Official 2013 Great North Run - Bekele, Geb and Mo, Meseret and Tirunesh - Race Thread

That race was pretty exciting but GOAT? There have been many..many road races that were better. Lost count of,say, marathons decided by 1-3sec.

I predict Mo will underwhelm in the marathon.

Hazycosmicjive wrote:

That race was pretty exciting but GOAT? There have been many..many road races that were better. Lost count of,say, marathons decided by 1-3sec.

Surely if you watch the sport you can see what's different between this field and most fields.

greatest marathon of all time?

London

Geb VS Tergat VS Khalid (who was supposed to be "past his prime")

watching Khalid pull away from those two was sensational....quite a comeback with a new WR

NC Coach wrote:

If he wins every time with that tactic, why change. I guess you think Bolt should try a new tactic in winning also?

Bolt does do different tactics. But even if he didn't, the one tactic he would use would be a display of 100m ability. Running a sit and kick 13:30 5k does not require any 5k ability. If Farah's one tactic was to pushnthenpace from the beginning and run sub 12:55 then that'd be better to me. At least it'd be displaying 5k ability.

800 Coach wrote:

mxjxj wrote:

10k shape and half marathon shape don't require very different if any difference in training at all. Farah just isn't that fit. Accept it.

This statement shows you to be very ignorant of the sport.

You´re the one who is ignorant. A runner in peak 10k shape should easily be able to run a fast HM.

well.. wrote:

You´re the one who is ignorant. A runner in peak 10k shape should easily be able to run a fast HM.

He DID run a fast HM. It's not fair to compare sub-optimal weather, course, and pacing to the perfect "bubbles" they often run in races like Den Haag.

Hardloper wrote:

well.. wrote:

You´re the one who is ignorant. A runner in peak 10k shape should easily be able to run a fast HM.

He DID run a fast HM. It's not fair to compare sub-optimal weather, course, and pacing to the perfect "bubbles" they often run in races like Den Haag.

No, he did not. 60+ is not fast for a sub 27 minute runner.

Surprised that nobody has pointed out the obvious here. Or maybe I just missed it.

The race was fixed. Get a clue.

Did you not hear Farah's comments before the race about wanting to put on a good show, make it exciting?

Did the silly falling back maneuver of KB early on make any sense other than as good theatre?

What about Farah allowing himself to get dropped before storming back?

How about the (relatively) pedestrian times?

Did you not notice that neither Bekele nor Farah was even the slightest bit winded when they crossed the finish line? Think I am kidding? Go back, look at the last mile one more time. Take special notice of these two as they cross the line.

Sorry to burst your bubbles but the race was very clearly fixed.

As much as I like Mo, his races have been far from entertaining this year. Besides his 3:28 he, seemed to be the one always letting the pace drop off, then kicking in with a 53 to win in a 13:something time. Not that closing in a 53-54 off of a sub 13:30 isn't impressive, it has just become so expected that it is no longer exciting. Kenny, on the other hand, runs with swagger. He would kill people no matter the pace, and it was good to see him take down Farah today at least for a change of pace. Hopefully, he will return to the track a few more times, and he and Mo can duke it out.

Beavus wrote:

As much as I like Mo, his races have been far from entertaining this year. Besides his 3:28 he, seemed to be the one always letting the pace drop off, then kicking in with a 53 to win in a 13:something time. Not that closing in a 53-54 off of a sub 13:30 isn't impressive, it has just become so expected that it is no longer exciting. Kenny, on the other hand, runs with swagger. He would kill people no matter the pace, and it was good to see him take down Farah today at least for a change of pace. Hopefully, he will return to the track a few more times, and he and Mo can duke it out.

I can't believe all you idiots on here who think time-trialing is racing. The idea of a race is to win. If you are the fastest at the end of the race you win. If you want to beat a guy who keeps out-kicking you then try to burn him out early with a fast pace or maybe with surges. The kicker is going to have to get strong to handle that. Farah has handled all the best runners in the world. Don't blame him for winning. Blame the others for not being able to beat him.

And by the way, you must be very strong (endurable) to unleash these 52 and 53 second last laps. You cannot do that without great endurance. And usually, the reason he is beating them is not just because he is faster ( they can all run a 53), but because you are strong enough to run it at the end of the race. Running a 27:10 with a 52 second last 400m may show more strength than a 26:40 with a 60 sec last lap.

2 highlights of this race

bekele not afraid of mo like all these other chicken$%$$s..

geb after all these years running toe to toe with the younger guys...

amazing stuff!

hmm...above poster got me thinking

was jos hermens and brendan foster in cahoots on this one?

all 3 goats running together for 12 miles? say what!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5kPY3NRz4s

Some Things Should Be Obvious wrote:

Surprised that nobody has pointed out the obvious here. Or maybe I just missed it.

The race was fixed. Get a clue.

Sorry to burst your bubbles but the race was very clearly fixed.

Right, the British race management fixed one of their country's flagship events so that their own double Olympic and World Championships gold medalist would throw the race in favor of a foreign athlete, live on their nation's main TV network. That makes a lot of sense.

This is also why HG "lost" 30 sec in the last mile. Come on,

he could easily have kept up with KB (not the finish of Mo Farah though!!)!!

ukathleticscoach wrote:Mo coule have run close to the WR over 5km this year but he didn't need to. I don't know if he could beat it but he's not far off I would say 12:45

If someone put up big money he would go for it, nobody has

i'm surprised you have so little faith in your boy

i saw eliud/shinester run 12'46/12'47 on tv & believe you me, mo's helluva lot better than those 2

try nearer 12'40

Montesquieu wrote:

I know of no one who thinks Farah is greater than Bekele and Geb in their prime. However, it is foolish to think he is not in the conversation for next on the list.

Komen, Tergat Tadese, Wanjiru, Geb and Bekele obviously. And a whole host of Kenyan marathoners. Not only is Farah not next on the list, he isn't even on the list

KB was the last runner capable of 12:40.

We must wait a decade for someone of his calibre!!

Pardon the tangent:

Geb, Bekele and Mo won 9 of the last 11 WC 10,000m gold medals:

http://www.letsrun.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/haile-leads-downhill.png

No gold in 2001 (though Geb got bronze) or 2011 (Mo got silver). The last 10,000 podium without any of these men was in 1991.

Every once in a while a race lives up to its hype. I'll look forward to the next one.

We also have to go back to 1992 to find an Olympic 10,000 champion who is not in that photo.

So make that 14 out of the last 16 Oly/WC 10000m golds running together with about 1 mile to go.