What WR is the most mind boggling?

The women's 3000m definitely high up on this list. Would love to know what's the closest anyone could get to this obviously doped record, I think a peak Hassan could maybe run 8:12/8:13 if she really trained for it?

I think it's because the women's 3000m record is so shady that we so rarely see any sub 8:20's, I think few want to be seen running anywhere close to the record.

And they used a sun dial to time it!!!

All-time WR or current? If all-time, Jerry Rice and it isn’t particularly close. If current WR, I would say Justin Jefferson. He’s drawing a lot of double coverages this year but is still finding a way to make big plays

What about El Guerrouj's 2000m? 4:44.79 ... basically running an insanely fast mile then doing a 60-second victory lap. Set in 1999 and nobody has come within 5 seconds of it in 20 years.

Same thing people have been saying for the 3k, except for the 2000m it's actually far clearer than for the 3k: there haven't been nearly as many attempts, nor is there nearly the incentive to run a fast 2k, compared to the 3k.

Check out the top performances from the last 7 years (beginning of 2015 through now). Either the World Athletics database is missing something or there have been very few serious attempts (defined arbitrarily as sub-5). Only performance in 2016 is 5:08, there are none from 2017, etc... How many of the sub-3:30 1500m runners have ever even tried a 2000m, let alone made a serious attempt at a fast time?

worldathletics.org

2000 Metres - men - senior - outdoor

Open link

(actually, maybe it is missing something - maybe someone who can use tilastopaja will tell me why I'm wrong)

I'd agree with Radcliffe's 2:15 marathon, for the day and the shoe technology, it's in a class by itself.

Not a WR, but Jim Ryun's 3:55 HS mile in 1965 set a standard that was decades ahead of his time. I would argue that NO ONE could run that fast again with the same type of shoes and track surfaces he ran on.

Why is the 4 minute mile "arbitrary" and "irrational"? The distance and time long predate the 1500 meters, which, incidentally, makes little "rational" sense. 3.75 laps on a 400 meter track? 4 x 1/4 mile, each in under 60 seconds, is perfect symmetry.

Bolts 9.58 and it’s not even close.

Yes, WA rates 9.58 as 1356 points. No, Bolt's own 19.19 is very close -- 1351.

Daniel Komen vs Haile Gebreselassie 5000m, Zurich 1996

Daniel Komen vs El Guerrouj, 1 mile, Berlin 1997

There will be never a generation like this, because at that time Athletics and "merit" were a thing. People were motivated.

Ok.

Like others, I just don’t really care about the 2000 because it is almost never run. That being said, 4:44 is one of the most ridiculous things I’ve ever seen. I think of it as a 3:47 with him finishing with a 57 and I just can’t. I think it’s because of the novelty that I see it this way. Is it more impressive than 3:43?

1299 for 7:20.67

1303 for 12:35.36

1293 for 3:43.13

1303 for 3:26

The best of the adjacent performances would predict a 4:43.57 for 2000 if the point tables really can really be used this way. As we’ve seen before, they are manipulated somewhat from time to time.

letsrun.com

Trying To Make Sense of World Athletics' New Scoring Tables; Which World Records Are Worth the Most?

Jonathan Gault

We take a close look at the tables where some distances times are worth less points than before but some are bizarrely worth more. Plus which WR is the greatest in all of track and field according to the tables? *MB: World At...

Open link

They were definitely pumped to the max in that era!

I know this might be controversial but the recent 24 hour world record milage run is pretty insane “198.598 miles for men, set by Aleksandr Sorokin of Lithuania in 2022.”

Running 7s is considered slow in many circles however running 7 minute mile for 24 hours is impressive. Who will be the first to hit 200 miles in 24 hours?

Bekele's focus in 2007 would have been on winning worlds, which he did in the 10k. The rest of his season leading up to that really just reads as a series of tune-up races and paydays, running quick-ish races and closing hard. I gave his 7:25 splits in a previous post, but let's look at his 7:26 splits:
02:29.57
02:33.15
02:23.99

At the 2k mark he was 10+ seconds down on Komen, lol. This was not a serious wr attempt, nor was his 7:25

You guys and your scoring tables. Flake went 9.69 in still conditions, that is VERY close to Dolt’s 9.58.

Also, he was faster than Dolt over 200m, less RT.

10.49, 21.34, the W400 and W800, those are infinitely stronger. Duplantis should also be way up there, you know how many things have to go right for a PV WR?

”Scoring tables”, lol. Just someone else’s opinion.

Also, the mile—and all distances commonly run, except for maybe the 60m indoors and the 10k or marathon—is arbitrary insofar as energy systems are concerned. The mile does not map onto those systems with any optimization.

Antonio Brown

At my job, people who didn´t care one thing about T&F still knew who Wilson Kipketer was. If I would ask people at work today about well known runners today I would get an empty stare back.

As an American and former Track Runner, I never get tired of watching Michael Johnson, 1996 - Atlanta Olympics. The Olympics represents the biggest stage in the Sport.

(Michael Johnson Breaks 200m & 400m Olympic Records - Atlanta 1996 Olympics - YouTube

(8) Michael Johnson Breaks 200m & 400m Olympic Records - Atlanta 1996 Olympics - YouTube