When Hall ran 2:06:17 in London, the world record was 2:04:26. He was 1:51 slower than the world record. Mantz's 2:04:43 is more than 4 minutes slower than the current world record.
Yeah but it is a minute closer than 5 minutes away. People set the bar so high. We should be ecstatic that Mantz finally broke a 23 year old AR, was only 2 minutes behind arguably the most talented phenom ever, and was 4th place in a fast race in Chicago. I feel for some of you, nothing is ever good enough. Mantz in one race put the U.S. back at least in the mix. But some people on this board are still complaining.
Not to mention nobody really believes the *clean* world record is 2:00. 2:02 is more like it.
At that rate of improvement, by around 2050 the World Record for the marathon will be around 1:55 and the American record for the marathon will be just under 2:04. We will finally have a 2:03 (though very high 2:03) marathoner. Yipeee!
I know you are joking, but I don’t think it will really take long to see even multiple performances in the 2:03s or even faster. Fisher, Young, and Blanks all have more upside and talent than Mantz and all three of them are capable of running under 2:04. Hell, even Hocker and Teare might be able to run that fast if they took the build up seriously and managed to stay healthy. Mantz himself may be capable of sub 2:04. He would probably have a better shot if he takes a break from road racing and runs XC and track for 2026. Nobody is expecting him to beat anybody significant with his limited turnover, but I think it might benefit him to run in some 3ks, 5ks, and a 10k this spring and just focus on getting the wheels back. I think he is actually capable of a 26:50ish and 13:05. That will translate nicely into a 2026 fall marathon like Chicago again and he’ll have some fresh turnover to make the pace easier for a shot in the 2:03s.
Again, I agree totally. I think more like 13:03/26:57 is his absolute limit, but it’s almost impossible for him not to run Boston. They pay him too much to skip it. Plus he has a chance to podium there as well.
I know you are joking, but I don’t think it will really take long to see even multiple performances in the 2:03s or even faster. Fisher, Young, and Blanks all have more upside and talent than Mantz and all three of them are capable of running under 2:04. Hell, even Hocker and Teare might be able to run that fast if they took the build up seriously and managed to stay healthy. Mantz himself may be capable of sub 2:04. He would probably have a better shot if he takes a break from road racing and runs XC and track for 2026. Nobody is expecting him to beat anybody significant with his limited turnover, but I think it might benefit him to run in some 3ks, 5ks, and a 10k this spring and just focus on getting the wheels back. I think he is actually capable of a 26:50ish and 13:05. That will translate nicely into a 2026 fall marathon like Chicago again and he’ll have some fresh turnover to make the pace easier for a shot in the 2:03s.
Again, I agree totally. I think more like 13:03/26:57 is his absolute limit, but it’s almost impossible for him not to run Boston. They pay him too much to skip it. Plus he has a chance to podium there as well.
Good point. I just would hate to see happen to him what happened to Hall. Hall got too trapped in the marathon and lost a lot of his turnover that helped him excel in the first place. You need to sharpen up for the marathon periodically or you get stale with all of those long lumbering miles. Shorter was so successful during his era because he always returned to the track to sharpen up and change training. Mantz needs some workouts and races at 63 sec pace to jolt his system. Heck maybe just a late start on the track after Boston would be beneficial as long he rests up for like a month.
Big congrats to Conner. Was watching while doing a long run through Central Park with a couple friends, awesome experience watching that. He’s the future.
Yeah but it is a minute closer than 5 minutes away. People set the bar so high. We should be ecstatic that Mantz finally broke a 23 year old AR, was only 2 minutes behind arguably the most talented phenom ever, and was 4th place in a fast race in Chicago. I feel for some of you, nothing is ever good enough. Mantz in one race put the U.S. back at least in the mix. But some people on this board are still complaining.
Not to mention nobody really believes the *clean* world record is 2:00. 2:02 is more like it.
Again, I agree totally. I think more like 13:03/26:57 is his absolute limit, but it’s almost impossible for him not to run Boston. They pay him too much to skip it. Plus he has a chance to podium there as well.
Good point. I just would hate to see happen to him what happened to Hall. Hall got too trapped in the marathon and lost a lot of his turnover that helped him excel in the first place. You need to sharpen up for the marathon periodically or you get stale with all of those long lumbering miles. Shorter was so successful during his era because he always returned to the track to sharpen up and change training. Mantz needs some workouts and races at 63 sec pace to jolt his system. Heck maybe just a late start on the track after Boston would be beneficial as long he rests up for like a month.
Clearly what they are doing with Eyestone, for the most part, is working very well, so far be it from any of us to opine… but, I think you’re on to something. Switch gears, focus on world xc, then focus on track, maybe try to get that sub-27:00 10,000. It will only increase the potential over the marathon distance, plus “save the legs.”
But, I will say that I personally believe the day off on Sundays helps these guys immensely and will help with longevity in the sport that they may not otherwise have had. I could see Mantz dropping a sub-2:04 at a Valencia or perfect Chicago marathon weather-wise, but I think he’s close to his limit here.