What elite runner has managed to succeed despite having the poorest running form? Or actually are there any great college runners whose form sucks and manage to get by on their talent?
What elite runner has managed to succeed despite having the poorest running form? Or actually are there any great college runners whose form sucks and manage to get by on their talent?
Emil Zatopek.
Paula Radcliffe
There's only one Paul McCloy
Definitely Paula Radcliffe
Yes! Definitely Paula, but she was
way worse 10 years ago...
an up-and-comer with incredibly poor
form on this side of the Atlantic
would be Kate O'Neill from Yale.
Seeing her in the Olympic Trials running
the 10km last summer was painful to watch.
The Coaches at Yale should be embarrassed.
Radcliffe's head-bobbing looks a little inefficient, but it doesn't seem to slow her down at all.
Paula actually looks very efficient from the waist down. It is just hard to see and focus on that due to all the head bobbing distraction.
You know, what, aside from how he held his head, Zatopek actually had very good form. I know this goes counter to CW, but I was watching that clip of him winning the Olympic 5k in '52 and his body actually moved quite smoothly. His head looks like its in terrible pain but he moves very well.
Back in the day, Alberto Salazar was awful to watch ... as he pulled away from you.
worku bekila - terrible form but a sub 13m 5k runner.
paula is not as bad as she first looks. from the head down shes quite smooth. Yungie Sun looks worse - her arms are held sooo low.
Second Mr. McCloy, I think it was at the Commonwealth Games one year when the announcer said "look at that Canadian runner taking up two lanes every stride". Great runner.
staples wrote:
Radcliffe's head-bobbing looks a little inefficient, but it doesn't seem to slow her down at all.
Very true.
In fact, I remember reading an article (perhaps on Running Times or something) which said that Paula's running style - even in spite of the head bobbing - is one of the most efficient styles of all the elite runners. No wasted energy in the strides, arms, etc.
Her head may wobble everywhere (something which she managed to reduce somewhat between 2000 and 2001), but the rest of her style is extremely efficient.
See the photo of Steve Cram on p. 26 of "Better Training For Distance runners." Painful to even look at.
Joaquim Cruz back in the day. His form was so messed up he looked like he wasn't even running. He glided instead of ran.
llort wrote:
Joaquim Cruz back in the day. His form was so messed up he looked like he wasn't even running. He glided instead of ran.
I think I remember reading that Cruz had a major leg length discrepency.
John Treacy was pretty ugly, and anyone on the track at the same time as Seb Coe always looked bad.
That would have to be Irishman-turned-American Connor Holt. One ballsy XC man regardless.
Bill Rodgers
Very true. Radcliffe's form is definitely much better than Nguchi's for example. I saw an overhead shot of her running in Athens and it's a wonder she doesn't fall over there's so much torque going through her body.
I always thought Sally Barsosio had the worst form amongst the women, or maybe it's just the way she waved her elbows around like weapons.