Lagat Can Do the 10k: He Not Only Broke Master's WR, He Tied The Open American Record

I wouldn't think it would be crazy to assume he could go low 27:xx maybe even sub 27 on a track. Difference between road and track per lap? Has to be close to a 1-2 seconds.

Do you think he's tempted to go after the American record?

Does he have it in him?

This should make him think about going sub 27. He was 18 seconds behind Sambu (27:30), who ran 26:54 last year on the track after pacing Rupp about 9200m and who has gotten quite a bit better since, I think. Wilson Kipsang was supposed to have low 26 abilities according to ventolin and he was handled. Lagat can go 27:10 and maybe better on the track this summer if he takes a shot at it.

wejo wrote:

I didn't think Lagat would go sub 28:00 ..

Lagat ran 13-06 last year and 7-3X indoors this season. Why did you think he would not go sub 28?

Mark Nenow set the 27:48 mark in 1982! This tells you the today's 10kers are frightened of running on the roads. What a shame they avoid the roads.

it was 1982 wrote:

Mark Nenow set the 27:48 mark in 1982! This tells you the today's 10kers are frightened of running on the roads. What a shame they avoid the roads.

Ritz ran 28:08 to win Healthy Kidney in 2007. Not a super fast course - probably worth sub 28 on a flatter layout.

Nenow fan wrote:

wejo wrote:

I didn't think Lagat would go sub 28:00 ..

Lagat ran 13-06 last year and 7-3X indoors this season. Why did you think he would not go sub 28?

1) Because very few Americans ever run under 28 on the roads.

2) Lagat's half marathon was 1:02:33, nothing tremendous.

3) Lagat ran 13:40 something at Carlsbad.

4) Many 10k road races don't go sub 28.

Let's be serious. The biggest reason people wouldn't expect a sub 28 on the roads is because he was a 1500 meter specialist for many many years. He is an athlete like this world has never seen. Say he runs low 27's in his 40's on the track. For a guy that runs minimal mileage and a career that has lasted almost 20 years, that's truly amazing.

Sambu, Lagat's training partner, lead the way.

Lagat’s presence in Manchester wasn’t highly publicized; he commented after, “You know, I actually even doubted why even I signed up for this!” He’s been a mentor to Sambu in Tucson, but this time it was he who was grilling the much younger runner about running road 10Ks.

“I told him, ‘Don’t worry, just follow the elite group. We have been doing tempo runs together. You have done the training.’ It worked good,” said Sambu.

http://www.runnersworld.com/elite-runners/bernard-lagat-sets-masters-world-10k-record-of-2748

Hmmm, the LRC forum eats smart quotes, no warning give. Sorry about the post looking off with ' and "s.

Lagat has been asked about running the 10,000 on the track. As I recall, he didn't seem too keen on the idea of 25 laps But at this point in his career, and after this Manchester race, you'd think he'd want to try it once.

wejo wrote:

Nenow fan wrote:

Lagat ran 13-06 last year and 7-3X indoors this season. Why did you think he would not go sub 28?

1) Because very few Americans ever run under 28 on the roads.

2) Lagat's half marathon was 1:02:33, nothing tremendous.

3) Lagat ran 13:40 something at Carlsbad.

4) Many 10k road races don't go sub 28.

Not certain any of those points are relevant here.

1. Lagat has already proven he isn't like other "Americans"

2. Half marathon was something like 2 years ago and certainly further from 3k/5k than the jump to 10k.

3. Race only won in 13:31. 13:40 is "fast enough" to run 28:00. Benefit of doubt gets under that mark.

4. This is probably best point. Race does not have history of super fast times. Neither Bekele nor Geb ran under 28 on this course in recent history.

When this was talked about several months ago, I said Lagat is still much closer to his track speed than Geb now and when Geb ran 28 flat a year or two ago. If he wanted the record it was his for the taking, as we have seen. I agree with others here that he surely could go low 27s on the track if he was so inclined. I think sub 27 is out of his reach however.

also... wrote:

Let's be serious. The biggest reason people wouldn't expect a sub 28 on the roads is because he was a 1500 meter specialist for many many years. He is an athlete like this world has never seen. Say he runs low 27's in his 40's on the track. For a guy that runs minimal mileage and a career that has lasted almost 20 years, that's truly amazing.

How can you say "let's be serious" and then say "he is an athlete like this world has never seen"? Never heard of Haile?

I see what you mean, It should have been "Obviously after this race however, Lagat is an athlete like this world has never seen."

wejo, sorry that I change my name practically every post but you guys encourage anons so I'm just contributing to the cause.

That caught my attention because I recall Nenow running faster and his IAAF profile has the 10K from New Orleans at 27:23, was that point to point course or somehow aided?

10 km Road

27:23

New Orleans (USA)

01.04.1984

In the mid-late 80s he also ran some race overseas (Indonesia?) where there was a huge prize package for a WR (like a $1 million or $500K, or maybe "just" $100K). I don't think he got it, but thought he still ran sub 28 and netted a pretty hefty payday. It was pretty well hyped and was on same day TV.

IN 1984 Mark Nenow ran 27:22.6 (27:23 rounded) point to point course in Crescent City Classic.

In that race fourth place was 27:44.

Big money race referred to was Bob Hasan Bali 10Km race.

Plywood magnet Bob Hasan offered $100,000 for men or women's world record.

In 1988 John Ngugi went 27:29 to edge Paul Koech by two seconds, and in 1989 Liz McColgan ran 31:30.

The prize money stayed safe.

Bernie carelessly signs up for a race, runs an AR, and nobody knows. Rupp and his masters announce months ahead to the world that he will run an AR in a special set up "race" with rabbits, TV-crews, and whatnot. And fails.

Here's 15 seconds of Nenow in the 1987 Bali 10K.

If a 10k road is that much slower than track- any talks of ever doing an elite marathon on the track- could see under 2 hours