What did they do? Pre's record at Hayward... Every Amer Rec from 2K to 10K.. Never missed a workout in 4+ yrs at Oregon... Fighting the AAU... Taking on competitors like Hailu in Corvallis, or Wottle in the restoration meet... Taking the fight to Viren on Munich... All in a time without the money/support/EPO of today... I love watching Fisher, but Pre was simply a Star.
Who is the best runner? Fisher, obviously, if only because Pre is dead.
In all seriousness, this really can’t be answered. How Pre would have done in today’s environment is anyone’s guess. Training is better. Tracks are faster. Shoes are better. Also, the money is better today. Who knows if the money were then, adjusted to $ from Pre’s time, of course, if it would have been a motivating factor? There are too many “what ifs” to be able to answer this hypothetical. Pre was an outstanding runner and Fisher is an outstanding runner.
There’s no way any of that would have motivated Pre more than his genetic predisposition for alcoholism would have led to his death.
Pre was obsessed with winning. If he lived today he would have loved to be trained by Salazar. I doubt Pre would be concerned about carnitine drips as long as he was winning. In fact, Salazar probably would be one of the few people who could take Pre to his absolute best.
No. He wasn't obsessed with winning. He was obsessed with "showing his guts." That was his excuse for not having the closing speed to win important races.
You can't compare runners 50 YEARS APART. Put Fisher in context of 1972...no $ involved, have to work to make ends meet, no supplements, no super shoes, simplified training compared to today....doesn't compare at all.
Fishers parents would have financially supported his running in the 70’s.
Who is the best runner? Fisher, obviously, if only because Pre is dead.
In all seriousness, this really can’t be answered. How Pre would have done in today’s environment is anyone’s guess. Training is better. Tracks are faster. Shoes are better. Also, the money is better today. Who knows if the money were then, adjusted to $ from Pre’s time, of course, if it would have been a motivating factor? There are too many “what ifs” to be able to answer this hypothetical. Pre was an outstanding runner and Fisher is an outstanding runner.
Agree with this, its a relatively futile exercise. Fisher would still be much faster if you transported Pre to 2022 with modern shoes, tracks + pacing lights, but this doesn't factor in changes in training methodology / nutrition and much more.\
Prefontaine ran 13:22.8h at age 21, but by the time of his death ~35 months later he had improved all of ~.9 seconds to a 13:21.87 lifetime best. He lost in that PB race to Norway’s Knut Kvalheim.
Prefontaine was the 3rd fastest man ever at 5k for 5 days in 1972, but by the time of his death he had fallen to #11. Only one of the ten men ahead of him was African (Ben Jipcho). Fisher is currently #12 all-time, and all eleven men ahead of him are African.
Reversing the swap and transplanting Fisher to Pre’s era is an interesting idea, and who can say what that would look like. I think Fisher, in addition to being extremely talented of course, is responding exceptionally well to whatever he’s doing with the BTC.
When Prefontaine won the Olympic trials in 1972 in 1322.8, it was the fourth fastest 5000 in history. Get back to me when Grant Fisher runs the fourth fastest 5000 in history.
No knock on Pre and I am not saying who is better but in response to what u said about Pre having the 4th best time in history 50 years ago, one could argue there is much more competition now. But if Pre was magically here in 2022 it would be a race…
You can't compare them. Different eras. Differences in diet and training.
My old coach always said 'well times should get faster because people have evolved'
Probably more saturated fats back then in diets, especially in the 60s.
Someone in the 70s naturally wouldn't run as fast as someone in the 2020s because of evolution.
Diets were much better in the 60s than today. More raw fruits and vegetables, hardly any saturated fats. The current “must have it now” culture has led us all to bad food intake.
Look at obesity then vs today.
The average Joes diet sucks. But for an elite athlete with resources the improvements in sports nutrition are huge.
I think Fisher, in addition to being extremely talented of course, is responding exceptionally well to whatever he’s doing with the BTC.
This is it. You nailed it. You said so much and so little but you nailed it. “Whatever he is doing with the BTC.” That is the key.
How about, he trains, eats, sleeps like an animal just like all of the BTC guys. Lives at altitude with little distraction other than taking classes to absorb some of the free time.
talent, dedication, hard work, understanding his body and mind, wanting to be the best all the while enjoying his journey.
You can't compare them. Different eras. Differences in diet and training.
My old coach always said 'well times should get faster because people have evolved'
Probably more saturated fats back then in diets, especially in the 60s.
Someone in the 70s naturally wouldn't run as fast as someone in the 2020s because of evolution.
Evolution is an incredibly gradual process if you are referring to natural selection. You won’t see the results of that in any real perceptible way in 50 years.
The human body hasn´t evolved a single bit since paleoliticum 10000 years ago, and the Roman soldiers did things 2000 years ago that would be impossible for most people today, like marching up to 40 km every day with a 40 kg backpack wearing extremely primitive footwear - not to mention their diet.
Pre placed much higher than Grant at all the major meets in college and ran faster times. Grant has had a great professional career in which Pre was cut short.