Jenny Simpson still improving at age 32 (almost)

Age is Just a Number wrote:

Why can't Jenny improve at age 32? Just look at Jarmila Kratochvílová. Not only did she improve, and those were really BIG improvements, she set World Records, one of which still stands after 35 years!

So basically you want jenny to become Kenny?

4:17 is actually slower than her 1500 PR. It's the equivalent of a 3:58 using the standard 1.08 conversion, which is 1 second slower than her 1500 PR.

I imagine her range just doesn't extend to 5k. The last one she ran was 5 years ago. Her time was more than 10 seconds slower than the AR at the time, and wouldn't be competitive with the world best 5k runners. Simpson was in her 1500 prime then. Why race a secondary distance where she wouldn't be competitive and wouldn't make as much money? Not all events pay the same. Simpson is strong for a 1500 runner. When she was training with Coburn, Coburn was better at the longer stuff and Simpson better at the shorter stuff. 1500 is her best distance. Doubtful she'll ever move up as long as she's still running well at 1500.

Gygygygggygg wrote:

Wtfbbq wrote:

...

I hear you and I love seeing athletes move up or down in events during non-championship years but I don’t think Jenny could get close to 14:34. I think she could have run 14:40 a couple years back but not now.

Jenny has the best range:

800m 2:00.4

1500m 3:57.2

Mile 4:17.3

3000m 8:29.5

5000m 14:56

Steeple 9:12

Who has better range than that?

Shannon Rowbury

800m 1:59.97

1500m 3:56.29

Mile 4:20.34

3000m 8:29.93

2 miles 9:20.25

5000m 14:38.92

Steeple 9:12

Other americans to note. the recent Shelby Houlihan, Mary Slaney*

westsouthrunner wrote:

Gygygygggygg wrote:

Who has better range than Simpson?

Shannon Rowbury

Duh!

PS Not that it matters, but Rowbury hasn't run a steeple.

FUN FACT: Simpson won 2 DL 1500s in 2014 & 2015. Has any American won 3 DL 1500s in the same year?

Shannon Rowbury has not run 9:12 for the steeple, she ran around 9:50 in college for the steeple once! Additionally, I would say there ranges are equivalent to each other. Simpson has the faster Mile, 3k, 3k steeple and 2 mile times (but not by much!) and Rowbury has faster 800, 1500, and 5k Times (also, not by much!). However, Simpson is considered way better due to her medal count. Simpson has a WC gold, Olympic Bronze and two WC silvers (Additionally, Simpson won the 2014 Diamond League title at 1500 which is essentially equivalent to a WC gold in an off year. Rowbury only has one WC bronze and one indoor WC bronze @3k. Also, Simpson has been much more consistent than Rowbury and has more impressive wins on resume (has a career total of 5 Diamond League victories (13’ Monaco, ‘14 Stockholm, ‘14 Zurich, ‘15 Pre Classic, ‘15 Rome), won 4 consecutive USA 1500 titles in 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017 (Rowbury was second to her in 2015 & 2016) and has won a record of 6 5th Avenue Mile Titles (2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017). Name a more consistent U.S woman mid-d runner better than her! Answer: there really isn’t one!

westsouthrunner wrote:

Gygygygggygg wrote:

Jenny has the best range:

800m 2:00.4

1500m 3:57.2

Mile 4:17.3

3000m 8:29.5

5000m 14:56

Steeple 9:12

Who has better range than that?

Shannon Rowbury

800m 1:59.97

1500m 3:56.29

Mile 4:20.34

3000m 8:29.93

2 miles 9:20.25

5000m 14:38.92

Steeple 9:12

Other americans to note. the recent Shelby Houlihan, Mary Slaney*

Ok Dad Barringer. That was an impressive recounting of your daughter’s stats.

Ok, if Rowbury can bring her steeple down to 9:12 and Simpson can’t improve on her 5000m, I will give the nod to Rowbury, even though her mile, 3000m and 2 mile is slower.

I’ll wait for that to happen.

