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| | Tuesday, September 28 | |||||
Special to ESPN.com | ||||||
| Tegla Loroupe has done it again, and it's going to make some people very
upset. The Kenyan marathon runner broke her own world best in the long run
with a clocking of 2 hours, 20.43 seconds at Berlin on Sunday.
So why would that bother anybody? Perhaps it's the way she did it: Three male
"bodyguards" ran in front of and beside her, breaking the wind, blocking
other runners, and handing her drinks. This is an even more blatant example
of the "assistance" that caused controversy last year when she ran her first
world best, 2:20:47, at Rotterdam.
Expect the distance running community to argue about this for a while. The
organizers of the London Marathon want the IAAF to finally set up world
record standards for the event, ones that would exclude aided efforts such as
Loroupe's.
The reality is that the IAAF's standardization of world records in the event
is about the only thing that would put this fight to bed. That's because the
marketplace is at work here. No matter how much bad publicity such an
argument creates, it won't match the good publicity that the Berlin
organizers and their sponsors have gotten from hosting the fastest women's
run ever.
Does this make Loroupe some kind of cheater? If so, that judgment would be
tough to explain to a woman who has seen more than her share of top-class
track meets with the male distance stars receiving carefully choreographed
pacing help en route to rewriting the record books.
Ranking the century The race started at a modest 65-second pace, led by France's Henri Arnaud. Norman Taber, another American with strong medal hopes, then took the lead and sped up the pace. At the bell, Kiviat jumped him, followed by Taber and Jones. On the last turn, Sheppard and Britain's Arnold Jackson also joined the crowd on his heels, with Sweden's Edwin Wide closing fast. Kiviat fought for the lead with Taber as the competitors neared the finish. Jackson, Jones and Wide cut down the margin. With 50 yards left, Jackson came even with them, as Jones and Wide started to fade. The British star summoned one last burst and captured the gold in 3:56.8. Kiviat and Taber both clocked 3:56.9, and the photo had to be reviewed before officials handed the silver to Kiviat. No. 79 -- Olympic Men's 4-x-400 Relay, Helsinki 1952: Four years earlier, Jamaican star Arthur Wint cried after a cramp forced him to stop running, ending his nation's hopes of beating the United States in the 4 x 400. In Helsinki, however, the same Jamaican foursome looked stronger than ever. They had placed 1-2-5 in the open 400, led by George Rhoden and former Illinois star Herb McKenley. Wint ran 46.8 on lead-off, finishing a few steps behind American Ollie Matson's 46.7. Second leg Les Laing produced a 47.0 (his open best was 47.5), but still lost ground, as the U.S.'s Eugene Cole built up a huge lead with his 45.5 leg. That split was faster than the 400-meter world record at the time, 45.8. McKenley ran the third leg for Jamaica. Two months earlier he was bed-bound with the mumps, losing 20 pounds. He had to battle anemia in his recovery. He had tried to withdraw from the Jamaican team, but officials told him to get to Helsinki anyway. His silver in the 400 proved he had miraculously regained his fitness. Charles Moore tried to maintain the huge U.S. lead, splitting a fine 46.3. McKenley steadily cut down the lead with his long stride, and amazed the crowd by moving into the lead with his final steps. He split a jaw-dropping 44.6, the fastest lap in history. On the last lap, Rhoden led 800 winner Mal Whitfield as both clocked 45.5, managing to hold him off for a Jamaican win in a world record 3:03.9. The U.S. clocked 3:04.0, as Germany (3:06.6) also broke the old best of 3:08.2. No. 78 -- World Championships Women's Pole Vault, Seville 1999: Recent, yes, but nonetheless amazing was Stacy Dragila's world-record tying win in the recent World Championships. One reason it was so amazing was that the former Idaho State star seemed to be having such a bad day. Ukrainian Anzhela Balakhnova cleared on her first attempts all night, while Dragila seemed to need two or three tries at each height. Finally, with the bar at a world