coffee cup wrote:
Also, consider this - say Kipchoge didn’t have a pace team. The result would be that he would just go out slower and lead a pack of runners. Might be a bit more entertaining but it would make the end result (a victory for him) much more of a lock. What do you suppose would be the consequence of this scenario? Kipchoge going out at a conservative/smart pace for the first half would virtually guarantee victory, due to banking energy, unlike going out at WR pace via his pacemakers and possibly blowing up. The field actually has a better chance of beating him if he has pacemakers. I mean can you even imagine some of the scorching 5k splits he’d inject into the later stages of the race if he took it conservative for the first half?? The field wouldn’t stand a chance. Yeah I mean they probably don’t have a chance either way, but beating Kipchoge in a tactical race on a course like Berlin? Nope
True. We’ve already seen how that plays out at the Olympics. Basically drop the hammer 10k out and everyone looks like they are in the fun run compared to him.