Rooting against Rupp

Remember the years where we would only send one or two guy per distance event because just hitting the A standard was a real challenge for Americans. My favorite is 2003, when Jorge Torres was the ONLY American in the World 5000, because he was the ONLY American with the B standard.

It was really hard to be an American track fan prior to 2009, when the flood gates finally opened. Now we are so spoiled we can route against our all-time greats. Amazing.

And be prepared to be disappointed. Rupp will not lose to three Americans.

Jambo Cabao wrote:

Remember the years where we would only send one or two guy per distance event because just hitting the A standard was a real challenge for Americans. My favorite is 2003, when Jorge Torres was the ONLY American in the World 5000, because he was the ONLY American with the B standard.

It was really hard to be an American track fan prior to 2009, when the flood gates finally opened. Now we are so spoiled we can route against our all-time greats. Amazing.

^^^this

Also forget about Olympic and World Championship mid/distance medals, threads were discusing which American has a chance at just making the Olympic Final.

Multiple Americans breaking 13??!???

Sub 27!?!??!

2:0’thonners!?!??!

OLYMPIC GOLD AT 1500!!????!!!?

5K Silver?????

10K SiLVER??????

‘Thon Bronze!!!????

Exciting!!!

We just need some sub 3:30/3:50/8:00/2:05 stuff!

And as great as Brazier is, his 1500 off of low mileage is the EXCEPTION. Remember the ‘90s.

Is the only event in the Olympic Trials the marathon?

Rupp is pretty good, ran a fast mile, ran a fast 10,000, acquitted himself well. But he's failed in his quest to beat the east Africans and his day in the sun has hit the evening hour, alas.

Jambo Cabao wrote:

Remember the years where we would only send one or two guy per distance event because just hitting the A standard was a real challenge for Americans. My favorite is 2003, when Jorge Torres was the ONLY American in the World 5000, because he was the ONLY American with the B standard.

It was really hard to be an American track fan prior to 2009, when the flood gates finally opened. Now we are so spoiled we can route against our all-time greats. Amazing.

Uhhh 2007?

You sir are no patriot!

Bad Wigins wrote:

Rupp is pretty good, ran a fast mile, ran a fast 10,000, acquitted himself well. But he's failed in his quest to beat the east Africans and his day in the sun has hit the evening hour, alas.

He hasn't beaten East Africans? I'm pretty sure he's beaten lots of them.

the posty wrote:

Jambo Cabao wrote:

Remember the years where we would only send one or two guy per distance event because just hitting the A standard was a real challenge for Americans. My favorite is 2003, when Jorge Torres was the ONLY American in the World 5000, because he was the ONLY American with the B standard.

It was really hard to be an American track fan prior to 2009, when the flood gates finally opened. Now we are so spoiled we can route against our all-time greats. Amazing.

Uhhh 2007?

2007 was a great year. And I'm a huge Lagat fan. But in 2007, really most Americans still sucked, and the transplant Lagat was our only real hope. Kara's medal, and Teg's near miss were bright moments, but not much else happened. There was no sense that we as a nation had finally arrived.

Same with 2008. Shalane's medal was amazing, but not much else happened. And we weren't that disappointed because we didn't expect much.

It was 2009 that things really started changing. Most people would say it was Ritz chasing down Bekele to run 12:56. Some would say it was Jenny nearly winning Pre, with a 3:59, as a collegian. If I had to pinpoint a moment, it was when German ran 3:56 to set the WiJR. That was the moment the US finally arrived. From then on, there were fast times, medals, and the expectation of Americans fighting.

Lagat with the double, Kara medaling, and Teg missing a medal by a lean are all fat and away better than Ritz’s 12:56, and the other two you mentioned aren’t even close to that.

I think he has wrote:

Bad Wigins wrote:

Rupp is pretty good, ran a fast mile, ran a fast 10,000, acquitted himself well. But he's failed in his quest to beat the east Africans and his day in the sun has hit the evening hour, alas.

He hasn't beaten East Africans? I'm pretty sure he's beaten lots of them.

He was supposed to beat them all. The secret to east Africans is there's hordes of them. They aren't all that good, a lot of westerners can beat lots of them. But nobody beats them all, that's how they win.

He almost won the gold medal but oops! Salazar gave away his training secrets to an east African so they still won. Rupp was very unlucky.

the posty wrote:

Lagat with the double, Kara medaling, and Teg missing a medal by a lean are all fat and away better than Ritz’s 12:56, and the other two you mentioned aren’t even close to that.

Better? Debatable, I guess.

But again, those performances were not the indicators that a flood of American born talent was about to be competing.

Ritz was the most significant significant breakthrough. Then came Teg's 12:58. And Solinsky's 2010. And then 2011, a lot of Americans began winning medals. And then, just a couple years later, Americans with World Championships and Olympic Golds.

I love Kenyan girl’s butts wrote:

Korir, Ward and anyone except Rupp.

Looking at the kenyans butts is cheating on Colleen. Thus, I dont do it.

You are assuming that the poster is an American. It is very possible that the poster is an expat that lives in the US or lives elsewhere in the world.