record 15-1, the Ukrainian joined Dragila in missing. On the second attempt, however, Dragila stunned with a perfect clearance. Balakhnova would need to match that to stay ahead, but the wind was gone from her sails. History had repeated itself, for better and worse. In 1997 Dragila had won the first women's vault at the World Indoor Champs by tying the world record, only to be denied the record bonus money because she hadn't actually "broken" the record. She did the same in Seville, and was again denied the record bonus, with her prize money halved to $30,000 because the vault is "new."No. 77 -- Wanamaker Mile, Millrose Games, New York 1950: "The longest mile in history," the late track historian Wally Donovan said of the fabled Wanamaker race of 1950. Rivals Don Gehrmann and Fred Wilt had raced to a virtual dead heat in 4:09.3. The finish judges could not agree on the winner. Finally, Asa Bushnell, the head judge, voted for Wisconsin's Gehrmann, who had gone undefeated in 1949. Two weeks later an AAU committee reversed the decision. Bushnell appealed to the Metropolitan AAU, but that organization turned him down, and left Wilt the "winner." Bushnell pursued his appeal to the national level, and a special committee declared Gehrmann the winner, a finding that was finalized by a vote of the entire AAU board of governers. Gehrmann was told he could keep the silver cup, 11 months after the race had started. In 1952, incidentally, the two finished in another close one at the NYAC Games. Gehrmann was originally declared the winner, but a one-hour review of the photo led to the decision going in Wilt's favor this time.No. 76 -- AAU Champs 6 Mile, San Diego 1965: Never did a race match two runners so hugely popular. Billy Mills had shocked the world the previous summer by winning the Olympic gold in the 10,000 meters. Diminutive Gerry Lindgren, just 19, had defeated the Russians in 1964, and decided to risk his collegiate eligibility by defying the NCAA ban on collegiate competitors at the U.S. national championships. Mills wanted to break the world record, Ron Clarke's 27:17.8, and pushed ahead with a blistering pace. He passed three miles in 13:39.8, with Lindgren dogging him every step. Occasionally the Washington State star would shoot into the lead, but he couldn't hold it: "The tempo was so fast." Mills, his feet on fire, forged on, convinced that Lindgren's loud breathing meant he was about to drop out. Driving the crowd into a frenzy, the two built up to a fast finish, and Lindgren finally went for the win around the last turn. He could not pass Mills, however. He got within a foot of him and simply could do no more. The two fought that way to the finish. Mills won, but both were credited with a world record 27:11.6. No. 75 -- Olympic Trials Men's Long Jump, Indianapolis 1988: Was Carl Lewis ever better than he was at the 1988 Olympic Trials? In the long jump, he and rival Larry Myricks, the last person to beat him seven years earlier, produced one of history's epic matches. Myricks led off with a 27-foot, eight-inch jump, and Lewis managed 27-4.5. In the second round, Myricks improved to 28-0.75. Rain started falling, and before long the field was drenched with heavy rain as thunder boomed. With the crowd fleeing, Lewis stepped onto the runway, a picture of perfect concentration. Fearing that the rain wouldn't stop, he wanted to get one more good jump in. That he did, with a 28-2.25 that took the lead. When the rain died down, Myricks stepped up for his third jump, and produced a lifetime best of 28-8.25. Had Lewis finally met his match? No. On his next jump, King Carl flew three-quarters of an inch farther. The final rounds saw Myricks leap a 28-0.75 and fade away, while Lewis produced a world record-scaring foul, and a 28-5.75. No. 74. World Championships Men's 100, Tokyo 1991: To some fans, this was the greatest 100 ever because of the times. Throw out the times, and this was still one of the best. Earlier in the season, Carl Lewis had seen his training partner, Leroy Burrell, break his world record at nationals with a 9.90. That the super-hard Tokyo track would produce incredible times was confirmed in the early rounds. Lewis ran a wind-aided 9.80, along with a 9.93. Burrell ran 9.94, and Frank Fredericks a windy 