Renato Canova wrote:
Kenenisa and Geb, also if are in the first two position all time, are the runners more far from their real value, and I already explained why.
They opened a new era for 10000m, but were too much ahead of other runners for finding right support in their WR attempts.
How many pacers can you find, able to run 5000m at even pace in 13' / 13'05", for a record near 26' ?
But if you look at the second 5 km in WCh 2003 (12'57" per Kenenisa, 12'58" per Haile, Always in front), you understand their potentiality was by far very better than their WR.
Using an idex of 45" (which is not ecceptional), based on their PB in 5000m, we can suppose Kenenisa able running 26', and Haile 26'05", and this was absolutely possible with a full competition between them, with the final goal on the best performance only.
About the PB of Galen in shorter distances, I'm a little bit doubtful about their real value, because all those competitions were on indoor track.
On the contrary of the most part of people suppose, on indoor tracks is possible running faster than on outdoor tracks, of course if we speak of indoor tracks of last generation.
The biggest problem, running indoor, is the difficulty in breathing, when there is some Heather chenaging the quality of the air in the building. But, about the biomechanical situation, there are two types of advantages :
1- The absence of wind
2- The better elastic reactivity of the surface. The most part of indoor track are not fixed in one building all the season, but are assembled for the indoor season only, and after are unassembled again. For this reason, the track is not at direct contact with the pavement of the building, but is assembled on supports which allow the track to give back some elastic energy at every step of the athletes.
Supposing to use the same frequency in the technical action both in outdoor and indoor competitions, an athlete having a stride of 1.5 meters need to use 2000 steps.
The best elastic reaction of the track can give an advantage of about 2cm each step, and this 4000cm alias 40m. The calculation of the difference, about time of performance, is easy : for a pace of 2'30" per km (15" every 100m), 40m means 6".
The level of indoor performances depends in high percentage on the type of track.
We need to think that NEVER the best athletes were (and are) in their best shape during the indoor season. The indoor season is very short, there is not real good money, and nobody of the tops wants to waste part of his tough training for a season with little signification.
With all these premises, how can we justify performances of absolutely high technical level (such as during the outdoor season), if not with advantages given by the track itself ?
Some data :
HAILE GEBRSELASSIE :
1997 : 1500m : 3'32"39 indoor - 3'35"92 outdoor
1998 : 1500m : 3'31"76 indoor (WR) - 3'57"1 Mile out.
2000m : 4'52"86 indoor (WR) - 4'56"5 outdoor
3000m : 7'26"15 indoor - 7'25"09 outdoor
1999 : 1500m : 3'33"77 indoor (winning WCh Always in front without rabbits) - 3'33"73 outdoor
3000m : 7'26"80 indoor - 7'26"03 outdoor
5000m : 12'50"38 ind - 12'49"64 out
KENENISA BEKELE :
2004 : 5000m : 12'49"60 indoor (WR) one month before winning two titles in WCCch
2007 : 2000m : 4'49"99 indoor (WR) on 20.02 in medium shape
2008 : 2 Miles : 8'04"35 indoor (WR) 40 days before winning WCh in Long Cross (which was his main goal of winter, after his DNF the previous year)
For not speaking only of the two best athletes all-time, I give you also some data about my athletes (and I very well know their shape was not the same of Summer, not more than 90%) :
CALEB NDIKU :
2013 : 3000m : 7'31"66 ind - 7'33"92 out
Also this year, when we prepared indoor in better way for winning WCh, his shape was not like when he won 5000m in Eugene.
THOMAS LONGOSIWA :
He went for some indoor in 2012 only, after preparing the outdoor season with high volume, without speed.
On 10 Feb, he ran 12'58"67 in Düsseldorf, at 80% of the shape he had in Olympics.
EDWIN SOI :
In 2012 we prepared a little bit the indoor season, with no more than some track session (not intense speed) in January. In Karlsruhe (12 Feb) he ran 7'29"94 in 3000m, when in the outdoor season never was faster than 7'34"75.