MoGOAT wrote:
Ever since Mo came 10th at world juniors, just half a lap behind the winners, I knew this man was one of the greatest distance running talents the world has ever seen.
So typical. You only jumped on the bandwagon after he had already become an international super star. His outstanding talent was clear ever since 2001, when, at the tender age of 17, he came second in the English senior boys 1500m race in 3:54.51, less than two seconds behind the winner.
His drastic improvement was not until he teamed up with AL SAL. The Mo Bot had the talent all along he just needed the right coach.
Rme wrote:
His drastic improvement was not until he teamed up with AL SAL. The Mo Bot had the talent all along he just needed the right coach.
You misspelled regimen.
Evian Mars wrote:
As the esteemed philosopher Swift said \\\\\\\"haters gonna hate\\\\\\\".
Hate hate hate hate hate
hey OP, that was funny!But here's the thing: even *IF* Mo started out as world jr champ, I bet you would still be accusing him of doping! Why? Well look at all the other stars who started off as champion jr runners but still get/got accused of doping: Geb, Bekele, Bolt, allllllllll the Kenyans, Radcliffe, Coe, El G, Komen, the "EPOpians", etc, etc, etc.Does it really matter? If you are a star as a youngster, you either started doping early, or just took PED's to top off your super talent and ran even crazier times. If you improved later in life, then.....you were not that talented, but cheated your way to the top. Either way: DOPED.For an example, tell who is clean, and why you think so. We'll have fun poking holes in your theory/ripping your hero. Go ahead.
MoGOAT wrote:
Ever since Mo came 10th at world juniors, just half a lap behind the winners, I knew this man was one of the greatest distance running talents the world has ever seen.
Over the next decade, a string of mid-field finishes, including an awe-inspiring sixth* at the Beijing Olympics, merely confirmed that this was indeed a very special talent. One destined to win as many global titles as Haile Gebrselaisse
Lest we forget that when he was just 27 years old (which is practically a foetus in distance running terms), Mo was already putting global superstars like Chris Thompson and Jesus Espana to the sword at the 2010 European championships (aka the 'other olympics').
I knew then that Mo, would soon be hitting maturity** and dropping 5 seconds off 1500m time.
And I wasn't the only one with these thoughts either. Most athletics commentators who watched Farahs extraordinary progression between 2000 and 2010, were saying back then that if Mo wasn't winning 6 world and Olympic gold medals in his 30s then everyone else in the world, except Mo, must be cheating.
If there are any commentators out there who weren't saying this about Mo back in 2010, then I can only assume you are a jealous American. Or Andy Vernon.
* in heat
** which is 30 for Somalis
Yo mommy misspelled these nizzzuts.
Nice post, OP. Mo is definitely one of the all-time greats. However, it will be an incredible shame if he never comes close to a world record. I think he may have that ability, but unless he lays it all on the line instead of always waiting and kicking in slower races, we may never know. Right now, it doesn't matter how many world championships or Olympic medals he gets--unless he matches or beats at least one of Bekele's world records, or at least comes close to Geb's times, he can never be considered the GOAT. As Pre said, "If you're a runner, you're never really satisfied unless you set a world record." Mo hasn't set one. Is he satisfied? He apparently has enough talent to run that fast and prove he's the GOAT, but he still hasn't. Time's a waistin', Mo. Go for it.
Great post. Can you do one for Paul Tergat? Please compare his results at 28 vs 22. I am looking forward to it.
You realize, of course, Paul Tergat started running competitively in the early-20s, which isn't the case for Mo, right?
Sour grapes wrote:
In 2009 I watched Mo being introduced to some basic weight training exercises in a S+C gym in London. I could not believe what I had witnesses to be honest. He looked like he had never been in weight room; form all over the place and as weak as a kitten. Fast forward, moving to a system that could compliment his talent in 2011 and it is obvious to me how he made the required jump from also ran to world beater. I expect to be shot down here but I see how the progression and 1 percenters have been added to his running.
