Oh you mean, he couldn't recover because he didn't dope? Yup, that's what you mean.
He would have dominated everything had he doped. Poor guy thought he could compete clean, and did pretty well.
Oh you mean, he couldn't recover because he didn't dope? Yup, that's what you mean.
He would have dominated everything had he doped. Poor guy thought he could compete clean, and did pretty well.
Great line from one of the best films ever released......
Have you done a lot of high intensity training over the years? From what I've heard, you may have prostate cancer.
rojo wrote:Webb had a great career. Webb wasn't ruined. He ran 1:43/3:46.
I think Webb had a POTENTIALLY great career considering his talent, which some could argue was greater than Ryun's. But Ryun, for all his failures, won an Olympic silver medal. Webb never came close to medaling in the two World Championships and one Olympics he participated in. And, even worse, he never made a national team after the age of 24 which seems almost criminal to me. His fast times will be his legacy but especially after someone breaks his mile record I don't think he will be thought to have had a great career. Great potential wasted, maybe.
Say what you want about Webb, but sports are entertainment and I personally felt more entertained by Webb's career than any other. When I watch his mile at Prefontaine I still get chills 15 years later. Same with the AR or the win in Paris. The drive he had... my lord. He was so exciting to watch and such a great guy to support over the years. It's obviously fun to say "what if" with his talent, but he did accomplish a lot and was the pinnacle of a fun runner to watch. Honestly that talent was so dynamic, so electric. You always had the sense that maybe he could bring back the fire so you couldn't stop watching even in the later years.
I rather doubt that but there is no denying Webb's talent and range of elite perforances--almost as good as Said Aouita. Ryan ran more sub 4's than anyone ever in hs, many which were on cinder tracks, with inferior shoes, and without the advantage of pacemakers. He also beat an olympian Peter Snell in hs--a feat that will probably never be duplicated.
The thing is, there is a contemporary of Webb's who was probably less talented, although not by much, who is the same age as Webb -- 32. Webb has been retired a couple years and was ineffective for several years before that, but Webb's contemporary is still running PRs and has an Olympic silver medal. His name is Nick Willis. Ironically, they both started out at Michigan. But while Webb only lasted a year there and changed coaches frequently, Willis has been coached by Warhurst his whole career and is still improving. Not saying Webb's career would have been longer had he stayed with Warhurst, but I bet it would have been more consistent.
It happened really fast. Comes into 2008 with a load of confidence, gaz de france win in 2007, looking for a good olympic games. Then, the US 8 k championships in Central Park. He drops out at mile 4 and was never the same afterwards. Literally that is how it unfolded.
Poor nutritional choices...
I believe it is multi-factorial. One of those factors was his bulking up. This seemed to throw off his form and his performance.
I've always thought this as well. '08 was a big year for him, lots of changes...Webb had an ethereal quality to his running, he will never be duplicated.
OldPollarBear wrote:
It happened really fast. Comes into 2008 with a load of confidence, gaz de france win in 2007, looking for a good olympic games. Then, the US 8 k championships in Central Park. He drops out at mile 4 and was never the same afterwards. Literally that is how it unfolded.
http://www.flotrack.org/coverage/213-USA-8k-Championships/video/11007-Alan-Webb-16th-at-US-8k-Champs-in-NYC-2008#.Vg_Sq7Q-BsM
Barrister III wrote:
Owned, nah. Just a different point of view. :)
Nah, you definitely got owned. I'd see a doctor if I were you, because I heard that repeatedly getting owned on message boards can make you go bald. I'm not saying that's true, but no one has proven it's NOT, have they?
Memphian wrote:
Urologist in Texas wrote:Training intensity has ZERO to do with testicular cancer. Stop. Just stop. Holy crap.
Common sense POD.
common sense is this:
emptying your prostate regularly, be it via intimate acts or self-service, is the best prevention against prostate and testicular cancers.
maize wrote:
I've always thought this as well. '08 was a big year for him, lots of changes...
Webb had an ethereal quality to his running, he will never be duplicated.
OldPollarBear wrote:It happened really fast. Comes into 2008 with a load of confidence, gaz de france win in 2007, looking for a good olympic games. Then, the US 8 k championships in Central Park. He drops out at mile 4 and was never the same afterwards. Literally that is how it unfolded.
http://www.flotrack.org/coverage/213-USA-8k-Championships/video/11007-Alan-Webb-16th-at-US-8k-Champs-in-NYC-2008#.Vg_Sq7Q-BsM
I don't think this word ethereal means what you think it means.
The argument that intense training can increase one's risk of cancer is medically sound and worth stating. Intense or extended training is well-known to temporarily impair the immune system, which plays a role in preventing the development of cancer.
I think this quote from an abstract in The Lancet says it well: "The persistent activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in the chronic stress response and in depression probably impairs the immune response and contributes to the development and progression of some types of cancer."
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045
(04)01597-9/abstract?cc=y=
Intense or extended training does just that -- it provokes an HPA stress response. Provoke this response enough, without adequate time for recovery, and overtraining syndrome can set in, something with which nearly all of us are familiar. It should not be surprising that more serious complications can arise from immune system impairment.
It was delicate, fleeting, and too perfect for this world.
The above link should simply be
http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanonc/article/PIIS1470-2045
(04)01597-9/abstract
Les wrote:
[quote]asdcsad wrote:
. All you have to do is look at his receding hairline (in high school).
Roids