By Brett Davies

This week – on the 21st of November – Irish distance legend Eamonn Coghlan turned 70. In honour of the occasion, we take a look back at Coghlan’s rise to the top, then look at his greatest performances. We will then look at his career post-athletics and his extraordinary legacy. Elevate your running game with Tarkine Trail Devil, where every step is a testament to exceptional performance and unmatched comfort.

Coghlan was born in Drimnagh in the south side of Dublin in 1952. Knock-kneed as a child, he wore corrective orthotics for a while until he grew and gradually overcame the problem. He loved cross-country and began to win age races in and around Dublin. Local coach Gerry Farnan worked with young Eamonn and helped improve his endurance – as well as his speed, which would serve him well throughout his career.

Like a number of Irishmen (Ronnie Delany, John Hartnett, Don Walsh et al), Coghlan won a scholarship to Villanova University and would join the legendary Jim ‘Jumbo’ Elliott, one of the great NCAA athletics coaches. Coghlan thrived in Jumbo’s system, which would include sessions of 20 x 440y with 60 seconds recovery and 15 mile runs in the brutal Pennsylvania winters. He showed rapid improvement under this regime and Elliott could see he had a potential world-beater on his hands.

Coghlan enjoyed success in college, winning four national NCAA titles and he dropped his mile PB by almost 20 seconds during his time in college. He became particularly adept at racing indoors. So successful was Coghlan indoors, he eventually earned the moniker ‘Chairman of the Boards’.

He ran his first sub-4 minute mile in Pittsburgh in 1975 (3.56.2) and soon took on Filbert Bayi (TAN) and Marty Liquori (USA) in a mile in Kingston, Jamaica, which was a world record attempt for Bayi. Bayi scraped inside Jim Ryun’s world record (3.51.0) with Liquori second in 3.52.2. Coghlan ran a European record in third (3.53.3).

Coghlan had an incredibly successful career in the sport – indoors and outdoors – winning major races all over the world and running several national, European and world records. Here are his greatest career performances.

World Championships, 5000m. Helsinki, Finland, August 1983:

Winning gold here in the inaugural World Championships was Coghlan’s greatest achievement. It was vindication for Coghlan, as he had emphatically proved the doubters wrong. He had disappointments over his career, most notably his two fourth place finishes in Olympic finals (Montreal 1500m ’76 & Moscow 5000m ’80) and his poor tactical race in Montreal still rankles.

Achilles problems and stress fractures kept him out of the 1982 European Championships, but Coghlan had returned to peak fitness. His world indoor mile record in February and some big wins and fast times over the summer gave him the confidence that he could take on anyone.

Coghlan cruised through the opening rounds and was ready for the race of his life. The final would be without world record-holder Dave Moorcroft (GBR), though European champion Thomas Wessinghage (FRG), Doug Padilla (USA), local hero Martti Vainio (FIN), Wodajo Bulti (ETH), Julian Goater (GBR), Markus Ryfell (SUI), Werner Schildhauer (GDR) and an unknown Soviet Dimitriy Dimitriyev would be among the 15 finalists.

It was a slow pace early. Krokhmaliuk (URS) led at 1km (2.43.30) and the 2km split was 5.34.15. Goater surged to the front at about halfway and then Dimitriyev took over and led at 3km (8.19.52). At 4km (11.03), Dimitriyev injected some pace and opened a small gap. With 600m to go, Dimitriyev had a lead of 15 metres and Coghlan began to chase hard, closing in on the Russian with about 350m to go. Wessinghage was struggling and was passed by Schildhauer and Vainio. With 200m to go, Coghlan and Dimitriyev were ten metres up on the pack and Coghlan was cruising.

There was 150m to go and Coghlan was on Dimitriyev’s shoulder, ready to pounce. Coghlan realized the race was his and his fist pump, after he glanced back at the chasers and snuck a look at Dimitriyev, was one of the iconic images of the Championships. 

With 120m left, Coghlan shifted gears and sped away from the Russian. He crossed the line, arms aloft, in 13.28.53, almost 15m up on Schildhauer (13.30.20), with Vainio just out dipping Dimitriyev for the bronze (13.30.34 to 13.30.38). Wessinghage was 6th in 13.32.46. Coghlan’s last 1km was run in about 2.24 and he had finally captured a global title.

Like John Treacy at Limerick in ’79, Ronnie Delany in Melbourne in ’56 and Sonia O’Sullivan’s cross-country double in Morocco in ’98, Coghlan’s win was one of the great moments in Irish athletics history. That afternoon (14/8/83), there was a special moment at a major rock concert at Dublin’s Phoenix Park. Supergroups like Simple Minds, the Eurythmics and others were performing and news of Coghlan’s victory came through. Paul Hewson, the lead singer of a local Dublin band playing that day, announced Coghlan’s win to a huge roar from the crowd.

The win was bittersweet for Coghlan. He had lost his three most important male mentors within the previous two years. Jumbo Elliott and Gerry Farnan died in 1981 and his beloved father Billy had passed away earlier in the year. Though sad he was unable to share his triumph with them, he was proud that he was able to vindicate their faith in his talent and determination. He dedicated his win to all three men.

Watch the race here

World Indoor Mile Record – The First Sub 3.50 – New Jersey USA, February 1983:

After missing virtually all of the 1982 season through injury, Coghlan had a great winter’s training. Certain key training sessions and some races early in the year indicated that he was in very good form. As mentioned, Coghlan had lost his father in the weeks before the Vitalis meeting in New Jersey and though he was shattered, he was determined to break his world record and go under 3.50. He would do it for Dad, Jumbo and Gerry.

A win in the Wanamaker Mile a few weeks before the Vitalis meet gave him confidence. He would be facing a top field in Jersey. There was Irish national record-holder (outdoor), Ray Flynn, American Steve Scott and Spaniard Jose Abascal. Coghlan had written the splits he wanted on a piece of paper and hoped that pacemaker Ross Donoghue would stick to the plan.The track for the Vitalis meeting at the Meadowlands Arena in East Rutherford was about 165 yards, which meant the race would be just over ten laps of the painted blue timber track. As a renowned indoor track star, Coghlan had been a consultant on the construction of the track.

From the gun, Coghlan went out hard with Donoghue and they were up a few yards on the field at the quarter mile (56.5). Donoghue led until the half mile (1.55.7) and promptly dropped out. Coghlan took over. Passing the three-quarter mile in 2.54.6, Coghlan sensed that the record was on and began to push hard. He had established a lead of ten yards going into the final lap and he drove for home. He crossed the line in 3.49.78, taking almost a second off his world record and creating history with the first indoor sub-four. Coghlan suggested it was akin to John Walker’s outdoor sub 3.50 in ’75 or Roger Bannister’s first ever sub-4. Flynn was second in 3.51.20, with Scott third (3.52.28) and Abascal fourth (3.52.56).

This was a fabulous performance from Coghlan, who would go on to enjoy the greatest year of his career.

World Indoor 2000m record, Inglewood CA, USA. February 1987:

This was one of the very best and largely unheralded performances of Coghlan’s career. Already 34, he was considered to be past his best and he had suffered several injury-plagued years prior to ’87.

By late ’86, he had regained form and was training consistently, when there was another setback. Out on a 15 mile run in Dublin, he was attacked by a dog. He was bitten 5 times on the legs and sustained a minor fracture to his hand. Coghlan lost a week or two of training, but his canine assailant (believed to be a fan of Ray Flynn) did not deter Coghlan from his goals for the 1987: winning the inaugural World Indoor 1500m title and defending his outdoor world title.

Coghlan had won a record 7th Wanamaker Mile in New York and went to California to break Steve Scott’s world indoor 2000m record (4.58.6) before heading to Indianapolis for the World Indoors in March. 

In the Inglewood 2000m, the pace was on from the gun and following a steady, hard pace, Coghlan was  flowing along beeautifully. Passing the mile split in 3.59.4, Coghlan knew the record was his. Accelerating over the final two laps, Coghlan covered the final 400m in just over 56 seconds and crossed the line in 4.54.07, shattering Scott’s record. Coghlan’s was a time that only 4 men had bettered outdoors and the record survived 12 years before being bettered by Haile Gebrselassie. Coghlan is still the 4th fastest man ever indoors.

