Webb in 2 mile at Pre

very.

Crap that sucks. He's switching from a race where he could win and claim a very prestigious AR, to an event that he has a much worse chance of winning and already owns the record in. Even if he somehow beats Bekele, people will blame it on the fact that he's still recovering from Mombassa. I can't see how Alan benefits from this switch, anybody have a positive outlook?

so much for concentrating on the mile......

One 2 mile isn't going to kill him - it's not like it's a 5k, much less 10k. He's run two solid times and he's won one strategic race. May as well switch it up once before Nationals, Europe, and Worlds where he'll run a fair amount of 1500's. It's stupid, from a mental standpoint, to run the same race constantly.

nokia wrote:

so much for concentrating on the mile......

Yes, after hearing about Webb's decision to run the Pre 2 miler, an event that is loaded with nothing but mediocre runners like Bekele, Tegenkamp and Mottram, it is apparent that he has abondoned his plan of concentrating on the mile. Furthermore, after his disappointing race from last week, he has lost all confidence in his ability to race a fast mile.

Maybe he should just retire altogether.

Kele wrote:

He's switching from a race where he could win and claim a very prestigious AR, to an event that he has a much worse chance of winning and already owns the record in.

Geez, could it be that he actually has some balls to race against the best in the world? Nah, couldn't be.

JordanJones wrote:

Kele wrote:

He's switching from a race where he could win and claim a very prestigious AR, to an event that he has a much worse chance of winning and already owns the record in.

Geez, could it be that he actually has some balls to race against the best in the world? Nah, couldn't be.

Good for him. He will have plenty of opportunity to go for the AR this summer in Europe. He's fit, confident, and it will be fun to see him mix it up with some of the distance big boys. What are the chances he beats Mottram two straight weeks? I really hope they televise the whole thing. Good luck to him.

Kele wrote:

Even if he somehow beats Bekele, people will blame it on the fact that he's still recovering from Mombassa.

I don't think Bekele is going to be able to play that card any longer. If Webb beats Bekele (which seems unlikely, but not insanely so in light of recent events), it will be HUGE. I wonder how Bekele feels about this. I would think that he had veto power over any new entries in the field. Maybe he figures that it will give him more exposure to a U.S. audience.

Buster probably challenged Webb after Reebok.

nokia wrote:

so much for concentrating on the mile......

What event do you concentrate on? Is it the only event you ever run? Didn't think so.

Didnt Bekele run a 3:52 indoors... enroute to his indoor WR in the 2k?

Avocados Number wrote:

I would think that he had veto power over any new entries in the field.

I never heard of this in distance running...do star runners have veto power where they can block certain runners from entering the race?

Also, it is questionable if Bekele even knows who Webb is.

Depends who gets to set the splits for the pacers to follow- one will have to be capable of 3:56 to assure a 4 flat split at mile one. The second pacer has to be able to run 6 -60 second quarters or pretty close so he's got to be even faster. If they go for the whole bag of marbles they have to be at a half to go pretty much 6:flat 6:02 at worst. If they plan to kick it in off a 4:06-8 pace the "New" kicker Webb might just knock Big Bekele off. If they pound 60.0,60.0,60.5,60.5,60.5,60.0 gotta go with Bekele.

The USATF release, which went out about three years ago, still has Webb in the mile.

the diceman wrote:

What are the chances he beats Mottram two straight weeks? I really hope they televise the whole thing. Good luck to him.

I put the chances at 50-50, and the chance that Mark from Flocasts will stick a camera in Mottram's face and ask dumb questions at 100%.

Avocados Number wrote:

If Webb beats Bekele (which seems unlikely, but not insanely so in light of recent events), it will be HUGE. I wonder how Bekele feels about this. I would think that he had veto power over any new entries in the field.

I think Webb is great--and he is without question the best mile/1500 runner in the United States--but I think many of you overestimate how the rest of the world views the guy. I doubt that Bekele cares very much that Webb has entered the race. (If anything, he is probably more concerned with Mottram.) There are literally dozens of (mostly East African) runners in the world who would expect to beat Webb in a 3000/2-mile race on any given day. This is not like El Guerrouj in his prime, who could reel of a 7:23 or 7:25 3000. This is Alan Webb who, at least for now, is viewed by those outside of the United States as second-tier runner who can occasionally be competitive in an international race.

Webb's rep may change. And maybe we're seeing the start of that change this year. At this point, however, he is nothing special on the world stage, and I wouldn't be surprised if Bekele barely even knows who Webb is.

Spot on, but I do think Bekele could be in for a surprise, and I doubt he's thrilled that someone who just dusted Lagat in a mile is entering the race (considering Lagat dusted Bekele less than a year ago in a tactical 5k).

Webber Grill wrote:

Also, it is questionable if Bekele even knows who Webb is.

Although Bekele, like Tiger Woods, may not acknowledge his competitors very often in public, I really doubt that he is oblivious to the rest of the running world. Bekele is going to be very aware of a guy who recently outkicked Lagat and Mottram in a fairly fast mile.

Trollie McSockpuppet wrote:

I think many of you overestimate how the rest of the world views the guy. . . . At this point, however, he is nothing special on the world stage, and I wouldn't be surprised if Bekele barely even knows who Webb is.

I don't think that I overestimate how the rest of the world views him. He's obviously not a superstar on the world stage, and he's very erratic in high-level competition, but I think you overestimate Bekele's ignorance.