Oleg's point reminds me of the argument made by Tony Benson in Run With
the Best that Kenyan success has a lot to do with the issue of basic
speed. The argument is that guys who have enough speed to be competitive
at say, the 1500m in most places are beat out by guys with even more speed
and they move up to the 5000 displacing guys with "normal" 5,000m speed
who move up to the 10,000 to be competitive thus pushing those guys to the
marathon. As a result you have people with better basic speed at all
distances than their competitors.
Benson argues that our 800m guys should be running the 1500 and our 1500
guys should be running the 5,000 and 10,000 and our distance track guys
should be running the marathon.
It's an interesting argument but doesn't resolve our debate since basic
speed is largely a genetically predetermined thing. It could be that Rift
Valley people are naturally a bunch of mediocre 400m types with some
aerobic ability who started racing longer.
Regards,
Paul
On Wed, 2 May 2001, Oleg Shpyrko wrote:
> Those who are convinced that 800m is a slow-twitch fiber event, let's
> go one step further. A fact that is often overlooked by many people is that
> kenyans actually make fairly decent 400m runners. There has been quite
> a few kenyans who have been ranked in top 10 in that event - and overall
> kenyans have been more successful than any other african country, including
> fast-twitch, west-african Nigeria and Uganda.
>
> Here are some kenyans who made the top 10 ranking over the years:
> '65: Kiprugut (8th)
> '67: Rudisha (5th)
> '69: Asati (3rd)
> '70: Asati (2nd)
> '72: Sang (5th), Asati (7th)
> '74: Asati (10th)
> '75: Chepkwony (5th)
> '80: Konchellah (5th)
> '87: David Kitur (8th)
> '92: Samson Kitur (4th)
> '93: Samson Kitur (5th), Ochien (10th)
> '94: Samson Kitur (5th)
> '95: Samson Kitur (5th)
>
> Sang got bronze medal at 72 Olympics, and Kitur (the Samson one) got bronze
> in 92.
>
> Now, that's more than the REST of the Africa could place
> in top 10 over the same period - the other africans to make top 10 were:
> Kamoga (Uganda), Bada, Egbunike, Uti (all three Nigeria), one ethiopian and
> one south african, who are actually from "slow-twitch" countries as well.
>
> And yet another thing that seems out of order is disproportionate number of
> poles in the rankings - could be that western african genes have found it's
> way to Poland (but not to it's neighbours - Belorus, Ukraine, Germany,
> Lithuania, Slovenia or Czech republic). The fast-twitch running gene was
> also "lost" for 9.3 million Polish-Americans - polish immigrants currently
> living in US (Poland has about 38 million people).
>
> Back to Kenya.
> At World Championships Kenya also finished 5th in 4x400 relay in 1991
> (Morocco was 7th that year), took silver behind US in 1993.
> South Africa finished 5th in 1997 and 4th in 1999.
>
> Do those slow-twitch fibers help kenyans in 400m as well?
>
> Kip Keino keeps saying in his interviews that he thinks too many kenyan
> runners who have potential to be great sprinters follow the stereotype
> of "Kenyans - distance, West Africans - sprints" and move up instead of
> achieving their potential at their best event - and that similar thing
> happens in reverse when other runners are "afraid" of kenyans dominating
> distance events.
>
> Is he right?
>
> Oleg.
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On Behalf Of alan tobin
> Sent: Tuesday, May 01, 2001 7:20 PM
> To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED];
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Subject: Re: t-and-f: Follow the money?....one last post...I promise..:)
>
>
> >...than 60 percent of all top distance
> >races, from the 800 meters to the marathon.
>
> The 800m is not a distance race...repeat, the 800m is not a distance race.
> Most if not all 800m runners can be/are great 400m runners. In the 800m you
> see African Americans excel: Johnny Gray, South Americans excel: Joaquim
> Cruz, and Kenyans excel: Wilson Kipketer. You say East/North Africans have a
> lot of slow twitch fibers right? Then why are they so well in the 800m, a
> race that requires a lot of speed and fast twitch fibers. Could it be 'gasp'
> that the Kenyans vary just as much as everyone else? I believe our best 800m
> runners are running the 400m right now, but have no desire to run 800s
> because they would tarnish their appeal. If MJ developed any sort of aerobic
> base at all he would demolish the AR and give Joe-Kenyan a run for his
> money.
>
> Alan
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>
*******************************
Paul Talbot
Department of Geography/
Institute of Behavioral Science
University of Colorado, Boulder
Boulder CO 80309-0260
(303) 492-3248
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
