Who is a better distance runner Eliud Kipchoge or Kenenisa Bekele?

Simple answer: "distance running" isn't a thing.

you can't compare 5000m on a track to 26 miles on a road. you can't compare 10,000m on a road to 12k on grass and dirt. They're different events just like spints and hurdles are.

It's a category, sure, but it's no different than comparing Rudisha to sprinters. The sprinters get 60m indoors and 100m outdoors and 200s and all kinds of events to rack up individual honors; but Rudisha dominated at his event.

Kipchoge is the greatest marathoner ever, and marathons are historically the hardest event to dominate.

"Bekele could never reach his physical potential because of his physical limitations."

????????

BS post. Eliud would not lose to Kenenisa in the marathon. No way.

Bekele is the better. I would also put Haile and El G ahead of Kipchoge.

All that said, it's a tight group and there is very little between the 4 of them.

The top 4 of modern times IMO.

Where did I see he would?? EK is a better marathon runner, hands down. The question at hand is better overall distance runner.

A lot of down arrows for my 5000m & 10000m comments. The truth hurts. Even though I am anti-5000m & 10000m as international events, I feel I need to clarify: I have nothing against college 5000m & 10000m athletes. If 5000m & 10000m are not a joke internationally, think about this: If 5000m & 10000m were dropped and 3000m were added, how many gold medals would your favorite 5000m & 10000m athletes possess? Only opportunities: 1500m, 3000m, 3000mSC & Marathon.

I would probably give it to Bekele for being more well-rounded than Kipchoge but I agree his resume is a little bit padded since you can run many 5000m/10000m/XC events in a season for multiple medals while you can only run one or two marathons a year, of course Bekele is going to have more individual honours than a man who has solely focused on the marathon for a decade.

Bekele was undoubtedly the king from 2002 to 2009 and was still very strong after that, but if he could only run two races a year in that time period would he have as many gold medals as Kipchoge racked up in the marathon from 2013 to 2022? I'm not so sure. With that said the track is a much harder event to dominate since you will always be going up against the strongest runners in the world in any major final whereas the best marathoners often avoid eachother or enter different races.

Overall I'd say Kipchoge in the marathon and Kenny on the track were equally dominant. Kipchoge's performances on the track is about the same as Bekele in the marathon but Bekele takes it with his utterly dominant XC record.

There is a clear distinction between the time trials that he ran and actual races.

World Athletics will never ever ratify the time trials and no one is bothered by that. Nike knew both times that there was zero chance that those time trials in Italy and Austria are nothing more than time trials. He would never claim either TT as a personal best.

In an actual race? 2:01:09.

We can go as far as to say Dennis Kimetto or Haile Gebrselassie are just as fast as Kipchoge considering super shoes.

Heck 2:01:41 by Bekele vs 2:01:39 by Kipchoge in my books the "41" was better due to less than ideal weather conditions.

I am more marvelled at Kipchoge's ability to win almost every single time over his time trials and his Berlin performances.

Go a step further. One of the most popular marathon races to watch was won in 2:08:59 by Rod Dixon over Geoff Smith in New York, rolling course, mano-a-mano race, a timely pick off with Dixon suffering cramps.

But, now I am getting off topic.

If we take Kipchoge's career and Bekele's career, Bekele was to cross-country and the 5000/10,000m as to what Kipchoge is to the marathon....

Just a couple things:

Olympics: Bekele 3G/1S/0B | Kipchoge 2G/1S/1B

XC : Bekele with 11 golds

Roads: Bekele 2G/1S/2B in 13 marathons | Kipchoge 15G/1S/0B in 17 marathons

I'm willing to concede that Kipchoge benefits from recency bias, but I think people have forgotten how unpredictable the marathon was before Kipchoge, and a big part of why I consider him the GOAT is how he's redefined what's possible in the marathon. Geb redefined what's possible on the track and roads far more than Bekele did.

I also think people downplay how good Kipchoge was on the track. Obviously, Bekele was way better, but I think Kipchoge on the track was better than Bekele on the roads. He ran what was the #4 5k time ever, a silver and bronze Oly medal, and a gold and a silver at WCs. He ran between 1st and 4th at every global championship from '03-'08. Bekele is basically the Alan Webb of the marathon. He's a monster when in shape, but is so inconsistently in shape. He can throw down fast times but he's never healthy/fit enough when it matters.

I mean, I think Bekele AND Gebresalassie are better runners than Kipchoge.

Both certainly better on the track.

let’s remember Kipchoge isn’t that far ahead of Kenny in the marathon time-wise in more attempts.

Geb in super shoes in a half or full marathon…. He ran 58:55 and 2:03:59 (which was mind-blowing at the time, 2008). I think he’d certainly be near 2:02 with the alpha-moonboot shoes.

these new shoes are ridiculous.

Did you just give kipchoge golds for the breaking 2 and ineos challenge lol

In other words, the Mt. Rushmore of distance running

Relevant to note that in the new shoe era, Kipchoge is now 9th all time and Bekele only dropped one place to 2nd all time for 5000.

I can see your point about Kipchoge being better on track than Bekele on roads when it comes to medals, but for me at least, being the 2nd fastest marathoner ever certainly sounds better than 9th fastest ever over 5000m.

i think bekele is more talented, but kipchoge had the superior endgame. even if kipchoge could see his own future 20 years ago, not much about his running would have changed. perhaps he would have moved up to the marathon sooner and made a little more money. if bekele could see his own future 20 years ago, he'd probably avoid injuries and stop hammering so many miles on the track with middle distance spikes.

kipchoge ultimately gets the win because he is more known to the casuals and even gets advertised by nike. kipchoge made more money and that is why he is the better distance runner.

The OP asked who is the better runner, not who is wealthier or more famous. This is not a popularity contest.

Two questions:

1. Can you explain how winning the Berlin, Tokyo, and Chicago marathons is equivalent to a world track championship?

2. Have you ever heard of cross country?

Dude, how can you completely avoid talking about outdoor World Championships? That alone dismisses all your argument.

Kipchoge's consistency is what edges him imo. Bekele is great, but when has Kipchoge not shown up? Has he ever hinted at DNFs or DNSs?

While Bekele has the track credentials to surpass Kipchoge, let's not pretend Bekele was never threatened by Kipchoge. Let's not forget that Kipchoge left for the roads early; who's to say he didn't leave behind years of handing Bekele his lunch?

I would be surprised if Kipchoge couldn't run sub 13 and sub 26:40 today.

Ultimately, this is the LeBron/Jordan debate. One of those two are number one all time- that much is undisputed.

Bekele is the greatest distance runner to have walked the earth hands down. And Geb is a close second. No one else even comes close except Komen.