I live close to an Ethiopian neighborhood and I have never seen an
Ethiopian person running in pretty much the whole city. Is running not really a big part of their culture and it's more of just a way to make money?
I live close to an Ethiopian neighborhood and I have never seen an
Ethiopian person running in pretty much the whole city. Is running not really a big part of their culture and it's more of just a way to make money?
Why don't MOST Americans run?
For the same reason that very few Americans keep running beyond college: cost of living in America. Now if they lived in Ethiopia and were coming over here on a 6 month Visa to race for prize money (to take home, where cost of living in $800/yr), that's a different story. Many come over here and never leave, claiming asylum. It's a better life in America.
My high school friend and roommate is Ethiopian-American. He ran well in high school and has loads of talent, but gave up the dream shortly after college began due to outside interests and lack of team structure(like dancing, he has more talent for dancing than he does for running). His little sister runs track/xc as well. I have found it odd that his extended family doesn't run much and that he started running seriously after sophomore year of high school. Also when he went to Ethiopia for a month he didn't run at all.
Clam Evans wrote:
I live close to an Ethiopian neighborhood and I have never seen an
Ethiopian person running in pretty much the whole city. Is running not really a big part of their culture and it's more of just a way to make money?
Actually they do run, at about the same rate as the rest of America.
Because the genetics thing is bs if you take away the altitude you take away the runner
There are a lot of Ethiopian Americans in Seattle and some of them run. A few of them are pretty good but not making money.
Maybe they don't like running.
HardLoper wrote:
There are a lot of Ethiopian Americans in Seattle and some of them run. A few of them are pretty good but not making money.
I'm in Seattle and run in the CD all the time and literally have seen zero non-white, non-Asian runners. Teshome is the only Ethiopian I know of, but he was actually born in Ethiopia. Maybe the population is just so small that I never see them around.
Clam Evans wrote:
HardLoper wrote:There are a lot of Ethiopian Americans in Seattle and some of them run. A few of them are pretty good but not making money.
I'm in Seattle and run in the CD all the time and literally have seen zero non-white, non-Asian runners. Teshome is the only Ethiopian I know of, but he was actually born in Ethiopia. Maybe the population is just so small that I never see them around.
I saw at least two ahead of me at the Seattle half marathon, probably in the 1:15 range... can't find any other results for them though.
Clam Evans wrote:
I live close to an Ethiopian neighborhood and I have never seen an
Ethiopian person running in pretty much the whole city. Is running not really a big part of their culture and it's more of just a way to make money?
As though Ethiopia is ethnically homogenous... Do your Ethiopian neighbors even come from the groups known for their running prowess?
In Kenya, all the long-distance stars are Kalenjin. Which forms less than 10% of Kenya's population. So just because someone's from a country known for running, doesn't mean they've got the genetics to be a decent runner.
ukathleticscoach wrote:
Because the genetics thing is bs if you take away the altitude you take away the runner
The genetics thing is BS but it's the starvation, not the altitude. East Africa is the hungriest place on Earth, Ethiopia/Eritrea especially.
Bad Wigins wrote:
ukathleticscoach wrote:Because the genetics thing is bs if you take away the altitude you take away the runner
The genetics thing is BS but it's the starvation, not the altitude. East Africa is the hungriest place on Earth, Ethiopia/Eritrea especially.
If you don't think that genetics have a role in performance, you must not believe in talent.
ukathleticscoach wrote:
FYP
Because the genetics thing is bs if you take away the DOPE you take away the runner
I'm in sales and I've called on lots of Ethiopian business people. The answer to your question is Ethiopian's value education and work. They work their asses off and the expectation on the kids is that they will get an education and do better then the parents.
Most Ethiopians don't run.
Indigenous South Americans. Tibetans. Nepalese. Etc.
Jeff Wigand wrote:
If you don't think that genetics have a role in performance, you must not believe in talent.
If you don't think skinniness is the primary advantage in long-distance running, you must not believe your eyes. Every distance over 800 meters is dominated by skinny people. And hungry people grow up to be skinny.
Clam Evans wrote:
HardLoper wrote:There are a lot of Ethiopian Americans in Seattle and some of them run. A few of them are pretty good but not making money.
I'm in Seattle and run in the CD all the time and literally have seen zero non-white, non-Asian runners. Teshome is the only Ethiopian I know of, but he was actually born in Ethiopia. Maybe the population is just so small that I never see them around.
There was another dude in our group for a while, at least during XC season, but I haven't seen him recently
Bad Wigins wrote:
If you don't think skinniness is the primary advantage in long-distance running, you must not believe your eyes. Every distance over 800 meters is dominated by skinny people. And hungry people grow up to be skinny.
Elijah Lagat began running simply to lose weight and not necessarily to compete at the highest level of the sport. As a young man, a physician told him that he "had a lot of fat around his heart" and needed to lose weight. The Kenyan obliged and his weight decreased from 158 pounds in 1992 to 125 by the time he won Boston. He started jogging in 1993 and began competing in 1994. He was already 27 when he first began competing; his late start in the sport is unusual and a testament to his innate talent. Before running, Lagat worked as an educational administrator before switching to full-time athlete.
Started jogging to lose weight in 1993. The next year, ran 13:43 for 5000m. In 1997, ran 2:07:41 in Berlin. Won Boston Marathon in 2000.
If it were simple skinniness, you'd see more than a handful of the 100+ tribes in East Africa excel at the sport. Did Rupp grow up hungry? Did Solinsky? Did Martin Keino? Did Jim Ryun grow up hungry? There are some biological characteristics that determine innate ability for middle and long distance running (talent) and these features are seen in some individuals worldwide but much more frequently out of a few tribes in East Africa.