In the World Indoors 1500m heats in March, Coghlan collided with Dieter Baumann, broke his rhythm and, unable to recover, missed a place in the final. Though angry and frustrated, there was consolation for Coghlan, as he saw fellow Irishmen Marcus O’Sullivan (1500m) and Frank O’Mara (3000m) win gold. O’Sullivan – a fellow Villanova alumnus – won the first of his three1500m titles and O’Mara won the first of his two golds in the 3000m.  Another Irishman, Paul Donovan, won silver in the 3000m. All three men were teenagers in the late ‘70s, inspired by Coghlan’s achievements in the sport.

World Cup 5000m, Rome Italy, September 1981:

This race demonstrated both Coghlan’s tactical nous and tremendous finishing speed, as he triumphed in what was a slow, tactical race against very good athletes.

Running for the combined European team, Coghlan faced East German Hansjorg Kunze (who would break the European record a few days later), Matt Centrowitz Snr (USA), local Italian favourite Vittorio Fontanella, Valeriy Abramov and Tolossa Kotu (AFR).

The pace slowed to a crawl after 200m, and they were running 70 second laps, until Fontanella’s surge at 3km (8.47.20), before the pace slowed and everyone gathered for a last lap sprint. The final 200m was a three way battle and it was close all the way down the straight, with Coghlan just edging out 21 year-old Kunze (14.08.39 to 14.08.54), with Fontanella third in 14.09.06.

Coghlan covered the final 300m in 38.7 and, though it was not a world or Olympic title, it was nonetheless a huge career win.

European Championships 1500m, Prague Czechoslovakia, September 1978:

The crowd at the Evzena Rosickeho Stadium were treated to another breathtakingly brilliant performance from Great Britain’s Steve Ovett, who had become the world’s dominant miler. He destroyed a deep field and it was another great run from Coghlan in second place.

Ovett won silver in the 800m at the Championships behind the unknown Olaf Beyer (GDR). Though defeated, he broke Sebastian Coe’s national record (Coe was third) and Ovett was a clear favourite for the 1500m.

Coghlan and Ovett lined up against the likes of Beyer and his teammate Jurgen Straub, Britons Dave Moorcroft and John Robson, Antti Loikkanen (FIN), Thomas Wessinghage (FRG), Frenchmen Jose Marajo and Francis Gonzalez and local Slovak veteran Jozef Plachy.

The pace was solid from the gun. Gonzalez led at 400m (57.51), with Coghlan back in the pack. Gonzalez was still in front at 800m (1.57.73) with Wessinghage on his heels. Loikkanen led at 1200m (2.56.72) with Ovett lurking on his shoulder. With 200m to go, Ovett struck and kicked away from the field, opening a substantial gap. He won easily and covered the last 200m in about 25.6, finishing in a Championship record (3.35.57).

Behind Ovett, Moorcroft passed a fading Loikkanen and looked to have second place sewn up, before Coghlan came home like a train in lane three and reeled in Moorcroft with 5 metres to go to capture the silver medal. Coghlan’s time of 3.36.57 was his career best outdoors and the silver medal was a major career highlight.

European Indoor Championships, Vienna Austria, February 1979:

Unlike Midge Ure, who remains indifferent to the charms of Austria’s historic capital city, Coghlan has fond memories of the place. This was the first major international championship win for Coghlan, at what was an intense, action-packed event.

It featured a closely fought women’s 400m between Verona Elder (GBR) and Jarmila Kratochvilova (TCH) and exciting wins by Poles Wladyslaw Kozakiewicz (pole vault) and Marian Woronin (60m).

The 1500m was just as compelling. Coghlan faced Ray Flynn, Thomas Wessinghage and fellow West German Harald Hudak, Scot John Robson and Finn Antti Loikkanen.

Coghlan’s indoor experience shone through, as he controlled the race like a conductor. He timed his finish to perfection, kicking away from Wessinghage on the last lap. Coghlan prevailed and won gold in 3.41.8 to Wessinghage’s 3.42.2. The talented and versatile young Scot Robson took the bronze in 3.42.8.

World Indoor Mile Record, San Diego CA, USA. February 1981:

Coghlan smashed his own world record here and came close to the 3.50 mile barrier. At the annual Jack-In-The-Box meeting, Coghlan’s main challenger was an in-form Steve Scott. Coghlan had beaten Scott at the recent Millrose Games and planned to win and break his own world record. He would also take on John Walker, Harald Hudak, Ray Flynn and Filbert Bayi.

Coghlan had enlisted the help of fellow Villanova alumnus, ‘Tiny’ Kane to be pacemaker. Coghlan instructed Kane to run the first half in 1.56 and Kane was slightly ahead of schedule, passing 880 yards in 1.55.5, with Scott running 1.56.6 and Coghlan third in 1.56.7.

Kane slowed and Scott took over, leading at the three-quarter mile mark (2.55.4) with Walker on his shoulder and Coghlan just behind Scott. With 300 yards left, Coghlan kicked and stole a small gap and headed for the finish. He built a lead of almost 10 yards and stopped the clock at 3.50.6, breaking his own world record by two seconds and he covered the last quarter in 55.0. He also smashed Walker’s 1500m record en route (3.35.6).

Scott was second (3.51.8) and Walker third (3.52.8). Coghlan was slightly disappointed in missing out on a sub 3.50, but would achieve his goal two years later.

World Record, 4 x 1 mile Relay. Dublin, Ireland. August 1985:

The Irish ‘A’ team (Coghlan, Ray Flynn, Frank O’Mara & Marcus O’Sullivan) broke the world 4 x 1 mile relay record at a specially arranged charity event in front of a huge home crowd and it was one of the most special moments in the history of the sport in Ireland. They smashed the world record by ten seconds and raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for the Ethiopian famine.

It almost didn’t happen. The world record attempt was the brainchild of John O’Shea, the founder of GOAL, Ireland’s most prominent charitable organization and O’Shea had to do a lot of work just to get all four athletes on the starting line.

There would also be Irish ‘B’ and ‘C’ teams racing and the ‘B’ team would feature Olympic silver medallist and multiple World Cross Country champion, John Treacy.

O’Sullivan had to be coaxed into running the relay. O’Shea stressed to O’Sullivan the opportunity to take part in something very special. O’ Sullivan had been focused on running the lucrative European circuit, though he was eventually convinced to run.

Coghlan, O’Mara and Flynn were all initially keen, though there were misgivings expressed about Coghlan’s involvement. Coghlan had barely run at all in the previous few months, battling various injuries and by his own admission, he was well down on form and he felt he might only run about 4.15 at best.

Coghlan himself doubted whether he should race at all and O’Shea, concerned that the event would lose its biggest drawcard, decided to appeal to Coghlan’s ego. He casually suggested that if he really didn’t want to run, Treacy could run Coghlan’s opening leg, instead of the first leg for the ‘B’ team, taking Coghlan’s place. Coghlan’s response was unprintable, though the message was clear: no way would Treacy take his spot. He would go against Treacy on the first leg and, however out of shape he was, there was no way he’d be beaten by Treacy.

At Belfield, on the campus of University College Dublin, the track’s small grandstand filled rapidly and there was a sense of anticipation that something extraordinary was on the cards.

Coghlan’s opening leg performance was pure grit, as he took over the lead from Treacy and started to kick away over the last 150m before the first baton changeover. Treacy, running the best mile of his career, came back at the tiring Coghlan and Coghlan only just finished in front of Treacy, clocking 4.00.2 for his leg.

Coghlan was completely spent and handed over to O’Sullivan, who took off as if fired from a gun, covering his opening quarter in around 56 flat. The 23 year-old  O’Sullivan had the crowd going berserk as they realized his was history in the making. O’Sullivan ran 3.55.3 for his split – fastest of the day. It was then over to O’Mara, who went out just as hard. He slowed slightly over the last 600m of his leg, but came home well to hand the baton to Flynn. O’Mara ran 3.56.6 for his leg.

