I mean the marathon, but maybe the olympics in general. do organizers seriously not realize that the race/games will always be too hot for distance running, or do they just not care?
I mean the marathon, but maybe the olympics in general. do organizers seriously not realize that the race/games will always be too hot for distance running, or do they just not care?
Why? The point is to see who can run the fastest on that particular day. The purpose is not to set world records or run personal bests.
Nah
Wowzers wrote:
Why? The point is to see who can run the fastest on that particular day. The purpose is not to set world records or run personal bests.
its more fun than the time trial races in perfect conditions anyway. molly seidel is a perfect example.
NFL season is going by September. College football as well. Fewer potential eyeballs for NBC Olympic coverage.
Move it to the winter olympics. Hold the race partway down the mountain.
For what it's worth, Tokyo's climate was relatively extreme. The conditions at the next three Olympics (Paris, Los Angeles, Brisbane on the other side of the equator when it'll be cooler for them) will be much more temperate.
Suck it up, snowflake. It's a race. Just run the race in the conditions.
You can blame NBC for the timing of the games. Japanese organisers preferred to have it later in the year like in 1964.
oldschoollrc wrote:
NFL season is going by September. College football as well. Fewer potential eyeballs for NBC Olympic coverage.
Add in Major League baseball playoffs too. US TV money is a huge influence.
The Olympic charter has a date range and it had to be waived for Sydney so it can be done.
At the same time it is the SUMMER Olympics so heat can be expected.
It was 77F with 99% humidity (And cloudy) when I checked the weather in Tokyo during the race.
It could easily be that hot in Paris or LA on race day. The last three HM's I ran were 84F, 73F, and 82F, and that was in the Czech Republic which people generally think of as much colder than all the mentioned locations! (All afternoon races, obv.).
I get all the complaints if it were 90F and 99% humidity... but everyone has the same weather, and I wouldn't say the conditions were deadly. Difficult, sure. Not sure Kipchoge even broke a sweat.
R&R wrote:
It was 77F with 99% humidity (And cloudy) when I checked the weather in Tokyo during the race.
It could easily be that hot in Paris or LA on race day. The last three HM's I ran were 84F, 73F, and 82F, and that was in the Czech Republic which people generally think of as much colder than all the mentioned locations! (All afternoon races, obv.).
I get all the complaints if it were 90F and 99% humidity... but everyone has the same weather, and I wouldn't say the conditions were deadly. Difficult, sure. Not sure Kipchoge even broke a sweat.
There is less than a 1% chance it would be 99% humidity in LA. It may be 85 degree but it will be 40% humidity which is significantly better than 77 and 99%.
Track is a summer sport.
Quite a few track world records and an Olympic record in the men’s 1500. The heat only really impacts the extreme distances like the Marathon. But as stated no one is gonna run a world record in the Olympic marathon even if it’s in September. You need pacers for that.
It’s all about the ratings. The ratings would be even worse in September.
The timing is for sprint and power events, that prefer warm weather.
Depending on where you're at in the world, September can be just as hot if not warmer than the respective July.
The issue isn’t ideal conditions for world/oly records. The problem is that the entire race in conditions like this becomes about the weather and adjusting to it, when it should be about the race and your competitors
Why don’t we give them a rest halfway? Or make sure there are no hills. Maybe make it 20 miles instead. Soften them up.
sprooty wrote:
I mean the marathon, but maybe the olympics in general. do organizers seriously not realize that the race/games will always be too hot for distance running, or do they just not care?
If only the athletes could learn the location three or four years ahead of time to prepare somehow...
Luv2Run wrote:
oldschoollrc wrote:
NFL season is going by September. College football as well. Fewer potential eyeballs for NBC Olympic coverage.
Add in Major League baseball playoffs too. US TV money is a huge influence.
The Olympic charter has a date range and it had to be waived for Sydney so it can be done.
At the same time it is the SUMMER Olympics so heat can be expected.
Yeah tv money rules now...not so much in 1964 when games were in October, Mexico City in 1968 were in September...NBC wants them wrapped up prior to week 1 of nfl ...