Please tell us more about these basic leg exercises in weight room that move you from also ran to world beater.
Awesome, OP. I'm saving this thread before it inexplicably gets deleted.
Yeasterday's 10k race certainly wasn't a slow one!!! Running a 27.01 is not slow in ANY possible measures, and there are only a handful of men who have ever been able to run such a time in 10k, and most of those races have been time-trials and no competitive races.
Mo Farah is in my opinion the greatest distance runner there has ever been. He really showed a true showmanship, once again, no matter who there are against him he always handles the situation until the finish line. That is in my opinion what a true running legend represents, refusing to lose in any circumstances, to anyone in the field, and year after year. Bigger than Bekele, bigger than Haile, bigger than anyone has ever been. And then there is the fact that no one definitely is not using EPO anymore, because the simply is no chance to cheat and get away with it. I think many great champions used EPO in the 90's and early/mid 2000's, and they got away with it. Mo has never used, and he is better than them, so he definitely is the only true legend of the sport.
Joni from Finland.
I like that Geoffrey is over a decade younger than Mo so when/if he finally gets to the top (which could be as early as Rio), no questions will be asked.
Paul Tergat was a good, but not great distance runner in my opinion. And there are a few things which count against him being included in the pantheon of all-time greats.
For starters, there's a definite question mark surrounding his progression. Paul Tergat was highly unusual amongst distance superstars in that he didn't follow the traditional career progression of spending over a decade running around mid-field on the international circuit before becoming an unbeatable 6x global gold medallist. This is Red Flag #1 for Tergat.
Red Flag #2 was the glaring anomaly of Tergat somehow miraculously being able to run under 60 minutes for the half marathon without sub 3:30 1500m speed. If history tells us anything it is that if you're running 59:30 for the half then you should be able to drop a 3:28 15 a couple of months later.
(Although to be completely fair to Tergat here, he never got a chance to run a metric mile after he hit 30, which is when times really start dropping. So can assume that he would have a seen at least a 5 second improvement there, compared to whatever he was running in his 20's)
Not so much a red flag as such, but the other thing which counts against Tergat in the GOAT stakes, is that his results are artificially inflated from running track in an era where everyone with two legs was focussed on marathon.
The dearth of talent around at 10,000m back then is clearly demonstrated by the fact that not a single championship race he ran was won in under 27 mins (how slow is that!!!) The obvious lack of depth in men's distance running at that time clearly made Tergat look a better athlete than he actually was. Sorry Paul, no GOAT.
Joni wrote:
And then there is the fact that no one definitely is not using EPO anymore, because the simply is no chance to cheat and get away with it. I think many great champions used EPO in the 90's and early/mid 2000's, and they got away with it. Mo has never used, and he is better than them, so he definitely is the only true legend of the sport.
Joni from Finland.
Youre joking right? Everyone know you can easily get away with doing EPO these days.
Kimetto, Kipsang didn't drop a sub 3:30 1500 after their sub-60 half.
Wow, a sub-26:30 10000m, sub 60 half , sub 205 marathon (WR at the moment) guy doesn't qualify as a great runner, just wow.
What???? wrote:
Kimetto, Kipsang didn't drop a sub 3:30 1500 after their sub-60 half.
Wow, a sub-26:30 10000m, sub 60 half , sub 205 marathon (WR at the moment) guy doesn't qualify as a great runner, just wow.
He's being sarcastic.
He might be talented, but I'll be really impressed if Farah wins a 10 k marathon.
Well, Joni, taking nothing away from the greatness of Mo, but until you prove you're the fastest of all time, you can't be considered the GOAT. Bekele's 26:17 10K hasn't even been sniffed by anyone since he set the record in 2005. With guys like Bekele and Geb, whose world records are so much faster than anything Mo has ever run, it's not time to call Mo the GOAT. I think he may very well have the ability to run close to those times, but until he does he's not the GOAT, but simply ONE of the all-time greats.
I'm calling the rojos to delete this thread!! Can't believe all these idiotic postings, they are an insult to the great ones!