Why don't Ethiopians run well at the steeplechase?

I think it has a lot to do with height. The best Ethiopian distance runners are like 5'3" which is a disadvantage in the steeple but not at all in the 5k and 10k. I do not know exactly but it seems like most kenyans are 5'8" -6'. So Ethiopians are content breaking world records in the 5k and 10k instead of just being very good in the steeple.

Hell, often you even get some kenyans pushing 6'3". However, to the Ethiopians credit, Sileshi is quite tall.

Gebremarium who won world XC is the tallest Ethiopian Ive seen.

Bikila ( the first african marathon champion) was quite tall.

It has nothing to do with height.Mehdi baala is taller than most of of the kenyan steeplechasers,he even has more 1500M speed than Ezekiel kemboi or Brimin Kipruto,infact Baala on a good day can beat lagat in 1500M yet he rarely beats the best kenyan in the steeplechase.There must be another underlying reason fallas.

berhane adere is tall and adere may be able to get the womens steeple record, but she most likely makes a whole lot more with marathons, so she will probably never do the steeple.

jonesy. wrote:

look, the obvious answer is that the Ethiopians have never put their talented runners into the steeple. It has not been on the radar for them. Virtually all of them go into the 5000m, 10000m and marathon. Once they do, the Kenyans will have some competition.

This is the correct answer. It's already starting, as Yacob Jarso and Nahom Mesfin ran the NR and 3rd-best Ethiopian times in the SC last summer. They still may not be 'fast' times, but Jarso's NR was set in the final of the Olympics and was only 3 sec off the gold medalist. Another few years and it'll even out.

Gebremariam - 1.78cm/58 kg

Yes, he is tall for an Ethiopian. About styles. I have been to Assella, and seen smooth runners (like the Kenyans) and ones who are less so. The Ethiopians are more similar and physique and running style to the Arabs, and in fact, Gebremariam could pass for Arab......but his running style is somewhat distinctive - very erect posture.

One thing is: I would rather manage Kenyan runners than Ethiopians. The Ethiopians carry a lot of psychological baggage with them, and can be tough to deal with.

It took Nerurkar years to get to really know Ethiopians and he speaks good level Amharic.

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Adam R. wrote:

This is the correct answer. It's already starting, as Yacob Jarso and Nahom Mesfin ran the NR and 3rd-best Ethiopian times in the SC last summer. They still may not be 'fast' times, but Jarso's NR was set in the final of the Olympics and was only 3 sec off the gold medalist. Another few years and it'll even out.

Is that the Mesfin that posts here? I've always enjoyed his posts.

bikila wrote:

Bikila ( the first african marathon champion) was quite tall.

It has nothing to do with height.Mehdi baala is taller than most of of the kenyan steeplechasers,he even has more 1500M speed than Ezekiel kemboi or Brimin Kipruto,infact Baala on a good day can beat lagat in 1500M yet he rarely beats the best kenyan in the steeplechase.There must be another underlying reason fallas.

Mehdi Baala does not run the 3000 m SC, that is why he doesn't beat people at the distance. He doesn't train for it. He beats people at the 1500 because that is the distance he trains for.

as others have pointed out, ethiopians are short as a general rule.

the guy that i know is around 5-6, he trained with haile in the late 90s, both are roughly the same height. take a look at the 5k video of geb and mottram, that puts things into perspective.

here are tergat and geb, tergat's waist is at the bottom of geb's sternum.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/940000/images/_942135_roundup10_haile300.jpg

kipkeino was a little chubby for a steeplechaser yet he beat the best steepelechasers of the time .

Ethiopian women are doing better in steeplechase than their male counterparts. I think having role models plays an important part in giving up coming generation confidence to pursue a certain event.

I would like to get Renato's opinion on this issue.He has been coach to two steeplechase world record holders i.e Shaheen and Dorcas Inzikuru ( the later is a ugandan, surprisingly )

I believe this video will answer all questions regarding the battle of Ethiopians vs. Kenyans in the Steeple Chase.

http://www.truveo.com/Sexy-athletism/id/3982311342

kenyans have a psychological advantage.

fast times wrote:

kenyans have a psychological advantage.

i doubt being in the 6' range is necessary, but if your hip flexers are below the barrier, i think you are at a disadvantage in the steeple since it is a very energy/economy event. no matter how smooth you are over the hurdle, if you have to expend more energy to get up to it it's going to sting you more than the guy who's hips are level or above it.

i'm no expert, but that's my gut feeling on it.

at the same time, being too tall can be awkward. every tried hurdling 30 inch hurdles (assuming you are at least near 6')? it's awkward. it actually feels smoother and more natural at 36'

maybe there is a sweetspot around 5'8"-5'11"? marsh was fairly tall, and lincoln too but how tall? fam, crogan, robert gary and even dobert I think are all in the 5'8"-5'11" range and they have been our best steeplers over the past decade or so. and I can think of a lot of short guys not far behind them that are in the 5'7"-5'9" range.

Amazing steeplechase results.

http://www.iaaf.org/gp09/results/eventcode=4198/sex=M/discCode=3KSC/result.html#M3KSC

What are you talking about? I'd say it's pretty easy to understand.

iam surprised by the 7 sec gap btn koech and kipruto ?

Hey folks, i just want to mention that over 95% of Ethiopian runners are from Oromo ethnic group who make up half of the Ethiopian population. Here is an excerpt why we don't hear so much about the Oromo people:

"The Oromo were colonised during the last quarter of the nineteenth century by a black African nation - Abyssinia - with the help of the European colonial powers of the day. During the same period, of course, the Somalis, Kenyans, Sudanese and others were colonised by European powers. The fact that the Oromo were colonised by black African nation makes their case quite special.

During the process of colonisation, between 1870 and 1900, the Oromo population was reduced from ten to five millions. This period coincides with the occupation of Oromo land by the Abyssinian emperors Yohannes and Menilek. After colonisation, these emperors and their successors continued to treat Oromo with utmost cruelty. Many were killed by the colonial army and settlers, others died of famine and epidemics of various diseases or were sold off as slaves".

source:http://www.oromia.org/OromiaBriefs/Oromo&Oromia.htm#ThePeople