OT: 2 hour barrier broken in marathon

[Travelman6]

Eliud Kipchoge is first marathon runner to break two-hour barrier

“This shows no one is limited," Kipchoge said.

www.yahoo.com

Honestly, I think long distance runners are some of the most under rated athletes in the world. A number of years ago I trained to run long distance and in my tip top shape, maybe I was pushing the barrier...for 3 hours for the 26 mile distance. It is freakin' hard and I think a huge part of running that distance is completely mental. I have not run in about 3 years now and I sometimes get that urge to start it up again when I see stories like this. Truly inspirational.

Any way, I understand all the conditions that went into breaking the 2 hour limit and I still think it is super impressive. Mentally this guy is very strong, I am sure of that, to accomplish something like this. Basically he ran a 4:35 mile or so...26 times. (again, wow, i struggled to even get into the low 5 for one mile back in the day!)

The "official" record still stands at just over 2 hours and it is too bad this run does not count officially. Still, only a matter of time before even the official record will drop below 2.

Any runners on the BY? Thoughts?

 

[uconnfan68]

Not a runner, but like to watch track and field. Very impressive to be able to keep that pace for that long. I couldn't do a 1/2 mile at their pace in my prime... maybe a 1/4 though.

 

[phillionaire]

I can’t even sprint for a 4:33 pace for 100 yards let alone run 26.2 miles

 

[olehead]

My best mile ever in life was 5:15. This is an incredible feat, like you said Travelman, this guy is a mental giant to break this barrier.

 

[Poe]

I know he got under 2 hr with “help”, but running at 13 mph for 26 miles is insane. I can barely run at 10 mph on a treadmill for one minute.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

That pace is absolutely insane, and your boy seemed like he could go another 20.

Sometimes I test myself on the treadmill to see how fast I can bang out a mile and the idea of running a single mile in 4:33 is ludicrous to me, let alone 26 of them.

 

[Austin316]

my fastest half marathon is 1hr 39mins... respectable I suppose for an athlete or average runner. This guy is an absolute FREAK OF NATURE. Ran twice as far as I’ve ever run in my entire life and in almost the same time. Talk about setting the bar!!!

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

my fastest half marathon is 1hr 39mins... respectable I suppose for an athlete or average runner. This guy is an absolute FREAK OF NATURE. Ran twice as far as I’ve ever run in my entire life and in almost the same time. Talk about setting the bar!!!

I'm not a math guy but running a 7.5 minute mile for 13 miles is nothing to sneeze at.

 

[Dove]

An event designed just for him to try and break the 2 hour mark? Yawn.

What was his best official time?

 

[Devland]

I enjoy watching track and field also but prefer the sprint and field events over the distance events. Although I respect the distance runners, the events are just not as spectator friendly.

 

[navery12]

An event designed just for him to try and break the 2 hour mark? Yawn.

What was his best official time?

From the article:
"The 34-year-old ran the Berlin Marathon in 2:01:39 last year and then ran it in 2:02:37 in April, the two fastest official marathon runs in history."

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

Yeah but how many cell phones does he have?

 

[polycom]

An event designed just for him to try and break the 2 hour mark? Yawn.

What was his best official time?

Of course someone has to be this guy. Why don’t you open another tab in your browser and google this.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

What was his best official time?

Even acknowledging the selected extremely flat Viennese course and dozens of pacesetters and Berlin’s reputation as one of if not the flattest major marathon course, it’s ridiculous to poo poo Kipchoge’s accomplishments. No, Berlin’s not Boston yet 1-2 min over 2 hrs is a wee bit impressive.

 

[Fishy]

It’s fine, but his world record was more impressive than this was - break two hours in a marathon, not in a Nike/Ineos commercial.

It wasn’t even the most impressive effort of the weekend - Kosgei blowing up the world record in Chicago this morning was an order of magnitude greater.

 

[Edward Sargent]

Eliud Kipchoge is first marathon runner to break two-hour barrier

“This shows no one is limited," Kipchoge said.

www.yahoo.com

Honestly, I think long distance runners are some of the most under rated athletes in the world. A number of years ago I trained to run long distance and in my tip top shape, maybe I was pushing the barrier...for 3 hours for the 26 mile distance. It is freakin' hard and I think a huge part of running that distance is completely mental. I have not run in about 3 years now and I sometimes get that urge to start it up again when I see stories like this. Truly inspirational.

Any way, I understand all the conditions that went into breaking the 2 hour limit and I still think it is super impressive. Mentally this guy is very strong, I am sure of that, to accomplish something like this. Basically he ran a 4:35 mile or so...26 times. (again, wow, i struggled to even get into the low 5 for one mile back in the day!)

The "official" record still stands at just over 2 hours and it is too bad this run does not count officially. Still, only a matter of time before even the official record will drop below 2.

Any runners on the BY? Thoughts?

Yeah but the race was stacked with pacers! Hell I did NYC in under 2 hours with just the aid of car! Try that!!

 

[jibsey]

Great athletes for sure but these guys also weigh next to nothing.it's pretty hard for anyone weighing 200 pounds or more to get down into those lower numbers for marathons.

 

[Fishy]

Great athletes for sure but these guys also weigh next to nothing.it's pretty hard for anyone weighing 200 pounds or more to get down into those lower numbers for marathons.

It’s not hard.

It’s actually impossible.

Kipchoge weighs 125 pounds - you’re never going to be Kipchoge.

But Usain Bolt weighs 205 pounds, so consider sprinting instead!

 

[RichZ]

It won't be recognized as the record by the sanctioning body, but it renders the existing record moot, as those who care, know that he ran sub 2 hours.

 

[Deepster]

An event designed just for him to try and break the 2 hour mark? Yawn.

What was his best official time?

Shut up, Dove.

 

[Chuck]

I'm married to a runner which means I have to hear about this stuff and pretend I care.

So does that time qualify him for Boston? (sarcasm considering how much harder Boston seems to get each year).

I think now that someone has broker 2 hours over 26.2 miles, we'll see it done on a course at some point. It just had to be done to know it can be done.

But is long distance running heading into a cycling doping period? You're seeing blow back for Alberto Salazar runners. Who knows if there are more.

 

[Jaker]

Doesn't matter how it was done, breaking 2 hours is impressive.

 

[superjohn]

I could run around a 5 minute mile (think 5:03 was my fastest 1600) when I was a youngin', 13 years old 1st in CT. and 2nd in New England in junior olympics cross country. I basically peaked athletically at 13-14. Not sure I've run a mile in 15-20 years. Sub 2 hrs. for a marathon is absolutely insane, that's flying.

 

[FatHank]

As a guy who was a triathlete and runner for a decade, when I heard this the other day, I was blown away. This guy is why you see running shirts that say "In my dreams I am a Kenyan!"

 

[Fishy]

But is long distance running heading into a cycling doping period?

It's been there for a very long time.