Who was that bloke who ran 40 minutes in an Olympic 10,000 heat?

I would have destroyed him. I wish I could go to somewhere like Chad and get a passport so I can run national records.

Don't remember, but the worst 10,000m running must have been by Moroccan Hammou Boutayeb in the 1992 Olympics. He got lapped but then proceeded to run with the two leaders, Chelimo a Kenyan and Skah a fellow Moroccan.

He got boo'ed the entire 3 laps he was sticking with the leaders by the entire stadium and refused to step off the track before the final lap when a race official tried to DQ him.

Some say he did this to help Skah win (he won by 1 sec, was then DQ'ed but later reinstated as Olympic champion since there was no penalty for someone interfering), but I think he just had no idea what he was doing. Boutayeb picked up running pretty late in his 30s, he had limited experience racing on the track.

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5p5nt9

his unsportsmanlike behavior starts at 15:05

At least your guy didn't cause any troubles, except maybe delay the start for the next event.

Lol, reminds me of:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=C_A4EpOv28c

I remember that like it was yesterday. Thanks for sharing the video. I always thought it was a terribly inexperienced runner doing something impromptu and stupid and not contrived in advance. Skah didn’t seem to be orchestrating it and didn’t need the help; he kicked like a mule and I don’t think Chelimo had much hope when they were stride-for-stride within 600 meters of the finish. I just wished that official had knocked Boutayeb right on his ass.

Aside: Always wondered why he and Skah wore different shorts.

Rene Herrera

Philippines

5000m

I actually think those times are pretty decent considering they're shot putters and haven't trained for it. Especially 14.23 from the second runner. And 15.6 isn't that bad either.

track chick wrote:

I actually think those times are pretty decent considering they're shot putters and haven't trained for it. Especially 14.23 from the second runner. And 15.6 isn't that bad either.

Faster than the Brownlee's who are pro triathletes. Not that much slower than Farah either.

You must be confused. There are no heats for the 10000 these days.

Last three Olympics, last place still ran around 29:30 ---

2016: Mo Ahmed - 29:32

2012: Mykola Labovskyy - 29:32

2008: Alejandro Suárez - 29:24

2004: David Galván - 29:38

Hmm, forgot that, same for the WCs as well. It couldn't have been a final, but it was definitely the Olympics or WCs. Maybe it was an old race on Youtube, but I could've sworn I saw it live in the last couple of Oly/WC cycles. Probably lost forever now, unless he posts here of course.

Misery loves company wrote:

Either London or Rio, an athlete from a tiny country did this and was cheered round the last lap. He ran half the race on his own. Anyone remember this?

It is 2019, not 1979. Why did you make up: 1) 10000m heats; 2) 40 minutes?

Get sober.

LateRunnerPhil wrote:

Don't remember, but the worst 10,000m running must have been by Moroccan Hammou Boutayeb in the 1992 Olympics. He got lapped but then proceeded to run with the two leaders, Chelimo a Kenyan and Skah a fellow Moroccan.

That's not even close to the worst 10,000 ever run. People get lapped all the time.

1976 Olympic 10000:

13. Olmeus Charles (HAI) 42:00.11

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_at_the_1976_Summer_Olympics_%E2%80%93_Men%27s_10,000_metres

Misery loves company wrote:

Hmm, forgot that, same for the WCs as well. It couldn't have been a final, but it was definitely the Olympics or WCs. Maybe it was an old race on Youtube, but I could've sworn I saw it live in the last couple of Oly/WC cycles. Probably lost forever now, unless he posts here of course.

You definitely did not see what you're describing. Results for every Olympic, World Championship, Area Championship, Commonwealth Games, etc are easily searchable online. You should be able to find it in a few minutes.

Good find, but that wasn't the one (does he appear in the video?). It was only idle curiosity so not worth spending a lot of time over.

I definitely did. Shortish white man, looked like a dad on a fun run compared with the others. Wore a white top. Put on a 'sprint' the last 50 metres for the crowd with a smile on his face, which made him look more like a racewalker than anything. Absolutely clear as day in my mind. And definitely a major/global event. And definitely 40 minutes or very close. There's no need for anyone to lose sleep over it though (except the bell-end a few posts above trying to be edgy).

Misery loves company wrote:

I definitely did. Shortish white man, looked like a dad on a fun run compared with the others. Wore a white top. Put on a 'sprint' the last 50 metres for the crowd with a smile on his face, which made him look more like a racewalker than anything. Absolutely clear as day in my mind. And definitely a major/global event. And definitely 40 minutes or very close. There's no need for anyone to lose sleep over it though (except the bell-end a few posts above trying to be edgy).

I believe you saw a guy running DFL in a 10k, just saying it was not a major competition like you described. If it were the results could be quickly verified in minutes. It could have been something like U20s or Asian games.

What you're saying makes sense, but it definitely was a major global competition. I'm in Europe and it wasn't a European event - he was representing a tiny remote country (possibly one of the Pacific Islands, rings a bell), therefore it was global. It was a big stadium completely packed on all sides - a huge, Olympic-style crowd. I don't remember who the commentators were (apart from a general memory of them being the regular pros who cover big events like Cram and Foster), but they made some comments about him as he came in. It was the kind of event where these tiny countries get to compete, which suggests Olympics more than WCs. Really, I'm not making this up. Black shorts as well I think, and dark hair.

Misery loves company wrote:

What you're saying makes sense, but it definitely was a major global competition. I'm in Europe and it wasn't a European event - he was representing a tiny remote country (possibly one of the Pacific Islands, rings a bell), therefore it was global. It was a big stadium completely packed on all sides - a huge, Olympic-style crowd. I don't remember who the commentators were (apart from a general memory of them being the regular pros who cover big events like Cram and Foster), but they made some comments about him as he came in. It was the kind of event where these tiny countries get to compete, which suggests Olympics more than WCs. Really, I'm not making this up. Black shorts as well I think, and dark hair.

I would bet it was a 5K (especially given that you think it was a prelim heat). They don't let unqualified runners do the 10K because the field size is limited but sometimes they let those types run the 5K.

A reasonable point, but I remember thinking "40 minute 10K" and comparing where I would have come in the results. It would have been a universality invitation, but I saw on a random site someone quoting the rules as:

"NOCs with no male or female qualified athlete or relay team will be allowed to enter

their best male athlete and their best female athlete in one athletic event each, with

the exception of the Combined Events, 10,000m and 3000m Steeplechase.

Which would rule out the 10,000. Never mind, I'll either come across it in 20 years or more likely, forget about it.