Flynn, with ample experience in relay running from college, went out at a hard, yet controlled tempo, settling into a rhythm. He pushed hard on the third lap, and, hearing the crowd noise, dug deep on the final circuit. His split was 3.56.9 and he stopped the clock at 14.49.08 – a new world record.

The record survives to this day and 37 years later, the four men still gather occasionally – in person or on Zoom – and wax nostalgic over a special moment in Irish sporting history.

First Over 40 Sub 4 Minute Mile, Cambridge Mass. USA, February 1994

After the Olympics in 1988, where he was a forlorn figure, fading to last in his semi, his career began to wind down. He was still running, though not seriously. In early 1992, he noted that his old rival John Walker had recently attempted to run a sub 4-minute mile at a 40 year-old, but had fallen short due to an achilles injury. Coghlan was up for the challenge. He had run a 2.25 marathon in New York in late ’91 and he would be 40 in November ’92. He targeted the ‘92/93 season for an attempt on the sub 4 mile.

He prepared meticulously and in February 1993, Coghlan had a fantastic run at Madison Square Garden, but just missed out. His 4.01.39 was a new M40 indoor world record, though he was a little deflated. Another of Coghlan’s world class contemporaries, Dave Moorcroft, got in shape over the ‘92/’93 winter– with the aid of training partner Aussie Jamie Harrison – and attempted the mark outdoors in the summer of ’93. He also missed the mark but ran 4.02.53 – a new world M40 outdoor record.

Another year on – early ’94 – Coghlan was in perhaps slightly better shape and felt he still had a real shot at history. An easy 1.55 800m was a final tune up for Coghlan and that February, he went to the Harvard indoor track in Cambridge, where, before a crowd of 3,000, he produced one final great performance.

Former 1980s 800m star Stanley Redwine showed everyone he’d aged like his namesake beverage and paced Coghlan to a perfect split for the half mile (1.59.76) and Coghlan took it on from there. Hitting the three quarter mile mark in 2.59.21, he was right on schedule and he dug deep to produce a last quarter of 58.94 to finish in 3.58.15.

It was number 83 of his career sub 4s and signalled the end of a magical career. It hadn’t all been roses for Coghlan, however.

Setbacks, Regrets, He’s Had A Few:

Though Coghlan enjoyed a remarkably long career (his first sub 4 was run in 1975, his last in 1994), he had more than his share of setbacks. He missed the 1984 Olympics and the 1982 and 1986 European Championships through injuries and has dealt with issues like stress fractures, achilles problems and he is now reduced to minimal amounts of jogging due to a hip problem.

As mentioned, he was bitterly disappointed by Montreal ’76, where he led at 1200m but failed to respond to John Walker’s kick down the back straight and became hopelessly boxed. He may have gone close to gold with a better tactical run.

In Moscow ’80, he had the misfortune to suffer a stomach bug after running a PB over 3000m before the Games and was run out of the medals after Miruts Yifter kicked past him in the back straight. With nothing in the tank, he pushed himself to his absolute limit, but succumbed to both Suleiman Nyambui and Karlo Maaninka to be run out of the medals.

There was talk that the Master of the indoor mile would win in Indianapolis ’87, but, as mentioned, a mid-race mishap put paid to his hopes. Through all his trials, Coghlan remained resolutely upbeat and positive, never blaming others and he is universally well-regarded by his peers as not only one of the great athletes of his era, but as one of the most popular people amongst the distance running community – in Ireland, the US and all over the world.

Eamonn Coghlan – Post Career And His Legacy:

Coghlan has enjoyed a rich and diverse career away from competitive athletics. He has been a constant presence in Irish public life. Coghlan has been involved in politics, serving in the Seanad Eireann (the Irish Upper House) for Fine Gael for five years (2011-2016).

He has worked for RTE (Radio Teilifis Eireann – the Irish national television network) as a regular panellist on sports programs and, about a decade ago, he presented a documentary on Brother Colm O’Connell, the Irish teacher who moved to Kenya and has coached and mentored generations of Kenyan athletes – with incredible success. 

There has been much of Coghlan’s time absorbed in charity fundraising for hospitals in the US and Dublin, and he has most recently been part of a venture capital firm, raising money for small businesses in Ireland.

He has coached many athletes, including son John, who has become the family’s second sub 4 minute miler.

It’s been a wonderful family life for Coghlan also. He and wife Yvonne have raised 4 children. As well as John, Eamonn Jr had been involved in sport, as a golf professional and the others are engaged in various pursuits outside of sport.

Coghlan will go down in history as one of the greatest Irish athletes ever. He won NCAA, world and European titles and broke 5 open world records and  two Masters world records. Bernard Lagat is the only man to run faster as a 40 year-old and he was also the man who finally beat Coghlan’s record of 7 Wanamaker Miles. He still holds multiple Irish indoor records and his mile world record lasted for 14 years and was still a European record until this year, when Scotsman Josh Kerr ran 3.48.87 to take 0.91 off Coghlan’s mark.

He was an inspirational figure for the likes of ‘80s stars John Treacy, Frank O’Mara, Marcus O’Sullivan and Ray Flynn. Since the ‘80s, we have seen athletes like Mark Carroll, Alistair Cragg, Catherina McKiernan and, of course, honorary Aussie Sonia O’Sullivan achieve at the highest level. Sonia – another Villanova alumnus, incidentally – has, on occasion, spoken of Coghlan, Flynn, Treacy, O’Mara and namesake fellow O’Sullivan, Marcus, as having been role models for her success. She’s particularly close with O’Mara, who has, unfortunately, been dealing with Parkinson’s Disease for the past decade.

At Runners Tribe, we wish Eamonn the very best for the big occasion.

Eamonn Christopher Coghlan

DOB: 21/11/52 – Drimnagh, Co. Dublin, Ireland

Personal Bests:

800m: 1.47.78 – 1977

1500m: 3.35.6i – 1981 (3.36.57 outdoors 1978)

1 mile: 3.49.78i – 1983 (3.51.59 outdoors 1983)

2000m: 4.54.07i – 1987 (4.57.66 outdoors 1983)

3000m: 7.37.60 – 1980 

2 miles: 8.20.84i – 1985 (8.25.8 outdoors 1978)

5000m: 13.19.13 – 1981 

10,000m: 28.19.3 – 1986

Marathon: 2.25.13 – 1991

The author wishes to thank the New York Times, LA Times, Irish Times, RTE (Ireland), BBC, ITV, Runners World, Sports Illustrated and Athletics Weekly.

The post Eamonn Coghlan’s 70th – A Look Back At The Career Of The ‘Chairman Of The Boards’ On The Irish Superstar’s Milestone Birthday appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

© 2018 Runner’s Tribe, all rights reserved.

Dave Wottle’s 1972 Munich Olympics 800m gold medal race video is a sight to behold.  So much so that it has been going viral around the web for a few years now, if you haven’t viewed then permission granted to pause this enthralling read, view, then maybe return (race video below). There are many ultra-marathon footwear in the market today and one of the best is Tarkine shoes.

Wottle stole victory on that amazing day by 0.03 seconds in a time of 1:45.9. Fascinatingly, Wottle wasn’t even at full fitness, his mileage had been way down in the lead-up, hampered by an injury between the USA Olympic trials and the Olympics themselves.

However, injury wasn’t going to get in the way of Wottle that year. In 1972 Wottle was the man over 800m, adding a world record to his resume with a 1:44.3 at the AAU Championships.  But Wottle was an NCAA superstar as well as a global one.  Racing for Bowling Green University, also in 1972, that amazing year, he won an NCAA 1500m title; he took the mile title the following year.

Runner’s Tribe took a look back over the training of this come from behind Olympic champion.

Free Sources

• Marathon and Distance Runner (Magazine) April 1986 – p.41
• Dave Wottle interview with Gary Cohen.

