What if van Niekirk had ran a second lap after doing his 400m WR of 43.03??

I wonder the same about Bolt after his 200m WR. Here's how I imagine he would have run after:

200m: 19.19 WR

400m: 42.19 WR

800m: 1:39.19 WR

1500m: 3:19.19 WR

5000m: 12:29.19 WR

10000m: 25:59.19 WR

After those 6 world records with the crowd still cheering he would keep running for the full one hour on the track, managing to equal the world record of exactly one hour.

Belarussiya wrote:

An American runner tried to break the world record for 800 and went out too hard for the first lap and nearly blacked out 550 meters in and had to stop.

It's something that cannot be attained no matter how hard someone tries. Their body would fail after running a first lap too hard, especially a 400 meter all out. The race won't even be finished.

Which American runner??

This is pretty much the same theory of nearly every high school freshman XC runner in history.

"Ill just go straight to the front and hold on no matter what....".

Who?? wrote:

Belarussiya wrote:

An American runner tried to break the world record for 800 and went out too hard for the first lap and nearly blacked out 550 meters in and had to stop.

It's something that cannot be attained no matter how hard someone tries. Their body would fail after running a first lap too hard, especially a 400 meter all out. The race won't even be finished.

Which American runner??

I know Mark Everett went out at least once as if he were racing 600m and dropped out at least once.

Lenny Leonard wrote:

It is the one standard event where speed degradation (but not decreasing effort) is part of running an optimal time.

The 400m is also an event that where fast times come from positive splits but I mostly agree. Running at WR pace for 400m and "hanging on" for another 400m would certainly end in WvN hugging the nearest garbage can before he ever reached 800 meters. What WvN could do after a first lap of 47-48s would be interesting but among elite 400m runners he wouldn't be my pick to attack the 800m record because he's too much of a pure sprinter -- too fast at the 100m. I'd be more interested in seeing what a sub-44 400m guy who can't break 10sec in the 100m could do in the 800m.

GrammarPolice wrote:

Dwightarm wrote:

*had run

Seems unusual you would use present tense there.

You wouldn’t say “what if I had WATCH the half of that match”

Or “what if I had EAT more of them french fries”

You’re an idiot if you don’t immediately understand that *had run* is correct.

“Had ran” ?! Really?!

Did you not go to elementary school?!

Scares me how dumb people in the world are.

Amos in Zurich a few weeks ago put on a pretty good display of what happens if you hit that first 400m too hard. He "only" split 48.3 and was in rigor mortis coming down the home stretch. I believe he's run 44.99 in the open 400m. Rudisha is a little slower over 400m at 45.15. He split 49.28 for his WR in London.

Even if WVN hit halfway in 47.xx, still can't imagine him holding on the last 200. That said, I would've loved to see him give it a go and prove everyone wrong. It would even be cool to see him add a sub-1:44 to his sub-10, sub-20, sub-31, sub-44 collection. At this point, just hoping he can get back to form after the knee injury.

Assuming he ran the 400 as hard as he possibly could for his WR attempt (and how could we assume anything different?), starting around 425m he would be looking like Amos at the 1:51 mark in the race video linked below. My guess is it would be an ugly disaster of a finish.

https://youtu.be/Z8TxDBcEuIk?t=111

Duane Solomon was the one who attempted this feat.

https://www.flotrack.org/video/5520686-duane-solomon-after-walking-in-the-last-50m-of-the-800-final-says-he-was-about-to-black-out-duane-solomonday-4-interviewmpg

Peter Coe summed this up pretty neatly many years back when someone summised, similarly to here, that Ed Moses (I think, might have been Reynolds or someone like that) could 'cruise' through the first 400m in 47ish and then easily hold on for another 52 sec lap.

I'm paraphrasing, but he said something like "yes, he'd go through in 47 looking like a million dollars and probably conitnue to do so through 500m, but then something very strange would happen to him, something he'd never felt before...."

OP sounds like a pathetic slow distance runner who can’t even break 60.

The second lap wouldn’t be under 50s

yawnage wrote:

Peter Coe summed this up pretty neatly many years back when someone summised, similarly to here, that Ed Moses (I think, might have been Reynolds or someone like that) could 'cruise' through the first 400m in 47ish and then easily hold on for another 52 sec lap.

I'm paraphrasing, but he said something like "yes, he'd go through in 47 looking like a million dollars and probably conitnue to do so through 500m, but then something very strange would happen to him, something he'd never felt before...."

Edwin Moses is not a good example in this discussion. He has a 45.60 F.A.T. 400m P.B. Not an elite 400m runner. Morehouse has a traditon of asking their 400m/400mH men to race XC. Sebastian Coe and Edwin Moses are only app. 13 months apart in age. Peter Coe was engaging in psychological operations. Peter Coe was basically saying to Moses: Don't even think about it.

Am I suppose to believe Sebastian Coe was well suited for 800m because he has a 46.87 F.A.T. 400m P.B. but Moses with his 45.60 400 P.B. was ill suited? Nonsense.

OP, you are a fukking idiot, clickbait trash

Yougotit wrote:

GrammarPolice wrote:

Sorry meant to say:

You wouldn’t say “what if I had WATCH the second half of that match”

You are on to something. The correct form for what we are looking at must be "had runned" .

Your nearly right. It's 'had ranned'

This thread has just solved the riddle of all time.

HOW DO WE MAKE TRACK & FIELD MORE POPULAR?

Answer: Require ALL races, other than the 100, 200, and 400, to "go out" at insane paces. Everyone behind the required early pace will be pulled, and the remainder will be a sufferfest spectacle. Rabbits are no longer needed.

That, and elimination races where the last place runner is, well—eliminated.

Holy F can you imagine running for your life on every lap.

Ancient Rome, holy shhit.

Throughout his career Edwin Moses claimed he could run elite times at all distances from 100 to 800 meters. It was all talk and he never did any of it.

thinking back to the 80s wrote:

Edwin Moses/Morehouse wrote:

Edwin Moses is not a good example in this discussion. He has a 45.60 F.A.T. 400m P.B. Not an elite 400m runner. Morehouse has a traditon of asking their 400m/400mH men to race XC. Sebastian Coe and Edwin Moses are only app. 13 months apart in age. Peter Coe was engaging in psychological operations. Peter Coe was basically saying to Moses: Don't even think about it.

Am I suppose to believe Sebastian Coe was well suited for 800m because he has a 46.87 F.A.T. 400m P.B. but Moses with his 45.60 400 P.B. was ill suited? Nonsense.

Throughout his career Edwin Moses claimed he could run elite times at all distances from 100 to 800 meters. It was all talk and he never did any of it.

He did run 1:48 for 800