Yes wrote:
The little fella and his daddy know very well why they focus on the 1500. In the 1500 he has a good shot at silver, in the 5k he might have a small chance at bronze (behind Kiplimo and Cheptegei).
This comment is about as dumb as it gets. Barega, GWet, and Kejelcha all should be in the picture for the 5000m medals as well and Barega and GWet have comparable kicking ability (Barega just lost in an epic duel to Kiplimo in a 12:48 race). The Ethiopians won't let Cheptegei solo way ahead of them without a fight again.
As for the best legal European time, there's very little doubt about it. Mourhit was busted for EPO in 2002, two years after running 7:26.62 behind another doper, Ali Saidi-Sief. No one ran faster than that time between Bekele in 2007 and today. It was at the height of the test-free EPO era. And Mourhit was just two months shy of 30, hardly the typical time to run by far the fastest times of his life. In 1991 at 21, he ran 7:48, then no times for years and he ran 13:46 in 1996, then 7:34 in 1997, along with 13:05. When did the doping start? In 2002 or more likely 1997?
Mohammed Mourhit (Arabic: محمد مُرحيت) (born 10 October 1970 in Khouribga, Morocco) is a Belgian top cross country, middle and long-distance runner who holds two European records, in the 3000 m and 5000 m. He is also a former European 10000 m record holder. He won a bronze medal at the 1999 World Championships in the 5000 metres and a silver medal at the 2001 IAAF World Indoor Championships in the 3000 metres behind Hicham El Guerrouj. Mourhit was also a two-time winner of the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in the long course in 2000 and 2001. He also won the Lisbon Half Marathon 1997.
He was suspended for the use of EPO in 2002. He returned to competition in 2004, after seeing his ban reduced,[3] and qualified for the World Championships in Helsinki 2005.[4]
He holds the fastest non-winning time for the 3000 metres. In Monaco on 18 August 2000, he ran 7:26.62, coming second to Ali Saïdi-Sief. No other man has broken 7:27 and come second."
As for how to evaluate this race, Kiplimo was not showing 7:20 ability or anything like it. The last lap was run in 56 seconds and he took some time before getting past the 19 year old Ingebrigtsen (birthday is 9/20). (Kiplimo was surely not 27:26 capable at 15 years old).
But Kiplimo surely can run in the low 12:40s, if not high 12:30s, and Ingebrigtsen will also run in the 12:40s. Conditions were hot today and the leaders could have handled a slightly faster pace to optimize times. It's not unlikely that we'll see them get to 2600m next year at 59.5 pace per 400m, giving them an excellent shot at sub 7:25.
Although he has been outkicked by absolutely top level talent repeatedly, Cheruiyot, Kiplimo, Gebrihewet, Ingebrigtsen is a legit 19 years old, for a few more days, and already among just three people to ever run sub 3:29 and sub-7:28. Only Hicham El Guerrouj and Nourredine Morceli have done it. Extend that to sub-3:30, and you add only Daniel Komen and Ali Saidi-Sief, another caught doping. Make it sub 3:30 and sub 7:30 and you add a few more, including Bernard Lagat, Augustine Choge, and Ronald Kwemoi (high 3:28 and 7:28.73). However you slice it, it puts him at an historically elite level and though the kick has not been there outside of European championships, and not always there, he is young enough to have plenty of potential and he doesn't need to improve very much over the next several years to be a perennial contender and likely multiple champion. Setting aside Komen, who was listed as 20 when he ran 7:20, El Guerrouj, Saidi-Sief, Bekele, and Gebreselassie were between 22 and 25 when they ran faster.