Personal Bests

• 800m: 1:44.3
• 1500m: 3:36.2 (Set in 1973 beating Steve Prefontaine at the Hayward Field Restoration Meet)
• Mile:  3:53.3
• 2 miles: 8:40.01

Highlights

• Olympic 800m Gold, Munich 1972.
• 800m World Record 1972, 1:44.30.
• Two NCAA outdoor titles.
• DOB: 7th August 1950, Ohio, United States.

The Miler!!

“I never trained for the 800 meters, always for the mile” – Dave Wottle

Even after Olympic 800m victory, Wottle has always maintained that his abilities lay more in 1500m running than the 800m. Despite being blessed with some obvious raw pace, Wottle always felt that his speed was his Achilles heel.

So strong was this belief that at the 1972 USA Olympic trials Wottle entered the 800m because it happened to fall on the same day as a speed workout, so his coach advised him to race the 800m instead.  When he made the final and won, they started viewing the 800m under new light.

“I also felt insecure in the 800 meters as I was up against runners moving up from the 400 meters who had much better leg speed.”  – Dave Wottle

Video – 1972 800 m Olympic Final – Follow the White Hat

Mile PB and Steve Prefontaine

“Hey why don’t you come up to Eugene and we’ll go for the mile record. I’ll bring you through in 2:56 and then each man for himself on the last lap.”  –  Steve Prefontaine

‘Great. Good idea.’ – Dave Wottle

In 1973, when Steve Prefontanie invited you to a race, it wasn’t something any ambitious runner could possibly turn down. Such was the case in 1973 when ‘Pre’ invited Wottle to Eugene to have a crack at the mile world record.

And have a crack they did. ‘Pre’ took the pace until the final 200m when Wottle just scraped home winning and setting a new personal best mark of 3:53.30 (to Pre’s 3:54.60).

“Prefontaine brought me through in 2:56 flat – just what he said he would. I took the lead with about 180 meters to go”. – Dave Wottle

Base Training Specifics

“It was at college I met my coach Mel Brodt and I was under him at the Olympics in Munich. He used the moderated marathon system that Snell used and he is a very good coach, very intelligent about track.” – Dave Wottle

70-80 miles per week (110-130km) seemed to be Wottle’s ‘sweet spot’ in terms of mileage for the majority of the year.

Wottle’s coach, Mel Brodt, used a modified Lydiard system that rotated hard days and easy days in the following order:

Medium – Hard – Medium – Hard – Easy – Easy (or race).

It is also interesting to note that despite a mild drop off in mileage Wottle has stated that his training “rarely varies during the season.”

A typical week of training is outlined below:

“70 or 80 miles per week was fairly typical throughout cross country season and a bit less during track.” – Dave Wottle

• Monday: Distance repetitions of 880 yards to two miles.   “I didn’t like the long cross country 2-mile repeats, but mile repeats were okay.”  The recovery periods were always short.
• Tuesday: Speed workout, typically 400m type repetitions.
• Wednesday: Race pace workout. “we will do various things from 330s to 660s.”
• Thursday: Fartlek.  “Thursday we start to slacken off”
• Friday: Easy, recovery. “Friday we slacken off”
• Saturday: Cross country race usually or a similar training equivalent.  “Saturday – we race”
• Sunday: Long run.

“I tended to enjoy the Tuesday and Wednesday sessions. I knew the long intervals were necessary but didn’t enjoy them as much.” – Dave Wottle

2 month forced Olympic Taper

“Prior to the Games I only was able to get my mileage up to 13 to 15 miles per week. I normally would have been running 70 to 75 miles per week.” – Dave Wottle

An intriguing fact about Wottle’s Olympic vitory is that Wottle injured himself between the Olympic trials and the Olympics themselves (2 months apart). He had two weeks off then resumed limited training.

Mentally, this affected Wottle, he wasn’t able to train as he normally would, and is the reason as to why his first lap in the Olympic final was so slow.

“So, I was down mentally going into the race. That was a tough time to have done so well at the Olympic Trials and then to get injured and be unable to train the way I needed to. Plus the Olympics were almost two months after the trials which is too long to remain in peak form, even if uninjured.” – Dave Wottle

The Racer

“I never ran for times, just for places, so I didn’t run to break a record.” – Dave Wottle

Amazingly, Wottle didn’t actually know what the 800m world record mark was, prior to him breaking it. The record was a secondary bonus, with the primary goal being to win.

Wottle raced, and raced a lot.  Similar to the training of John Walker, and Steve Scott.  It is reported that Wottle raced three times on Saturdays during his college career, a mile, half mile and a relay.  

“I was running for place and the record came about because Jim Ryun ran that fast third 200 meters and I followed him. It gave me a lot of confidence for Munich since I came in with the fastest time in the world.”  – Dave Wottle

Free Sources

• Marathon and Distance Runner (Magazine) April 1986 – p.41
• Dave Wottle interview with Gary Cohen.

The post ‘Follow the White Hat’ – The Training of Dave Wottle appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

Wilson Kipketer’s Top 5 Races

“This man is one of the toughest competitors we have ever seen” – Steve Ovett

© 2017 Runner’s Tribe, all rights reserved.

Kipketer was the man to beat in the late nineties over 800. With three world championship gold’s, three 800m world records, and one indoor world championship title to his name – all that alluded this Kenyan born superstar was Olympic gold. He came close in Sydney and Athens but was perhaps left wanting tactically in both races. To this day, David Rudisha is the only man to have bettered Kipketer’s times.

Runner’s Tribe took a look back over Kipketer’s career and his top 5 races.

• DOB: 12 December 1972, Kenya. 

Personal Bests

• 400m: 46.85
• 800m: 1:41.11
• 1000m: 2:16.29
• 1500m: 3:42.80
• Mile: 3:59.57

Highlights

• World Championship 800m Gold, Gothenburg 1995.
• World Championship 800m Gold, Athens 1997.
• World Championship 800m Gold, Seville 1999.
• World Indoor Championship 800m Gold, Paris 1997.
• Olympic Games Silver. Sydney, 2000.
• Previous World Record holder, 800m.

Number 5: 800m World Record. 1:41.24

“Unbelievable. The record that has stood since 1981, has gone” – Steve Ovett

They said Sebastian Coe’s 800m world record set in 1981 was one of the toughest on the books. Coe’s time (1:41.73) still ranks him as the 3^rd fastest man in history. In 1997, Kipketer was in tremendous form. He had equalled Coe’s mark 12 days earlier in Stockholm. But then came Zurich, a famously fast track. Kipketer took the race on in an overtly aggressive fashion, and in turn smashed through Coe’s 15 year old record.

Number 4: 1997 Athens World Championships 800m Gold

Kipketer was close to unbeatable in 1997. He was, therefore, the overwhelming favourite to take out his second world title. Kipketer controlled the race and made it look easy.

Number 3: 1999 Seville World Championships 800m Gold

“Kipketer has never been pushed like that” – Sebastian Coe

1998 was a rough year for Kipketer. Contracting malaria, his medical recovery was prolonged. He finished without a medal at the 1998 European championships. He was far from his 1997 form.

The Seville World Championships victory marked the official return of the king. In a classic final, Hezekiél Sepeng nearly outkicked Kipketer. It was a gutsy win.

Number 2: 1995 Gothenburg World Championships 800m Gold

“He made it look like a training session” – Commentator

The breakthrough major championship win is always something special in the career of a superstar like Kipketer. Unlike Seville in 1999, Kipketer was hardly pushed; he looked to win with ease. Nonetheless, this major win marked the arrival of Wilson Kipketer.

Number 1: World Record 1:41.11, Cologne, 1997

During 1997 Kipketer was untouchable. He set three world records over 800m within the space of 2 months.

His final world record of 1:41.11 is today still the 4^th fastest time in history – Rudisha has run faster on just three occasions.

Kipketer’s mark stood for 13 years.

The post ‘Before Rudisha’ Wilson Kipketer’s Top 5 Races appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

“There are lots of elements to running a successful marathon and I’ll bet insights into them are woven throughout all of the interviews in this book!”  – Lisa Ondieki from Australian Marathon Stars

© 2021 Runner’s Tribe, all rights reserved.

