on drugs, but I have no more faith that Simpson is clean than I do most of the other athletes in an Olympic final, which is not that much.

Oh, and running for bronze? Eh, I get what you're saying, but I've always found the idea that bronze >>>>>>>> fourth place a little odd. My belief is that what really matters is winning, and if I had an athlete who had even a 1/100 chance of winning an Olympic final, I would tell him or her to effing go for it even if it meant the medal chances took a hit.

There is close to 0% chance that any of those women are clean.

Apparently you have no clue about the disparities between countries when it comes to out of competition testing. To say that you have "I have no more faith that Simpson is clean than I do most of the other athletes in an Olympic final," implies a level playing field in terms of dealing with OOC, bio-passport, etc..

That is not the case and Americans, most Europeans and Japanese are much more subject to a decent testing protocol (and willingness to go after even major stars like Jones, Gatlin, Gay, etc.) than almost any African or Middle East nation.

... as boxed in as they were, we were fortunate to get any medals. That 800 meter race was Miur's to lose. And yeah, with Rowbury as the reluctant leader the first lap, it basically turned into a delayed 800, without Semenya.

Great race for both Jenny and Shannon. Wow, first American medal ever.

I forgot another Jos Hermens story.

Please note that in the first story it says no autopsy was performed.

Please note that in the second story Jos Hermens says that an autopsy was done and found nothing.

Which one is the correct story?

Hey Mr. Jos Hermens.

Was an autopsy performed…or not performed?

http://www.ethiomedia.com/newpress/kenenisa_alem_techale_story.html

It is just a coincidence.

Oh well.

I agree on the tactics and lots of East Africans have been great runners who are just better. I think Dibaba went too hard on the penultimate lap and ran way too hard in the semi. That could have been adrenaline. Kipyegon was more efficient and gauged her effort better. I don't know that Rowbury and Simpson did anything other than run the best they could once the race picked up. It was less a matter of running for bronze than not blowing up by running over their heads too early. To be clear, anyone can be dirty. We can't know. I assume some are clean and some are dirty and I think it's fine to point out that he Aden was arrested in an EPO raid at her training site. I will say that the US makes more of an effort to engage in testing than do some other countries. US runners have been and could be dirty but the US tries to bust them.