7 years in Africa paid off

Commonwealth games is a joke. Not only are many of the TOP nations in track excluded, but many top athletes in the participating countries don't even show. Where is Mo? You better believe he wouldn't have ran a marathon this year if it was WCh/Oly. Why would Mo give a shit about your silly CGs? He is a top athlete, and competes at top competitions...not your silly, watered down event. The Robertsons will need rockets strapped to their a$$es to get a sniff of the medals next year at the WCh. There are going to be 3 Kenyans, 3 Ethiopians, Mo, Rupp, Lagat, etc. ready to bend your little New Zealand boys over at the finish line (many of them after already competing in 10k). Then they'll fly back to the safari and train like cavemen instead of training with intelligence like the developed world.

My that's so flowery. English major?

E. Bonix wrote:

My that's so flowery. English major?

w

Well said.

Zane ran VERY well against some of the best the world has to offer and all you guys can say is that this event doesn't matter and competition is too diluted for it to count; he has no chance at worlds.

So what if he has no chance at worlds? First off, a 13:16 in a race that was not a time trial is more than good enough for a world final. Secondly, it doesn't matter whether or not he has a chance at a medal, he is still one of the fastest guys out there, and very much deserves a sponsor.

An aside: Jake's performance should be expected. I thought he was more of a 1500 guy?

I'm not a big fan of the Robertsons, but I have to give him credit for his race. They took the hard road, went to Kenya and worked hard. He ran tough and medaled.

"Then they'll fly back to the safari and train like cavemen instead of training with intelligence like the developed world"The "developed world" still can't beat the Kenyans though.

Are you trying to say Mo Farah lives in an undeveloped country? Because he seems to love shitting on Kenyans.

[quote]ALL MARKETERS ARE SCUM wrote:

"Then they'll fly back to the safari and train like cavemen instead of training with intelligence like the developed world"

The "developed world" still can't beat the Kenyans though.

Used to be Rono wrote:

magnolia avenue wrote:

He'd be struggling to make top 10 at USATFs.

Robertson / CG = 13:16

(1) Lagat / USATF = 13:31

(2) Bumbalough / USATF = 13:32

(3) Mead / USATF = 13:32

You don't know much about racing, do you?

Great race by Zane.

On the other hand, are they still asking people to give them money and then wasting it on "energy" drinks?

"Are you trying to say Mo Farah lives in an undeveloped country? Because he seems to love shitting on Kenyans."

Yes he does. he spends so much time in Iten. You are a moron.

Xavi wrote:

mako wrote:

Just count the medals that the countries competing at CG got in WCh and the number of medals that European countries got. Easy win for Europe.

HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! On the men's side, I counted 30 medals for the Commonwealth and 14 for Europe. Do I need to keep counting the women's side too or do you feel stupid enough already?

55 for Europe vs 43 for CW. Maybe as an American who are notorious for their knowledge of geography you couldn't identify some countries as European.

The other reason why T&F at CG is a minor event is that the only people who really care about T&F are Europeans. Nobody here in continental Europe knows that there are some Commonwealth games. If you win at CG almost nobody in the world will know. Incomparably more people will know if you win at the Euro-championship.

mako wrote:

Native Son wrote:

The Commonwealth games are not a " minor event".

The only people who are not here who matter are the Americans and the Ethiopians.

No. Considering that countries that win the most medals at major championships are Russia, USA and Germany and none of these participate at CG I would say it is a minor event.

European championship is evidently far more prestigious. Just count the medals that the countries competing at CG got in WCh and the number of medals that European countries got. Easy win for Europe.

We are not talking about the shot put this is the 5,000m, Russia and Germany are doing nothing there and USA little more

He spends much less time in Iten than in Oregon and GB. Let's think about where he was living/training during his buildup to his double Olympic gold. Here's a hint: it wasn't in Kenya.

Dumb fck wrote:

"Are you trying to say Mo Farah lives in an undeveloped country? Because he seems to love shitting on Kenyans."

Yes he does. he spends so much time in Iten. You are a moron.

kritticks wrote:

Get real. If you think that 7 years in a third world country and all you have to show for it is 3rd in a minor competition then I hope you aren'r an investment councilor.

^

7 years in the doping eldorado and still not world class?

The other guy! wrote:

7 years in the doping eldorado and still not world class?

I thought they were in Kenya. Are they in the US now?

ukathleticscoach wrote:

We are not talking about the shot put this is the 5,000m, Russia and Germany are doing nothing there and USA little more

That's true. However, the prestige of a competion doesn't always depend just on how strong the field is. The field at the 1500m at the Kenyan nationals is often stronger than at the 1500m at the Olympics. The same for the 100m at the Jamaican nationals. But I still think that Olympic 100m and 1500m are more important than those national ones.

I disagree. Last year at the WCh 1500, silver and bronze went to non Kenyans. If the Kenyans were so good at their championships>Olympics/worlds, then I would expect them to sweep top 3 very often.I don't follow the 100, but Gatlin and Gay (doped pieces of shit that they are) are competitive against Jamaicans not named Usain.

mako wrote:

ukathleticscoach wrote:

We are not talking about the shot put this is the 5,000m, Russia and Germany are doing nothing there and USA little more

That's true. However, the prestige of a competion doesn't always depend just on how strong the field is. The field at the 1500m at the Kenyan nationals is often stronger than at the 1500m at the Olympics. The same for the 100m at the Jamaican nationals. But I still think that Olympic 100m and 1500m are more important than those national ones.

Commonwealth competition is very strong. This is a legitimate achievement to be proud of for the rest of his life. The other Robertson was doing well but fell. The 7 years in Africa paid off, in my view, but the thing is that, first, New Zealanders, Aussies, even Brits, and other Europeans very, very commonly spend years travelling the world and living in Africa and Asia for years at a time, so it is already socially acceptable. Second, the experience of living at altitude in Kenya and training with the best runners in the world on dirt roads is surely something that they will remember for the rest of their lives as their greatest experience and I would bet that they would trade it for nothing else. What, to sit around Eugene or Portland all the time or maybe pushing papers at a desk job for the prime of their lives? That would be better, you think?