Lisa Ondieki certainly rates as Australia’s top female marathoner, her 1988 Olympic silver medal in Seoul comfortably over-riding the fact that Benita Willis’s personal best is almost a minute-and-a-half faster.  

Ondieki is pure class, a big time championship performer, the only Australian ever to place in an Olympic Games marathon. Some of her career highlights include:

• 1988 Seoul Olympics marathon silver medal.
• Gold medals at the 1986 Edinburgh and 1990 Auckland Commonwealth Games marathons.
• Winning and setting a new course record in the 1992 New York City Marathon.
• Personal best: 2 hrs 23 mins 51 secs

Hardcore Track

“My favourite session was a repeat 400 metres run on the track in spikes. I’d do 20 to 40 of them with a 30 second rest” – Lisa Ondieki from Australian Marathon Stars

Ondieki completed three track sessions per week on average.  On top of that her weekly mileage averaged around the 190-225km mark. Incredible intensity and mileage, of that there is no doubt.

Ondieki wired her life to run fast.  Even on her rest days, she would still cover approximately 30km. Her hard days, somewhat more.

“The sacrifices were worth it because of the wealth of experiences I had as a world class marathoner” – Lisa Ondieki

Advice from the Top Guns

“There were times in my career when I needed all the help I could get and Canberra was the one place in the world where I could get it.” – Lisa Ondieki

Ondieki was coached by famed Aussie coach, Richard Telford. During her career Ondieki also sought guidance from Australian stars such as Rob de Castella. Her training base in Canberra gave Ondieki access to the best minds in the country.

Speaking about Deeks:

“His terrific sense of humour lightened up the tough job of training day in day out. Rob is a great ambassador for Australia and will always have my highest admiration.”

For the full Lisa Ondieki story and much more check out Australian Marathon Stars…

The post Lisa Ondieki – Australia’s only Olympic Marathon Medalist appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

© 2020 Runner’s Tribe, all rights reserved.

“A lot of people thought I was crazy with the training that I undertook, and maybe I was.”  – Derek Clayton

In 2017 Runner’s Tribe published a book referred to as ‘The Bible of Australian Marathon Running’. This 347-page paperback publication interviews Australia’s 10 fastest ever female and male marathon runners, and dives deep into their training, race preparation, diet and much more.

In this exclusive feature article, we bring you some of the coolest snippets from Derek Clayton’s chapter (1 chapter of 20).

__________________________

Derek Clayton is an old-school runner, if ever there was one.  A larger than life personality. A largish runner in fact.  A fast and tough one too.

Of Clayton’s 22 marathons, he won 14. Included in those wins was Fukuoka in 1967, where he ran 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.

Clayton was also a runner of excess, of extremes.  He didn’t have an off switch. Whether or not this worked for or against him?  On the one hand he broke multiple world records, but on the other, he went under the surgeon’s knife a total of 9 times.

“Maybe I would have benefited from a mentor during such times.” – Derek Clayton

Hard Yards

“Marathon running is not a technical event; it is all about doing the hard yards. It is as simple as that.” – Derek Clayton

Clayton trained hard.  His normal Sunday consisted of 17 miles in the morning and 10 miles in the evening, at what Clayton describes as “a very hard pace.”

Maybe the pace was even a little too hard, as Clayton himself acknowledges:

“I made throughout my career was that at times I over-did things.  I did not always listen to my body. I kept training when I should have backed off.” – Derek Clayton

Suffering in Antwerp

Marathon running was different in the sixties. Clayton did a lot of his training in Dunlop Volleys, he worked a full-time job, and he certainly never went on training camps.  Yet 50 years on, Clayton remains Australia’s 3rd fastest marathon runner in history.  Clayton certainly knew how to suffer, speaking about his world record run in Antwerp in 1969:

“After Antwerp, I was so sick: I couldn’t eat and I was vomiting and urinating blood. I was too frightened to see a doctor as I didn’t want to go to a foreign hospital, so I just sat it out.” – Derek Clayton

SAMPLE TRAINING INSIGHT

A typical 10-12 week marathon preparation by Derek Clayton. Much more detailed information can be found in the book Australian Marathon Stars.

– Monday through to Thursday:

-6:00 a.m.: Seven miles at a relaxed pace.

-After work: Up to 17 miles. I usually ran hard on this run, but I would run as I felt. If I was feeling ordinary then I would run slower. I had two to three courses to choose from with a few hills.

– Friday:

-6:00 a.m.: Seven miles at a relaxed pace.

10 miles easy (at least I tried to run easy, sometimes I ended up running harder if I felt ok).

– Saturday:

-One big run of approximately 25 miles. This was a solid run and usually took about 2½ hours.

-Sunday:…… Much more detailed information can be found in the book Australian Marathon Stars.

“It is also worth pointing out that when I got really flat I would have two to three days easy in order to recover. Satisfaction for me was running 17 miles hard and fast – I loved it, but only if I felt good. The fitter and stronger I became, the more often I felt good.” – Derek Clayton.

For the full Derek Clayton story and much more check out Australian Marathon Stars

The post Blood, Dunlop Volleys & World Records – the Derek Clayton Story appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

Coe’s legendary rivalries with fellow Britons Steve Ovett and Steve Cram dominated middle-distance racing for much of the 1980s.

– Country: Great Britain
– Born: 29.09.1956

Personal Bests

– 400m: 46.87
– 800m: 1:41.73
– 1000m: 2:12.18
– 1500m: 3:29.77
– Mile: 3:47.33
– 2000m: 4:58.84

Career Highlights

2 x Olympic champion
2 x Olympic Games Silver medallist
1 x European champion
2 x European Championships Silver medallist
1 x European Championships Bronze medallist
1 x World (Continental) Cup winner
1 x European Indoor champion
1 x World (Continental) Cup Silver medallist
1 x In Top 8 at Commonwealth Games
1 x European Junior Championships Bronze medallist
2 x Current European Record holder – 1000m, 4x800m
11 x World Records in career

Here we take a look back over Coe’s career and rank his top-5 performances of all time.

Number 5: 1979 1500m World Record 3:32.1

August, 1979. Coe already held the 800 and Mile world records. Standing in his way of the triple was Filbert Bayi’s 5 year-old 1500m world record of 3:32.2.

By August 1979, Seb Coe was an international sports superstar. Millions of spectators from around the world expected nothing short of a new world 1500m record from Coe, especially considering that Coe and his Father had publicly stated that they were going after it.

“You got the 8, you got the mile, the 15 was the blank, let’s go for it” – Sebastian Coe

Number 4: 1981 Mile World Record 3:47.33

On the 19th August 1981 Sebastian Coe broke Steve Ovett’s Mile world record clocking 3:48.53 in Zurich. Then just a week later, on August 26th Steve Ovett stole the record back, stopping the clock in Koblenz, lowering the record to 3:48.40.

Two days later, never one to stray away from a challenge, Coe toed the line in Brussels on August 28th. Coe, with the help of a rabbit for the first 800m, outkicked the African record holder, Mike Boit, over the final 150m, clocking 3:47.33.

Number 3: 1981 800m World Record 1:41.73

Coe set numerous world records during his career, but only one of them stood until 1997. Many tried, but the record held until Kenya’s great Wilson Kipketer first equalled Coe’s mark in July 1997, then broke it on the 13th August 1997 clocking 1:41.24.

To this day (January 2017) only two athletes in history have bettered Coe’s mark – Kipketer and current world record holder, David Rudisha.

Number 2: 1984 Olympic 1500m Gold

Coe’s selection to UK’s Olympic team for the 1500m wasn’t a certainty leading into the games, and his selection was heavily criticised by the British media.
As Coe explained to the Telegraph in 2009:

“I thought I’d be selected for the 800m because I had run comfortably inside the qualifying times earlier in the season, but I was concerned that I might not get selected for the 1,500m because I had been beaten in the Olympic trials after having lost almost a year of training due to injury and illness”

Coe’s 1984 Olympic victory shows just how mentally tough he was. As Coe puts it:

“During 1984, I had a different set of challenges because I had been ill the previous year, but by the time of the Games I was mentally much more resilient than I was in 1980”.

