Hocker vs Ingebrigtsen in Tokyo

supporterr wrote:

Jakob was 10 years old, 10 years ago. Obviously he did not run 80 miles a week as a 10 year old!!

I don't know this is not that obvious. I could easily believe he was doing 30-40 miles a week aged 10.

bvbm h wrote:

Honestly I hope neither come close. What would be awesome is if the entire field got tripped up at the end and some guy who barely made it into the final won.

You should google or youtube Aussie speed skater Steven Bradbury and his win in the 2002 winter Olympics final. He was dead last and everyone in front fell. I think it happened in his semi too. He's an icon in Australia where there's the phrase "doing a Bradbury".

DownUndah wrote:

[quote]bang bang bang wrote:

,,,

No he doesnt I'm sorry hes not beating Jake Wightman, Josh Kerr and Jakob even in a tactical race

I remember the Jakob is not in the same league as Wightman discussion a couple of years ago...

We now have to deal with Hocker is not in the same league as Wightman???

How many times do we have to go through this?

medal chance and gold medal chance . looks easily capable of a 3.30 3.31 .. kid doesnt tie up !!!

I can see we are of different generations - which is why I take a longer view than you.

I'm not dismissing women's running or even minor placings but I thought the discussion here was about winning - and in the men's md events in particular.

Over the last half century the middle and longer distances have been dominated by African athletes and Kenyans in particular. It may well be that the stream of doping busts in Kenyan running in recent years has opened up a window for America and other non- African md runners this year. A Kenyan winning is no longer a foregone conclusion. Unfortunately doping control appears to have gone out the window post-Covid in a number of other African countries. As for the sprints, they have become a joke, doping-wise. WADA might as well concede defeat. However, a cloud remains over US distance running following the Salazar saga and now Houlihan's doping conviction.

THOUGHTSLEADER wrote:

Armstronglivs wrote:

A guy whose 3.31 at Monaco is his absolute best - which he still hasn't done - might make the final. But that wouldn't cut it against guys who can run 3.28. I can't see them waiting for the last 100m to give him a crack.

Few points:

1) Having this 3:31 or faster time in your resume is not necessary for medaling (Manzano 2012, Centro 2011, Cronje 2013, Filip 2017), but rather you have to be **capable** of it. I've seen enough from Hocker (and he has a 3:33 equiv.), but many others haven't obviously.

2) Guys who have run 3:28 is misleading. There is one guy.

All valid points but it isn't just about comparative times and numbers. I know it's a subjective assessment but to me, apart from one race with an off-the-wall finish, I'm not convinced by Hocking; he just doesnt look that good. He would need to win a race in 3.30 or thereabouts for me to be persuaded he isn't a fullback who has wandered on to a running track.

Migelj, I checked out the links you pasted. I can agree that the longer text about Jakob on that obscure website was a decent read. Can you agree that it is not believable that Jakob ran 80 miles a week as a teenager?

Even if the quotes attributed to Jakob likely are correct, it does still not make them at all believable.

Am I really the only one in the thread that are completely convinced that the statements Jakob seems to have made in that podcast, are 100% false?

It happened in the quarters, semis AND final. Completely insane. There was a video of all the rounds at Youtube back in the days but can't find it now.

Actually there was. Finished 3rd in the quarters but a guy was DQ'd.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vN7ih576VYM

Why do you care what I or anyone else find believable, supporterr? I honestly could not care less what you think. Regarding Jakob and his mileage, I tend to believe what people say unless I have good reasons not to. I understand Jakob's comments as there were some week(s) he ran 80 miles as a ten year old. I cannot understand why I should not believe he did that while at a training camp with his older professional runner brothers. To me it is completely plausible.

If I had understood Jakob's comments to mean that he ran on average 80 miles a week as a ten year old, it would have been a lot harder to believe. No matter what I don't get why this is so interesting? The thread is about Cole Hocker's and Jakob's chances in Tokyo. I just pointed out that the fact that Jakob having been a contender for a much larger period of time than Hocker can make it easier for him to deal with the pressure and cope with the commotions of an Olympic.

I think they are both supreme athletes, I think they both have decent chances, but see many good reasons why I like Jakob's chances a fair bit more than Hocker. I also think that the pressure currently being piled on Hocker is not beneficial to his performance.

The discussion of who has decent chances in Tokyo and how the race is likely to pan out is surely a lot more interesting than Jakob's training volume a decade ago?

skurey wrote:

If Jakob is in the same heat as Hocker he will withdraw from fear.

You heard it here first.

This is way funnier after the result.

skurey wrote:

Hocker in a laugher

Bzzzzzzzt.

AP5000 with elephant memory.