Until then, I give the range award to Simpson

I was referring to the question who has better range. If you are talking about medal count its Jenny simpson. three of the events Jenny has a better time in are 200m apart in distance. If you are talking about range in different events then i still have to say its Rowbury or Houlihan at this point.

Also I personally consider Rowbury to be better than simpson. Just because I prefer Records over medals. Like I would say Webb is better than Centro or Bekele is better than Farah.

CHucufvy wrote:

Ok, if Rowbury can bring her steeple down to 9:12 and Simpson can’t improve on her 5000m, I will give the nod to Rowbury, even though her mile, 3000m and 2 mile is slower.

I’ll wait for that to happen.

Until then, I give the range award to Simpson

Also the events Rowbury is better at are much more popular events than the 2 mile, mile, and even 3000 which rowbury has a medal in and they have virtually the same pr.

Lmaoo... He is right tho... which female American mid-d has ever been more consistent and on top of their game better than Simpson? I definitely agree she is all time US top performer.

-4 global medals (including 1 gold)

-7 time USATF outdoor champ

-4 time USATF indoor champ

-Made a global final every major outdoor championship save for 1 (out in the semis in 2012...and considering the amount of doping DQ's from that final she probably should have made that one too) since 2008

All that plus the DL consistency that she has shown year to year will be a hard resume to match for a while.

Side note: Jenny may be in line for a retroactive bronze in the steeple from 2009...she finished 5th in the final, the winner Dominguez has already been DQ'd, and Zaripova in 2nd was busted for doping later (though perhaps they can't annul the 2009 result without proof she was also doping in 2009). They still haven't re-allocated the medals so it could be in the works I guess.

Simpson's 8:29 3k suggests she can run in the 14:40 range, maybe under. She may well get under Rowbury's times at 1500 and 5000 yet. She's been in shape to get the 1500m record at various championships, as evidenced by the top runners whom she beat for medals, but obviously she was running heats and a tactical final in each so didn't get it. She's not far off this year. This mile was worth about 3:58 by a 1.08x factor, but she might be in a bit better shape than 3:58 because runners typically are actually slower in the mile/faster in the 1500 than the conversion factor would predict, e.g. Makh Daddy would be a lot slower, Centro a fair bit slower, all the Kenyans slower.

Simpson is one of the best Americans ever but it appears that Houlihan will surpass all of her PRs in the next year.

Predictor wrote:

Simpson is one of the best Americans ever but it appears that Houlihan will surpass all of her PRs in the next year.

Very possible, but as we all know, all runners are one injury away from "the end" and she hasn't achieved those times yet. Simpson has proven to be super durable.

Time will tell (however, I doubt that Houlihan will ever run a 9:12 steeple.

zxcvzxcv wrote:

Simpson's 8:29 3k suggests she can run in the 14:40 range, maybe under. She may well get under Rowbury's times at 1500 and 5000 yet. She's been in shape to get the 1500m record at various championships, as evidenced by the top runners whom she beat for medals, but obviously she was running heats and a tactical final in each so didn't get it. She's not far off this year. This mile was worth about 3:58 by a 1.08x factor, but she might be in a bit better shape than 3:58 because runners typically are actually slower in the mile/faster in the 1500 than the conversion factor would predict, e.g. Makh Daddy would be a lot slower, Centro a fair bit slower, all the Kenyans slower.

Can't give credit for something they didn't do though. Thats why we run the race. Her range isn't as good as Rowbury. Her medal count is and thats mostly from just the 1500.

Isn't "normal" for married professional women runners to take a year or two off to have one or more babies as did Tirunesh Dibaba & Shelly Ann Fraser Pryce? One thing about women professional athletes who get pregnant easily: not on high dose steroids.

just for the record jenny closed that crazy 1500m in 1:57 a few years ago. the one where (dibaba?) closed in 1:56

Just nice to see American middle distance running so deep, and Jenny had a lot to do about that.

I would like to see Sydney McLaughlin try the 800, she is so fast, and so tough.