Coe may have run faster countless times, but his ability to win Olympic gold whilst not being in peak physical shape, is a testament to his quality and why he is considered one of the greatest midde distance runners of all-time.

Number 1: 1980 Olympic 1500m Gold

“The man they wrote off totally, hardly anyone would pick him for this race” – Olympic Commentator

Coe’s first Olympic victory is hard to go past as his best race of all-time.

Coe was the overwhelming favourite to win the Olympic 800m title the week prior to the 1500m, but Coe had an off-day and was famously outkicked by his great rival, Steve Ovett. The media and public had pretty much written Coe off for the 1500m title but as the Olympic commentator put it:

“You don’t become a bad athlete in a week”

© 2017 Runner’s Tribe, all rights reserved- By Sam Burke

The post WATCH: Two-time Olympic 1500m champion, Sebastian Coe’s Top 5 Races appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

Profile

• Coaches: Pat Clohessy, Dick Telford
• Date of birth: 17 August 1961

Personal Bests

• 1500m: 3:39.03
• 3000m: 7:47.66
• 5000m: 13:25.49
• 10,000m: 28:30.55
• 10,000m road: 28:00
• Half marathon: 61:11
• Marathon: 2:09.39

Career Highlights

• 1st place – 1995 Beppu Marathon (2:09:39).
• 4 time winner of the Gold Coast Marathon 83/84/88/97.
• 2 time winner (94/96) Sydney Morning Herald Half Marathon
• Current holder of the Australian all comers record for the Half Marathon.
• Represented Australia 18 times
• Finished in the top 8 at three Commonwealth Games
• 1991 Australian Cross Country Champion

Versatility

“His versatility and volume of wins and fast times stands up against almost any other Australian” – Len Johnson

By any measure, Pat Carroll is one of Australia’s best distance runners. He certainly has claims to being the most versatile.  Carroll remains fourth on the all-time marathon list. He also ranks high at 1500 metres, 3000 and 5000.  

On the track, Carroll was sub-3:40 for 1500 metres and he defeated many of the Auckland 1990 Commonwealth Games 5000 metres favourites in a pre-Games 3000 in Sydney, running 7:47.  Carroll was good at taking his chances, at seizing the moment. That is exactly what he did in Beppu in 1995 when he became the fourth Australian to go sub-2:10 with a win in 2:09:39.

Training, Sacrifice & Fatigue

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The post Pat Carroll – Australia’s most Versatile appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

“I think the Olympics and World Championships are going to be high-pace races from now on.”  –  Sammy Wanjiru

The Olympic marathon, one of the cornerstone blue ribbon events of any Olympic Games. Until 1984, women were sidelined,  whilst men have been battling it out since 1896.  Those years brought with them some amazing moments.  Here, we highlight just 5 of the greatest Olympic marathon moments of all-time.

# 5: Joan Benoit Samuelson’s victory in Los Angeles (1984)

“Years ago, women sat in kitchens drinking coffee and discussing life. Today, they cover the same topics while they run.” – Joan Benoit Samuelson

The first ever women’s marathon at the Olympic Games turned out to be one of the most memorable.  American Joan Benoit Samuelson won the inaugural event in front of a home crowd and made history.  The story behind the race is intriguing; Samuelson was not the favourite having undergone knee surgery just months earlier.  Samuelson was then forced to race a gruelling Olympic trial marathon just 17 days post knee surgery.

Amazingly, Samuelson took it to her favoured rivals early in the Olympic marathon, accelerating just 14 minutes into the race.  She took on the star-studded field which included Rosa Mota, Grete Waitz (previous winner of 5 New York marathons), and Ingrid Kristiansen (5000m world record holder).  

Samuelson literally ran her rivals off their feet; at the 10km mark, her lead was 11 seconds, at the 15km mark her lead had stretched to 51 seconds.  She eventually crossed the tape in 2:24.52, 1 minute and 26 seconds ahead of her closest rival, Grete Waitz.

# 4 Ethiopia’s Tiki Gelana wins in 2012 setting a new world record

“I went to collect water and I don’t know who came into contact with me, but I fell – I fell very hard” – Tiki Gelana

Although not as historic as Joan Benoit Samuelson’s victory, breaking the Olympic record (2:23.07), in testing conditions, is no minor achievement.

Gelena grew up idolising Ethiopian distance runners. She also grew up in a region of Ethiopia called Bekoji, famous for producing global superstars; Gete Wami, Tirunesh Dibaba and Kenenisa Bekele are a few well known examples.

As with all Olympics, Gelena faced a stacked field; including Mary Keitany (two-time London marathon winner), Edna Kiplagat (former world champion marathoner) and Priscah Jeptoo (2nd 2012 London marathon).

Gelena was tested throughout the marathon.  She fell hard at around the 16 mile mark, and then fought her way back. Furthermore, a few downpours made the roads slippery and slowed the field down significantly.  The London course was also full of tight corners, which Gelena prepared for in training;

“For this race, we did a lot of work preparing for the curves. We’d go to a field and he’d put down obstacles – like the ones footballers work with – and make me run very fast around them.”   Despite all challenges, breaking the Olympic record makes this run very special.

# 3: Abebe Bikila announces the Arrival of Africa – Rome (1960) and Tokyo (1964)

Rome Olympics, 1960

“I wanted the world to know that my country, Ethiopia, has always won with determination and heroism” – Abebe Bikila after his Rome Olympic marathon victory

Bikila’s victory at the Rome Olympics marathon was perhaps one of the most important victories in the history of world athletics. Bikila won the race in a new world record time of 2:15:16.2, becoming the first African to win an Olympic medal. What more, he won it running barefooted because the Adidas team shoes hurt his feet. Bikila ran a tough race neck and neck with Rhadi Ben Abdesselam of Morocco outkicking him over the final 500 meters (in which he put 26 seconds on Rhadi).

Tokyo Olympics, 1964

In Tokyo 1964 Bikila became the first person to win back to back marathon gold medals. Amazingly, Bikila was diagnosed with an acute Appendicitis six weeks prior to the marathon needing prompt surgery. Bikila’s training for the marathon was therefore hindered significantly.

His plan for the race was to sit with the leaders for the first 20 kilometers before increasing the pace. The tactic worked, he ended up winning by four minutes and eight seconds from Basil Heatley of Great Britain. His time of 2:12:11 was another world record. This time round he wore shoes provided by Asics.

Read more on Bikila: https://www.runnerstribe.com/features/abebe-bikila-remembered-the-first-african-great/

# 2: Emil Zatopek wins 3 Gold Medals at Helsinki (1952)

“If you want to run, run a mile. If you want to experience a different life, run a marathon.”  – Emil Zatopek

Emil Zatopek lived and ran in a different world to today’s runners. However, Zatopek paved the way in excellence, of not setting limits, of pain.  Zatopek won both the 5,000m and 10,000m at the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki before deciding to enter the marathon at the last minute.  It was Zatopek’s first ever marathon, once again something that would not happen today.  

Zatopek had not specifically trained for the marathon, but his training for the 5000 and 10,000m events had no doubt laid the correct foundations for marathon running.  Famous for introducing large numbers of interval reps to the world, Zatopek was known to complete track sessions such as 20 x 400 on a regular basis.

Zatopek’s strategy going into the race was to follow the favourite, Jim Peters of Great Britain, who’d set the world record of 2:20:43 six weeks earlier.  Peters went through the first 5km in 15:43, way under world record pace, in an attempt to break Zatopek. Zatopek held on, however, slowly closed a small gap that Peters had developed, and then ran away with the race over the final 10km.  When Zatopek entered the stadium to finish the race the crowd was singing “Za-to-pek! Za-to-pek!”.  The win was Zatopek’s third Olympic record for the games and he remains the only man to win the ‘triple’.

