Third Bekele Brother at Norfolk State

Can this be true?

19 isn't a kid

If he was a talented runner he wouldn't be wasting it in NCAA competition. If he had half the talent of Kenny he'd be crushing a sub-2:06 marathon at Chicago this weekend.

If that's true, it seems strange. Why would a younger brother of a wealthy international running star be attending a second tier college in an area that I understand to be pretty rough?

dkny64 wrote:

If that's true, it seems strange. Why would a younger brother of a wealthy international running star be attending a second tier college in an area that I understand to be pretty rough?

Yeah I was wondering the same thing. Part of the reason is they aren't putting a lot of pressure on him to race a lot so it gives him a lot of freedom in training while still getting his education paid for.

That said, still doesn't make sense to go there.

Baqqalaa Clan wrote:

dkny64 wrote:

If that's true, it seems strange. Why would a younger brother of a wealthy international running star be attending a second tier college in an area that I understand to be pretty rough?

Yeah I was wondering the same thing. Part of the reason is they aren't putting a lot of pressure on him to race a lot so it gives him a lot of freedom in training while still getting his education paid for.

That said, still doesn't make sense to go there.

Maybe he just wants to visit the US. Why does it matter what "tier" college he goes to? Plenty of foreigners do this just because they want to study abroad.

The young brother could be gifted in "brains" and has no interest in running as a career. I know a few Ethiopians who attended Norfolk State about two years ago and one of them is a good friend of the Bekeles, so he might have persuaded the young Bekele to come to Norfolk State and get some education in exchange for his unexplored running talent. Who wouldn't recruit Kenenisa's brother? It reminds me of 18 years or so ago when a college in Mississippi recruited a brother to the former 3 time world steeple chase champ and World Record Holder Moses Kiptanui. Unfortunately the brother barely had 25% of Kiptanui's capabilities. But he pursued his education and did quite well. This could be the case with Kenenisa's younger brother.

Here is the roster:

http://www.nsuspartans.com/roster.aspx?path=mcross

They've got at least three Ethiopians and two Kenyans. One of the Kenyans, it says, ran 24:50 8k in high school. He has run 26:15 8k at Norfolk State so far, and this year, the two Kenyans both ran 27:50s 8k at their last meet.

This just might not be the place for Bekele's little brother to develop, but the atmosphere should be comfortable.

Sorry to say this buddy but you are wrong.

You do realize many Ethiopians have the last name Bekele. Just because there is a guy with the last name Bekele who can run well, doesn't mean they are the brother of the greatest distance runner of all time. Kenenisa bekele has only one brother, Tariku Bekele. And if this guy was really bekele's brother (hypothetically, obviously it isn't true), why doesn't he just train with his brothers who are greats in distance running instead of training by himself?

I am an Ethiopian just for the record.

curiousrunner wrote:

And if this guy was really bekele's brother (hypothetically, obviously it isn't true), why doesn't he just train with his brothers who are greats in distance running instead of training by himself?

Why and how would a new runner train with a guy training to break the marathon world record? Their training would have nothing in common. You are also assuming that Kenenisa and Tariku even train together.

Baqqalaa Clan wrote:

Apparently Tariku and Kenenisa's 19 year old brother is attending Norfolk State. He isn't eligible yet and isn't listed on their roster but has been training on his own. He obviously must have incredible talent so if he's able to compete soon he could be challenging Cheserek in 1-2 years.

This is all based on word of mouth but Kenenisa is supposedly visiting his brother in Norfolk after the marathon, so maybe the Brojos or someone else can ask him about it this weekend? The kid could be the next NCAA star.

Why must he have incredible talent? Just because his two brothers do does not mean he does. Using your logic every pro athletes siblings were be a pro athlete also. I doubt if Cheserek is losing a lot of sleepover this.

Fred Gwynne wrote:

Why must he have incredible talent? Just because his two brothers do does not mean he does. Using your logic every pro athletes siblings would be a pro athlete also. I doubt if Cheserek is losing a lot of sleep over this.

Fred Gwynne wrote:

Using your logic every pro athletes siblings were be a pro athlete also.

No it does not imply that you dimwit. Your logic interpretation is shit.

He says he has talent. If someone even has HALF the talent of Kenenisa, he still has incredible talent for an NCAA runner.

But this rumor is false anyways so what does it matter.

I'm not saying this because there is some guy at Norfolk State with the last name Bekele. I'm saying this because someone who runs for Norfolk State directly said the third Bekele brother is on their team. Could he be lying? Sure, it's possible. Don't see any reason to though.

know-it-all joe wrote:

Fred Gwynne wrote:

Using your logic every pro athletes siblings were be a pro athlete also.

No it does not imply that you dimwit. Your logic interpretation is shit.

He says he has talent. If someone even has HALF the talent of Kenenisa, he still has incredible talent for an NCAA runner.

But this rumor is false anyways so what does it matter.

How fast is "half" the talent of Kenenisa? Is it 25 min 5k ability? If so, that let's in millions of runners.

I say if you can run sub 16, you have about 78% of Kenenisa's talent. And if you can reach sub 14 (pretty good for a D1) you're at about 90% of the GOAT.

subfive wrote:

know-it-all joe wrote:

No it does not imply that you dimwit. Your logic interpretation is shit.

He says he has talent. If someone even has HALF the talent of Kenenisa, he still has incredible talent for an NCAA runner.

But this rumor is false anyways so what does it matter.

How fast is "half" the talent of Kenenisa? Is it 25 min 5k ability? If so, that let's in millions of runners.

I say if you can run sub 16, you have about 78% of Kenenisa's talent. And if you can reach sub 14 (pretty good for a D1) you're at about 90% of the GOAT.

No, that is not what I meant by "half" his talent. I meant: take half of Bekele's genetics and replace them with those of the average Ethiopian's. He would still be very fast. That is approximately what you would expect from a sibling of Bekele.

know-it-all joe wrote:

Fred Gwynne wrote:

Using your logic every pro athletes siblings were be a pro athlete also.

No it does not imply that you dimwit. Your logic interpretation is shit.

He says he has talent. If someone even has HALF the talent of Kenenisa, he still has incredible talent for an NCAA runner.

But this rumor is false anyways so what does it matter.

Before you start calling someone a dimwit you should learn how to read. This is what the original poster wrote.

"He obviously must have incredible talent so if he's able to compete soon he could be challenging Cheserek in 1-2 years."

His brother could be 5'-6" and 185 pounds. Why must he have incredible talent?

halting it out wrote:

You are also assuming that Kenenisa and Tariku even train together.

They often do.

Fred Gwynne wrote:

His brother could be 5'-6" and 185 pounds. Why must he have incredible talent?

What does weight and height have to do with whether or not he has talent?