Derek Clayton was an irresistible force: the marathon is an immovable object.
When they clashed, there could only be two possible outcomes. Clayton would smash the marathon; or the marathon - more precisely, the preparation for the marathon – would smash him.
So it went for a career which saw Clayton alternatively a mile ahead - almost literally, at times - of the rest of the world, or limping along forlornly behind it. Twice he smashed the world best; nine times he went under the surgeon’s knife.
Two Olympic golds, two world championship golds, 800m world record holder. The G.O.A.T – of that there can be little doubt. Like many star 800m runners, Rudisha hails from the Brother Colm O’Connell stable. Home to thoroughbreds.
Runner’s Tribe took an in-depth look at the training of the 800m G.O.A.T himself, David Rudisha.
Seb Coe to this day is one of the greatest middle-distance runners to ever live. Coe won four Olympic medals, including 1500m gold at the Olympics in 1980 and 1984. He set eight outdoor and three indoor world record in middle-distance track events – including, in 1979, setting three world records in the space of 41 days. The world record he set in the 800m in 1981 remained unbroken until 1997.
In this article we reflect on the main lessons we can gain from the training and career of this brilliant athlete
“Long, slow distance running creates long, slow runners. If speed is the name of the game, then never get too far away from it.” - Peter Coe
Seb Coe is the only man to win back to back Olympic 1500m titles (1980 and 1984). At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics...
At the INEOS 159 challenge, Runner’s Tribe was lucky enough to catch up with a few members of Eliud Kipchoge’s training squad, to discuss the training of Kipchoge during the build-up to his second crack at running a sub 2-hour marathon. It is important to note that Kipchoge’s training has not changed in many years. Therefore, the below schedule is how Kipchoge prepares for all his marathon races.
An outline is provided below:
Paula Radcliffe’s world marathon record was considered by many as one of the hardest world records of them all. The Briton’s mark of 2hr 15min 25sec had stood unchallenged for 16 years. In steps Kosgei, and boom, that once insurmountable time has been slashed by 81 seconds .
Kosgei is also the fastest woman ever over the half marathon distance with her 64:28 at the Great North Run, although the race is not an official course and the time is therefore not classed as a world record.
Back to the marathon. Wearing Nike’s ZoomX Vaporfly Next% running shoes the 25-year-old Kosgei bounced her way to 2hr 14min 4sec – a time that was once considered impossible.
Astoundingly, Kosgei believes that she could can go quicker. “I think 2:10 is possible for a lady. I am focused on reducing my time again.”
Clayton’s marathon career brought wins in some of the world’s most prestigious marathons but no Olympic or Commonwealth medals. Despite the absence of precious metals, however, this was no ordinary career.
Of his 22 marathons, Clayton won 14. Included in those wins was Fukuoka in 1967, one of the occasions on which Derek Clayton very definitely smashed the marathon. He ran the classic distance on this classic course in 2:09:36.4, becoming the first man to break 2:12, 2:11 and 2:10, all in the one race.
Less than 18 months later, Clayton ran even faster – 2:08:33.6 in Antwerp. This performance stood as a world best until Rob de Castella ran 2:08:18 at Fukuoka more than 12 years later.
Runner’s Tribe, in the book Australian Marathon Stars, interviewed Clayton and detail. Below are some nuggets of gold.
The story of the Ingebrigtsen brothers and their father is movie worthy stuff. Over 1500m, the slowest of the three brothers has a PB of 3:31.46. Over 5000m, the slowest brother has a 13:15 to his name. Runner’s Tribe got the chance to grab some inside peaks at the training of the family, and this feature article outlines some of the key sessions the three brothers regularly complete leading into important races.
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“You can always give it more than what you think you have” -Mo Farah
Profile
D.O.B: March 23, 1983, Mogadishu, Somalia.
Residence: Portland, Oregon, USA.
Country: Great Britain.
Coach: Alberto Salazar.
Height: 1.75m (5 ft 9 in).
Weight: 58kg
Highlights
“I know so many people are...
With one of the most famous smiles in sport, Haile Gebrselassie is without a doubt one of the greatest distance runners in history.
Geb first turned heads as a teenager, winning both the 5000m and 10,000m events at the 1992 IAAF World Junior Championships. Geb was just getting started, with a career than would span over 25 years and involve success at the highest level in distances from 5000m to the marathon. With two Olympic gold medals and four World Championship titles over 10,000m, few match Haile’s track accomplishments; he set an astonishing 27 world records during his career. Furthermore, when the time came to switch to road running, he succeeded there too, winning the Berlin Marathon for four consecutive years, the Dubai Marathon for three straight years, as well as setting two marathon world records (2:04.26 then 2:03.59).