# 1: Sammy Wanjiru blasts away the field in Beijing (2008)

“I thought the best thing to do was to run a pace I’m used to. If the pace is too slow then I can’t get into my rhythm and my body doesn’t move properly.” – Sammy Wanjiru

In scorching heat, the late Sammy Wanjiru became the first Kenyan to ever win the Olympic marathon and in doing so turned Olympic marathon running on its head.  Wanjiru stopped the clock at 2:06.32, smashing the record (2:09:21 from 1984) by almost 3 minutes.  Prior to this race, only three men in the history of Olympic marathon running had broken the 2:10 mark (way back in 1984).

The race was brutal. In temperatures at least 10 degrees higher than average major marathon races, the Kenyans and Ethiopians decided that they were going to run it like time-trial, in a mind-blowing display of front running.

Wanjiru, despite being only 21 and therefore the youngest by far out of the main contenders, had already amassed some impressive results during his young career.  Most notably setting three half-marathon world records. But standing in his way were no slouches.  Kenya’s Martin Lel (2:05.15), Morocco’s Abderrahim Goumri (2:05:30), Ethiopia’s Deriba Merga (2:06:38), America’s Ryan Hall (2:06.17) and Ethiopia’s Tsegay Kebede (2:06:40) were but some of those that Wanjiru had to conquer.

Traditionally, Olympic marathons are usually slow, tactical affairs run in hot and sometimes humid conditions. Beijing wasn’t an exception in terms of climate. But Wanjiru didn’t care about any of that, when the gun went, so did Sammy, he took it to everyone. His splits were:

• First 15km: 14:52
• Second 15km: 14:33

“I’ve never seen marathon runner’s race this hard in these conditions.” – TV commentator.

• Half marathon split: 1:02:34
• 25km split:  1:13:58
• 35km split: 1:44:37
• 40K in 1:59:55 with a 5K split of 15:18
• Final time: 2:06:32 (sprinting to the line)
• 72-80 percent humidity. 

Wanjiru’s run changed marathon running forever. Every major men’s marathon since has been run hard from the start. Of the 20 fastest times in history, only one predates the 2008 Olympics.

Wanjiru sadly died at 24. His legacy lives on.

“I think the Olympics and World Championships are going to be high-pace races from now on. Athletes before now were probably too worried about heat and high humidity. Kenyans haven’t won gold up until now because they’ve been too worried about just winning, too, and have let races become too slow-paced.” –  Sammy Wanjiru

The post 5 Great Olympic Marathon Moments for the Memory Bank appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

© 2017 Runner’s Tribe, all rights reserved.

Sources

• IAAF Andre Bucher Interview 2001.
• British Milers Club Andre Bucher Interview 2003.

Swiss media used to refer to Andre Bucher as “The Great White Hope”.  The title meant nothing to Bucher; colour or nationality aside, Bucher earnt his spot on top of the world 800m rankings through the combinations of raw talent, smart and consistent training from a young age, and bold front-running.

Runner’s Tribe took a look back over the career and training of this magnificent 2-lapper.

• D.O.B: 19 October 1976
• Country: Switzerland

Career Highlight

• 800m World Champion, Edmonton, 2001.

https://youtu.be/e1fVZcepBfw

Personal Bests

• 400m: 46.23
• 600m: 1:14.72
• 800m: 1:42.55
• 1000m: 2:15.63
• 1500m: 3:38.44
• 3000m: 8:16.90
• 3000m Steeplechase: 9:09.73
• 5000m:  14:06.77
• 10,000m: 30:40.50

Don’t specialize too early

“As a junior, I thought that I will be a long distance runner in the future. But my coach always motivated me to try various distances... and finally I found the event that suited me best. I found a distance that combines endurance, speed, power; my training is never boring at all.” -  Andre Bucher

As a junior athlete, Bucher was a top Swiss runner over events ranging from cross-country, to 5000m-10,000m events, to the 3000m steeplechase. During these years Bucher laid down the aerobic foundations on which to launch his senior career from.

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The post Swiss 2-Lapper – The Training & Career of Andre Bucher appeared first on Runner's Tribe.

Introduction by Len Johnson

First, she couldn’t run. Then she couldn’t run without outside pacemaker assistance.

Then – well, OK, she could run, but she was just some slightly wacky Canadian fitness trainer with the crazy ambition of representing Australia. Running in maple-leaf shorts, for gosh sake.

It took mainstream Australian running some time to come to terms with Tani Ruckle. Perhaps that was understandable given her exotic background. The first running boom had barely hit Australia back in 1985 and, although elite runners had suddenly emerged from non-running backgrounds elsewhere, it hadn’t happened in Australia yet.

So, when Tani Ruckle progressed rocket-like from a 2:50:03 debut in the 1985 Australian Marathon in Sydney, via a 2:36:06 in Melbourne 16 months later – making her second-fastest all-time behind only Lisa Ondieki – to a ninth place in an IAAF world women’s road race championship behind the great Ingrid Kristiansen in early 1988, some found it a little hard to absorb.

For the serious running fans, it was probably the world championship run that confirmed Ruckle’s talent.

The world women’s road race championships were an IAAF initiative to hasten the development of women’s distance running. The first edition was in San Diego in 1983, the year of the first women’s marathon at a world championships and a year before the first Olympic women’s marathon in Los Angeles. Lisa Ondieki finished tenth in the first championship, which was over 10 km.

In 1988, a happy coincidence brought the championships to Adelaide. The IAAF had already awarded that year’s world cross-country championships to Auckland, New Zealand, the first, and only, time the championships have been staged in the southern hemisphere. To help boost both events, it was decided to stage the women’s road race in Adelaide a week earlier.

The distance was now 15 km. Kristiansen won in 48:24, going on to win her one and only cross-country title the following weekend. Ruckle was ninth, just over two minutes behind the best distance runner in the world. She could run alright. Later in 1988, she split two of Australia’s all-time best – Lisa Ondieki and Carolyn Schuwalow – in the City to Surf.

Ondieki won in race record 45:47, Ruckle ran 47:19. Ondieki was on the way to the Seoul Olympics where she won a silver medal in the marathon. Schuwalow was a finalist in the 10,000 metres. Clearly, Ruckle was no mug.

Ruckle’s best performances were on the roads. She didn’t really dabble in cross-country – she says in her interview she was capable of tripping over her own shadow: perhaps that explains why. But she did perform pretty well on the track, finishing third in the 1989 Zatopek behind Susan Hobson and Jenny Lund and second in 1990 in a PB 32:56.44 behind Lund. She carried that Zatopek form to Japan, running a 32:47 10 km leg in the Chiba Ekiden Relay a couple of weeks later.

After her debut in Sydney in 1985, Ruckle made incremental improvements in the 1985 Melbourne marathon and then a win in 2:46:58 in Manila in January 1986, which, given the conditions, was probably worth a good deal better. In any case, nine months later she made a significant jump when she was the first woman home in Melbourne in 2:36:06. Only Lisa Ondieki had run faster.

But it was Ruckle’s return to the Australian marathon in Sydney in June 1987, which ignited a fierce controversy. She won the race in 2:37:53, but was initially disqualified for outside pacing assistance. An unofficial entrant had allegedly joined her mid-race and run with her over the closing stages. She finished suffering from dehydration and facing an investigation.

A day later, it was announced Ruckle had been disqualified. “It makes me look like a cheat,” she said. “Life goes on, I suppose. But I lose the Australian title; I lose $10,000 (the winner’s prize); I lose eight months of training; and I lose my Olympic qualifying time.”

Race sponsors compensated Ruckle and, ultimately, the disqualification was overturned on appeal.

Ruckle did not get to the Seoul Olympics, but she did the next best thing – her next marathon brought another substantial time breakthrough, to 2:31:19 in finishing fourth in Chicago. Despite missing the Games, this added to her world road race top-10, her City to Surf performance and two half-marathon personal bests – 1:13:57 in finishing second in Sapporo, Japan, and 1:13:28 on the Gold Coast – to make it a memorable year.

Almost 15 months to the day later, 31 January 1990, Ruckle donned the Australian uniform for her most significant championships to date when she joined Ondieki in the Commonwealth Games marathon in Auckland.

