The Lemon Fool

Put another way, of the 51million+ times the 5km parkrun has been run since its inception, only 5 (five) have been run faster than Kipchoge's average pace over 42km.

Scott.

Put yet another way - he managed 26 consecutive 4mins 52sec miles.

Nippy!

… Err no he was nowhere near that slow!
More like 4:34 minute miles

Yeah OK (did it in my head).

Snorvey's link really demonstrates the magnitude of the achievement.

Pretty phenomenal ! After watching the linked video...felt I needed a lie down!

Snorvey wrote:However Nike maintain:

we do not create any running shoes that return more energy than the runner expends.”

We'll d'uh. I'm not a scientist, but isn't there a Law of Thermodynamics that comes into play here?

Yes, I nearly choked on my vino collapso when I heard that one on the TV news last night. A classic example of fending off the stupid journalists with anything that sounds 'scientific' enough to make them shut up.

It's still a bit dodgy, though. I'm sure that science has produced all kinds of sports inventions that improve/enhance performance (tennis rackets, cricket bats, pole vaulting thingummies, not to mention Oscar Pistorius's spring loaders), and we'd be in a poorer position if we didn't allow them. But if you can't win a medal unless you're in the special Nike club that can get privileged access to the race-winning carbon-thingummy soles, then that's a bit poor. To put it mildly.

BJ

Snorvey wrote:Motor sports is probably the best example of only winning when you have kit that isn't available to anyone else.

How would Lewis get on in a Renault one wonders.

True enough, he'd struggle. But I thought the Formula 1 people spent all their time working out what innovations they ought to ban for the same of fair competition (and watchable races)? Turbos, ground effect, traction control, active suspension...)

Maybe I should just stick to watching the darts.

Aaah, but have you seen the price of darts lately? Not your normal competition sets @ forty quid a chuck, but the hyper-blended beryllium/uranium jobbies with the laser guidance systems and the auto-correction and the nano-sub-atomic points and the devastating payloads?

What You haven't heard of those yet? You haven't been brown-nosing the right people.

BJ

Maybe the marathon should have a "manufacturer's championship" as well.

Scott.

The shoes might give an edge of a minute or two, but predominantly its Kipchoge's natural talent at efficient running that makes the difference.

He has a great style, is of optimum age, is lightweight and has a high power-to-weight ratio.

I am a keen runner (age 57) - mostly cross-country and parkrun, and in my 20's competed on the track at 800m.