I know I once saw the whole race. Can't find it now but this twitter link has fragments.
I could only find some fragments of Rick Wohlhuter's WR of 2:13.9, still the fastest by a runner from the American continent, lying third some 5-6m behind 300m out over 1000m in Oslo in late July 1974 pic.twitter.com/V9o4hHH1Y1
Wohlhuter was not, so, no. What about thinking before writing?
However he is 11th in the all time list, just behind Wightman (1:43/3:29), ahead of Baala (1:43/3:28), Kiprop (1:43/3:26), Joachim Cruz (1:41/3:34) etc
Maybe the 1000m was run a lot more often back then. Nowadays with a one shot race, you do need a 1:42/43 3:28/29 guy to run 2:13.
So what about thinking for real before acting like the smartest?
2:13.9h, of course. Was the WR at the time, now #11 fastest man in history. Jake Wightman ran 2:13.88 last year to go with 1:43.65/3:29.23 SBs.
World Athletics tables “only” have 2:13.9 as equal to 1:43.89 and 3:32.63. I think that it’s in fact tougher than a 3:32.63 these days, since so many are running 3:29-3:32. Keep in mind that someone doesn’t need to be capable of both of those times, or hypothetically even either of them if 1k is their perfect distance, to run 2:13.9.
There have been Americans who were likely capable of breaking the record at one time or another (2007 Webb, 2012-13 Symmonds, 2019 Brazier), but the 1000 is so seldom run that it’s tricky to race one that’s truly representative of one’s ability. Currently Nuguse would be the closest but he’d have a really hard time going under 2:14 I think.
Simeon Birnbaum, July 2028 “you heard it here first.”
Wohlhuter was not, so, no. What about thinking before writing?
However he is 11th in the all time list, just behind Wightman (1:43/3:29), ahead of Baala (1:43/3:28), Kiprop (1:43/3:26), Joachim Cruz (1:41/3:34) etc
Maybe the 1000m was run a lot more often back then. Nowadays with a one shot race, you do need a 1:42/43 3:28/29 guy to run 2:13.
So what about thinking for real before acting like the smartest?
I was set out to disagree with the OP, but this is more true than folks are acknowledging. Just look at the tables.
It requires either a mid-distance runner in 3:29.0 shape or a 800 runner in 1:43 shape (one who could at least give a sub 3:35 1500m run a go) to break it. But a few things must be noted. The mark is actually 2:13.9h because it is hand timed, it needs the appropriate adjustment - this 2:13.9h is how the mark is officially listed by world athletics.
The American record of 2:13.9h (11th all time), is only 2 sec off the 2:11.96 world record, yet the Nguses 1500m record is >3 seconds off the world record (17th all time).
Nguses 1500m mark is actually quite equivalent. Someone like Nguse would have a shot at this record, but it would not be a foregone conclusion. A Nguse would have to have a really good race (like his recent 1500m) to do it. Sebastian Coe is a good person to look at. He is a speed type with a super fast 1:41.73 (3rd all time 800), 2:12.18 (2nd all time 1k), and 3:29.77 (40th all time, 1500). Outside Nguse. It really would require a (former) Brazier type 800m runner to take down this American record. In a perfect race Brazier, in his prime, might even been able to run a 2:12.9 or so and take it down by a full second, but he'd need to have a PR equivalent race to do that.
Here is an anology. When Faith Kipyegon announced she would run the mile, that record was basically a foregone conclusion. The mile had such a weak record compared to the 1500m. People thought, oh, she'll probably run a 4:10 or 4:11 and take the record down easily, but the tables all said she was in 4:07 shape. In fact Hassan or Tsegay would have also been able to take down the old 4:12 record in a good race, as a 4:12 is only worth a 3:53 or so 1500m. My point is, people acknowledged that for a rarely run race, the chance any one person has a great run that day isn't super high. Hence why folks didn't expect Kipyegon to take it down by the full amount she was capable of, so when she did run the 4:07, it was a bit of a surprise (eventhough its exactly what you'd expect from a 3:49 runner).
This record is not like the women's mile world record. It is not soft. It really is close to equivalent to the american 1500m and 800m records. So it would take an extremely strong run to break it. And for a rarely run race, that means it is going to be hard to break.
It’s worth taking a closer look at last year’s Monaco race where they ran these times. Almost nobody in the field wanted to run boldly, which I think often happens in 1k races. I mean, regardless of whether you think of it as a longer 800m or a more intense 1500m, it’s pretty daunting to someone without much experience racing the distance (which is everyone).
There were 3 different pacing strategies employed in the Monaco 1k:
-Marco Arop split 51.4/1:45.4 for 400/800 - through 700 he was on 2:10.7 pace! Of course the bear jumped him in the last 200 which he ran in ~29.0, but he still set a NR of 2:14.35 and finished more than 10m clear of 3rd place. A few tenths slower in the first 600 and he has a great chance of breaking 2:14.