This was always going to be two races. Ondieki, the Olympic silver medallist, was head and shoulders above anyone else and showed it with a magnificent solo run to win in 2:25:28. Ruckle made it three races, finishing over three minutes clear of the rest in second place in 2:33:15. Again she got the wobbles approaching the finish line. She wound up sprawled on her backside but with a huge smile spread across her face.

Later that year, Ruckle ran her third world women’s road race, finishing 18th in Dublin to add to her ninth place in Adelaide and 24th in San Diego in 1989.

Although Ruckle made the 1994 Commonwealth Games team, her marathon performances generally went into decline after 1990. She ran the 1992 London marathon, finishing 17th in 2:40:39, but two years later in Nagoya, she turned back the clock in finishing fifth in 2:34:29. It was enough to clinch selection for her second Commonwealth team, fulfilling an ambition to run the ’94 Games in her native country.

The race, however, was a disaster – barring the fact that Ruckle showed tremendous courage just to finish. In trouble from the start, she finished in a distressed state in 3:06:27 and was carried into the recovery area. Safe to say it was not the home return she wanted. Onlookers may admire the courage demonstrated in such circumstances; athletes would much prefer to be remembered for something – anything – else.

Ruckle’s last serious marathon was a 2:40:01 in the Sydney marathon in 1996, a North Sydney to Homebush course which was basically the one used for the Olympics four years later.

From unpretentious beginnings, harbouring ambitions only she thought attainable, Tani Ruckle built a career as one of the best Australian marathoners of her era. With three world women’s road race appearances, topped by her ninth place in Adelaide, and solid performances on the track, she contributed across the board.

Profile

• Coach: Stan Johnston and Pat Clohessy
• Date of birth: 25 June 1962
• Hometown during career: Sydney
• Date of retirement from running: March 2000
• Personal best: 2:31
• Career highlight: Commonwealth Games Auckland silver medal

Let’s start with the memories. Looking back, what is the most memorable moment of your career?  

The 1990 Commonwealth Games. After sustaining a back injury 10 days before I really wasn’t sure I could even run let alone get silver behind the great Lisa Ondieki

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6p9FC4j6bFk

Above video: 1990 Commonwealth Auckland Marathon Women

What about the most miserable memory?  

The death of my coach, friend and mentor Stan Johnston.

How important a role did Stan play?

I quite simply would not have even taken up running without Stan, his encouragement and guidance. Then for Stan and I to have the opportunity to liaise with a legend like Pat Clohessy was amazing for both of us.

Your favourite big city marathon race? And why?

Chicago; my PB. But also Nagoya because my coach was there to see it.

What did a typical weeks’ worth of training consist of on a day to day basis during a hard training phase?

Monday: Easy 15-18 km

Tuesday:

• AM:  8-10 km
• PM:  Track/speed work

Wednesday:  Out and back run up to 30 km

Thursday:  

• AM:  8-10 km   
• PM:  15 km

Friday:

• AM: 8-10 km
• PM:  Track/speed work

Saturday:  15-18 km

Sunday:  Long run 35-36 km

Throughout my career, I was also an aerobics instructor and would teach up to 15 classes/week

Did you make an attempt to do some of your long runs on the road or were a lot done off road? Did you prefer them to be hilly?

I almost always ran on the road as I am very clumsy and tend to trip over my own shadow. I think this was a mistake as I now suffer terrible knee pain.

My runs always had hills I didn’t mind them and I think they made me stronger

If you had to choose one favourite session that you believed really worked for you and got you fit, what would it be?

The out and back session on Wednesday was very tough as the goal was to run out to a pre-determined point at a relatively high intensity and then turn around and try to come home faster. It was physically and even more mentally tough but really beneficial especially when the total distance was built up to 30 km.

Did you ever have rest days?

Definitely had rest days…not nearly as many as I have these days though!

What pace were your easy/recovery runs done at?

Probably just a bit slower than 4 min/km pace.

Did you ever go on altitude training camps?

No, I didn’t. I know a lot of runners used to go to Falls Creek to train and I wish I could have joined them but I was a little shy amongst these great runners and always felt more comfortable on my own.

Favourite training location?

Just around my home suburb of Mosman. It’s so beautiful!

Did you incorporate core stability exercises or weights into your program?

Yes, I did a lot of exercise other than running particularly during my aerobics classes.

Hardest run/session you ever completed?

That would have to be any track session as I don’t think I have natural speed. I can run for a long time at one pace but the speed work used to kill me.

How far out from a major marathon did you start to taper your training?

About 2 weeks.

How did you recover post-race? For how many weeks did you relax before returning to a normal workload?

It always depended on the race and what was coming up next. I used to love to go on long bike rides as marathon recovery. The best being a 5 week tour in France and Italy after the Commonwealth Games in 1990

What was your nutritional/energy intake regime during the marathon? And during the week leading into the race?

I would simply use an energy replacement drink that I would take every 5 km and pre-race I would always carbo load…and enjoy it!!!

If you had your time over again, is there anything you would do differently in regards to training?

I would have trained more with other people and developed more of a support network amongst runners so that when times were tough I would have had other runners who understood my situation rather than relying so much on Stan, my coach alone.

Just how taxing was your training. Did it take away from every other aspect of your life?

Definitely, I really had very little time or energy for much else.

Was there a typical point in every marathon where the mental battle really began?

I think I was mentally tougher than I was physically so I felt very well equipped to deal with the mental challenge. I also had the privilege of working with two amazing sports psychologists, Sue Jackson and Jeff Bond, they taught me so much and skills that I use to this day.

What is it about the marathon that appeals to you?

The challenge of the distance has always been a lure for me.

If there is indeed a ‘secret’ to success. What is it?

I used to do some presentations with schools and the formula as I saw it was a+B+C3+D2=SUCCESS: Small ‘a’ for ability as everyone needs a little talent but you need so much more than talent, ‘B’ for belief in yourself and your program, ‘C3’ for  commitment/consistency/coaching, and ‘D2’ for desire (you’ve got to want it) and determination.

Favourite training partner?

My coach Stan would ride his bike alongside me…I’d love that. I trained with a few guys on some occasions that made me work hard so I appreciated them as well.

Any funny stories worth sharing?

Nagoya marathon. Stan was in the coach’s enclosure with the other coaches watching the runners on a screen approach the final stages. All the coaches were very proper and rather unemotional…Stan on the other hand was very emotional and upon seeing me on screen and that I was about to qualify for the Commonwealth Games in Canada couldn’t stand it anymore and raced out of the coaches’ room to the final stretch of road in the marathon and ran alongside screaming encouragement and jumping up and down with excitement like a little kid at Christmas. It was a great moment for both of us as I’d had a heart virus in 1992 that almost ended my career and sadly meant I missed out on the Barcelona Olympics. So this was a special success.

Do you still run? What are you up to these days?

Only if I have to run away from someone. My knees are not good I have osteoarthritis so I think my running days are behind me…but you never know with medical science…and I ‘d never say never.

These days I still teach classes at the gym and am now into my 30th year of teaching.

I teach spin classes and I am a personal trainer. I continue to have a great passion for an active lifestyle and am most grateful to be able to make a living out of this passion.

I enjoy bike riding for my fitness and am currently considering riding the 3 Peaks (230 km) event in the beautiful Victorian Alps in March.

Do you think the 2 hour 10 minute mark will ever be broken?

Sure why not…‘Go the Girls’

Favourite marathon runner of all time and why?

That’s really hard…but because of my era I’d be hard pressed to go past 3 great runners Deek, Mona and Kerryn McCann and not just because they are all great runners but because they have always been supportive to the wider running community, always incredibly approachable and great role models. I love what Deek is trying to achieve with our Indigenous community at the moment.

COMING TO THE RUNNER’S TRIBE STORE IN TIME FOR CHRISTMAS – 6 YEARS IN THE MAKING – ‘AUSTRALIAN MARATHON STARS’ – A BOOK BY RUNNER’S TRIBE

Video: Tani Ruckle – Profile 1990

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFmWBP7Jo7Y

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