9.89. In the final, the third American, Dennis Mitchell caught a flyer. His reaction time of 0.90 should have signaled the starter that a false start had occurred, but the starter was not wearing the headset, and missed the telltale beep. The rules of the time gave the starter final authority anyway, and he evidently judged Mitchell's lightning start acceptable. Jamaican Raymond Stewart soon reeled in Mitchell, and Leroy Burrell came up behind him at halfway, with Lewis still well back. Burrell moved into the lead at 60 meters, while Lewis began moving past the rest of the field. In the final strides, Lewis edged ahead, raising his arm in victory as he hit the finish. He had clocked a record 9.86, with Burrell at 9.88, and four others under 10 seconds. "To be 30 years old and to get my first true world record on the track really means something to me," exclaimed Lewis.No. 73 -- Pac-8 Men's Cross Country, Stanford 1969: In the fall of 1969, two of the giants of American distance running faced off. Washington State's Gerry Lindgren had already won two NCAA cross country titles, had run a world record, and competed in the Olympics. Steve Prefontaine, Oregon's sensational frosh, had upset Lindgren two weeks earlier. When the gun went off, the two sprinted away as the rest of the strong field chased behind in awe. Eventually they had 200 yards on the field, fighting each other for the lead in a see-saw battle that never saw one get more than an arm's-length ahead of the other. They crossed the finish line in a tangle, Lindgren getting the nod as many observers felt the outcome was too close to call. Both clocked 28:32.4 for the six-mile trek across the Stanford Golf Course. "I felt I had to go fast from the start because Gerry is fast," said Pre. Nine days later, Lindgren "ran scared" to lead the NCAA final from start to finish. Pre finished third behind Mike Ryan of Air Force, but would go on to win three NCAA harrier titles of his own. No. 72 -- London vs Moscow 5,000, London 1954: World record-holder Vladimir Kuts knew he would have a tough run against Britain's Chris Chataway, under the lights and in front of 50,000 of Chataway's countrymen. After a fast first mile of 4:24.4, Kuts began launching into his fabled surges of 60-second pace running. The first one caught Chataway off-guard, but after that he covered the Russian's moves well. By the time the bell lap rang, the din of the crowd chanting Chataway's name had grown unbelievably loud. Kuts began his final surge, and tore past the three-mile mark in a world record 13:27.0. The Briton never flagged, and coming off the last turn he rose up on his toes and started sprinting. He caught Kuts with 10 yards to go and crossed the line just two feet ahead of the master. The time, 13:51.6, was a world record, as Kuts, a tenth back, also bettered the old mark. Coincidentally, Chataway had run his last lap in 60.1, the same split that friend Roger Bannister had used earlier that year in finishing the first-ever four-minute mile. Stunned by the defeat, Moscow radio abruptly ceased its coverage of the event. Ten days later, Kuts ran 13:51.2 to regain his record. No. 71. Olympic Men's 400, Seoul 1988: Olympic Trials winner Butch Reynolds had just set the world record of 43.29. Danny Everett had placed second at the Trials in 43.98. The third member of the U.S. 400 squad was 19-year-old Steve Lewis, considered to be a great prospect, but not ready for gold. Everett, Lewis's UCLA teammate, took the pace out hard, but by 200 (21.37), Lewis had pulled nearly even. Reynolds, playing it too safe, ran far behind. At 300, Lewis had edged into the lead, while Reynolds began his trademark stretch drive. Spectators cheered and agonized as Reynolds charged past Everett and toward Lewis. He came oh-so-close to winning it all, but Lewis thwarted him by producing the best lean to win in 43.87. Reynolds finished 0.06 behind as the U.S. swept the medals.Said Reynolds, "I got too confident. I had a lot left, but he was too far out to catch."
Jeff Hollobaugh, former managing editor of Track and Field News,
is a regular contributor to ESPN.com. He can be reached by e-mail
at michtrack@aol.com.
| ALSO SEE Kenya's Loroupe sets women's marathon record
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