Scorpion_runner wrote:
He runs too many marathons to be fast, and he ran 2;08 back in 2011. he is 31 now, and he recently ran 2:22
This dude has run around 82 marathons in his lifetime, and really does not give his body any time to rest. He would be a lot faster if he only ran 2 marathons a year.
He is built for endurance, and has great aerobic ability, but lacks speed intensity/speed endurance to really pop as a marathoner.
In a slow, hilly, tough weather marathon he would definitely be a threat, but he is not built to go out a WR marathon pace.
I agree, I love the story and respect/enjoy the guy, but let's be real. On a day with even remotely decent conditions, he gets smoked. he's not in the same league as Rupp/Farah. Comparing pr's from the past few years, he's still 3 minutes behind at his absolute best.
Marathon PR over the last 3 years
Yuki|Rupp|Farah
2:09:18|2:06:07|2:06:21
Half MarathonPR over the last 3 years
Yuki|Rupp|Farah
1:03:29|59:04|59:59
He's a scrapper. He won Boston in a war of attrition. He outlasted everyone else. There's something to be said about that, but it doesn't make him among the world's best. I'm not bashing the guy, I like his style much more than most elites. I like that he races often, in crap conditions, come what may, when most only line up a few times a year. He's all heart. That's as good of a compliment as I give.
I'm just trying to be realistic.