-Jake Wightman ran a far more measured race to ensure he didn’t collapse in the last 200: 52.5 through 400 and 1:47.2 (54.7) through 800 before kicking with a ~26.6 last 200. A smart race, but the fact that his final three 200 splits went 27.1 - 27.6 - 26.6 indicates that he left some time on the table. In a perfect 1k time trial you’d expect someone to be barely hanging on in the last 200.
-Everyone else ran a gutless race for 3rd place. Nobody except Wightman was within 3.5 seconds (!) of Arop at 800m. Clayton Murphy placed 3rd in 2:15.73 and according to the race analysis his final 100m was 12.5/12.6 seconds, which moved him up from 8th to 3rd. His first 100m was a 14.1 (compared with 12.6/12.8 for Arop and Wightman) and that didn’t even come close to winning him the race to the back of the field. His 200m splits from start to finish were 27.3 - 27.1 - 27.6 - 27.6 - 26.1 with that huge last 100. From 400 to 800 he ran Ingebrigtsen’s 1500 pace. That’s not an honest gauge of his 1k potential. I’d like to know what happens when he and Hoppel go through 600 in 1:19.0, not 1:22.0.
It’s worth taking a closer look at last year’s Monaco race where they ran these times. Almost nobody in the field wanted to run boldly, which I think often happens in 1k races. I mean, regardless of whether you think of it as a longer 800m or a more intense 1500m, it’s pretty daunting to someone without much experience racing the distance (which is everyone).
There were 3 different pacing strategies employed in the Monaco 1k:
-Marco Arop split 51.4/1:45.4 for 400/800 - through 700 he was on 2:10.7 pace! Of course the bear jumped him in the last 200 which he ran in ~29.0, but he still set a NR of 2:14.35 and finished more than 10m clear of 3rd place. A few tenths slower in the first 600 and he has a great chance of breaking 2:14.
-Jake Wightman ran a far more measured race to ensure he didn’t collapse in the last 200: 52.5 through 400 and 1:47.2 (54.7) through 800 before kicking with a ~26.6 last 200. A smart race, but the fact that his final three 200 splits went 27.1 - 27.6 - 26.6 indicates that he left some time on the table. In a perfect 1k time trial you’d expect someone to be barely hanging on in the last 200.
-Everyone else ran a gutless race for 3rd place. Nobody except Wightman was within 3.5 seconds (!) of Arop at 800m. Clayton Murphy placed 3rd in 2:15.73 and according to the race analysis his final 100m was 12.5/12.6 seconds, which moved him up from 8th to 3rd. His first 100m was a 14.1 (compared with 12.6/12.8 for Arop and Wightman) and that didn’t even come close to winning him the race to the back of the field. His 200m splits from start to finish were 27.3 - 27.1 - 27.6 - 27.6 - 26.1 with that huge last 100. From 400 to 800 he ran Ingebrigtsen’s 1500 pace. That’s not an honest gauge of his 1k potential. I’d like to know what happens when he and Hoppel go through 600 in 1:19.0, not 1:22.0.
Sure they can probably run faster than that. But 2 second is a lot. It's like 3sec in the 1500.
And keep in mind that the next challenger will be as inexperienced in the 1000m as thos guys. So even if he has 2:13 in his legs, finding the good race and actually performing at 100% potential is almost impossible. That's why you likely need a guy that has a 2:12 potential to break 2:14. So a 1:43/3:35 guy won't make it. Unless he has the race of his life in a race won in 2:11-2:12.
2:13.9 is actually 2:14.05 converted to FAT. I don't see any of our guys getting this soon. Nuguse has a shot, of course. Would have to prepare for the shorter event.
Sure they can probably run faster than that. But 2 second is a lot. It's like 3sec in the 1500.
And keep in mind that the next challenger will be as inexperienced in the 1000m as thos guys. So even if he has 2:13 in his legs, finding the good race and actually performing at 100% potential is almost impossible. That's why you likely need a guy that has a 2:12 potential to break 2:14. So a 1:43/3:35 guy won't make it. Unless he has the race of his life in a race won in 2:11-2:12.
I agree that hitting the race at 100% potential is extremely difficult given how infrequently it’s raced, for sure. That’s a big reason why Wohlhuter’s time still makes him #11 in history. I’m not sure I believe 2:13.9 is quite as difficult as you do, but it’ll take a great runner with great circumstances to lower the mark.
You have no idea how much I’d like to see a great 1k with a stacked field of fully fit guys aggressively chasing fast times, on one of those days like this year’s Oslo 1500 where everyone is setting PBs/NRs - I believe it’s possible for the World all-time list to be significantly rewritten if things fell into place. Marco Arop leads through 800 in 1:45.8 with Wanyonyi/Kipsang/Cheruiyot/Habz/Gourley/Giles/Burgin/Laros/Nuguse/Hoppel/Bol in pursuit and not giving up too much ground and you could wind up with a slew of 2:13s and 2:14s.
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