It needs to be stated clearly: everyone in that race was excellent. It was one figure of truly historical brilliance and 7 more of truly exceptional ability. There were no average or ordinary athletes here. None. At all.
It was 100 seconds of athletic perfection.
Very well put! But so sad that only track fans can understand and appreciate the greatness of that race.
I'm thinking this must be bittersweet for Nick Symmonds. He PR'd today which is all to the good, but now he is only (quote/unquote) #2 in the US after five years of "being the fastest American over 800m" or however his facebook page put it. Right now the fastest American is Duane Solomon, who, amazingly enough, has run PBs three times in less than two months, first at the US Trials, then at the Monoco DL meet, and now in the Olympic finals. The improvement each of the first two times was by over a full second, this was by more than half a second (totaling around three seconds). Incredible. Solomon's time makes him the 2nd fastest American ever, Symmonds' the 3rd fastest. Very nice work by both of them. But again, I wager Symmonds must have mixed feelings. He has attained his goal to win five straight US Championships and may feel the passing of the baton in the US men's 800m to Solomon now.
Last edited by 2x800x2 on Fri Aug 10, 2012 9:48 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Master Po wrote:I think NS ran the race of his life. I think this is something that we can disagree on.
I agree, but still wonder if he could have done better. He had so much running left in him at the end. I have to say, I hate the Borza style tactic of sitting way off the pace.
odelltrclan wrote:Very well put! But so sad that only track fans can understand and appreciate the greatness of that race.
Thanks. And I totally agree about your observation. I was also impressed by Rudisha's interview, his soft-spoken intensity. But will he "excite" the imaginations of everyday viewers? Probably not. He's not "controversial," there's no easily packaged sob story, or debilitating childhood malady. Rudisha is an athlete of transcendent perfection--in an era that has no feeling for either sublimity or perfection.
madcap76 wrote:Here's a question: when was the last time a WR was broken in the OG or WC in a middle or long distance event? I can't think of when that was. Amazing!!
I might be wrong, but if my memory serves me Alberto Juantorena broke the 800 WR in the '76 Olympic final
RE: V-ball... the complaints here are a load of crap.
Take an objective look at the way track athletes are dressed. Skin tight skimpies hiding very little and revealing a very lot. There are only two Oly sports where competitors reveal so much flesh - beach V-ball and T&F.
Moreoever, with track and field steadliy loosing fanbase in America a bit of barbecue mentality would not hurt the sport a bit. We tend to view track stadiums as sanctified areas where things are to be taken much too seriously. Give most people a choice of spending an afternoon watching beach volleyball or a track meet and the choice does not go the way we would prefer.
And, yes, whether you like it or not Misty May is one of the greatest American athletes of this generation.
But why hi-jack this thread with lame laments about other sports?
A lot more interesting to me is how much commentary there is about Symmonds and so little about Solomon, who has clearly established himself as THE best American 800 meter runner and who ran a much smarter race and gave himself a real chance to make the podium.
jhc68 wrote:so little about Solomon, who has clearly established himself as THE best American 800 meter runner and who ran a much smarter race and gave himself a real chance to make the podium.
Agreed, his positioning was perfect, not in the crowd but not out of touch.
Randy Treadway wrote:How much would, say the Berlin meet, pay the two for a match race between Rudisha and Bolt at 400 meters?
Let's hope it happens. Rudisha says he and Bolt have talked about it. However, if they want to maximise their commercial value it would probably need to happen pretty soon.
Master Po wrote:I think NS ran the race of his life. I think this is something that we can disagree on.
I agree, but still wonder if he could have done better. He had so much running left in him at the end. I have to say, I hate the Borza style tactic of sitting way off the pace.
I have to disagree with you here. Nick in the last 10-15 meters looked like he was starting to rig. I think he ran great but doubt he had any more to give in the home stretch. Eitherway, my hats off to both NS and DS. I never thought I'd see the day where TWO Americans run sub 1:43 in an Olympic fiansl and place 4th and 5th
kuha wrote: As flaming jackass you are no journeyman.
temper, temper.
kuha wrote:Thanks. And I totally agree about your observation. I was also impressed by Rudisha's interview, his soft-spoken intensity. But will he "excite" the imaginations of everyday viewers? Probably not. He's not "controversial," there's no easily packaged sob story, or debilitating childhood malady. Rudisha is an athlete of transcendent perfection--in an era that has no feeling for either sublimity or perfection.
And true that as well. Another way of saying that no-one on this planet can compare to him in regards to the 800m.
Dutra5 wrote:If I never see another beach volleyball game again it'll be too soon. I don't care what the women wear...or rather....don't wear.
Thank God I am not alone with this. This is a picnic / barbeque event. How did it get into the Olympics.
You all realize Beach Volleyball going to become a NCAA sport (hello Title IX)?
Tell me you're lying! Ridiculous!
You caught me... Sand Volleyball is not going to become a NCAA sport... it is a NCAA sport. Pepperdine wins inaugural college sand volleyball crown April 28, 2012 "Beach volleyball rode an American sweep of the gold medals at the Beijing Olympics into a semi-official status as a collegiate sport the next year. It gained approval as an emerging sport for women, which allows schools to form teams and begin competing while the NCAA gauges whether there's enough interest for an official championship."
Amazing race. I'd wondered beforehand if DR made a break, if the field would cede gold and play for silver. But kudos to all, they chased him (granted, to no avail) and risked fading out of the medals from the effort, but they went for it. Awesome.
Re Nick S: during the "journeyman" thread, it occurred to me that Symmonds is track's Andy Murray. Top 5 in the world, but happened to arise concurrent to a transcendent athlete. Rudisha is his Federer/Nadal; take him away and Nick's in the running for #1, but as long as DR is there NS is a shade below. But Murray broke through last week (granted, Olys are not quite Grand Slams to them); maybe one day Symmonds will too! Re Solomon, amazing improvement, still relatively new on the int'l scene, and great to have domestic competition for NS. Best US 800 1-2 showing in a long time!
I can only agree with everyone else on here: this was one of the very greatest performances and races ever. I was stunned when the WR figures flashed up. And then when I saw the times posted by everyone else in the race....Undoubtably the greatest performance and race of the games.
skiboo wrote:Juantorena's Monreal WR (1:43.50) would have placed him last in today's race.
That's because London's Track is the fastest Track ever made period. 1:43.50 in what 1976 Juantorena was not running on a trampoline his track didn't give back energy it took it.
I watched the race live on BBC One and the commentators made it known that this 800 was truly epic. And after the race, paraphrasing Michael Johnson, he indicated the sport fails to promote itself or its heroic performances outside of Bolt or sprinters. And as I watch NBC's prime time broadcast the way the race was called on the BBC and the way Tom Hammond called it was a major contrast with NBC not even acknowledging the great performances from all the entire field. There was no mention of the two Americans running sub 1:43 or the fact that two teenagers ran faster than the American and Olympic records and from places 1 - 8 were the best marks ever for place.
I called my wife at work and told her she'd see something special and not just from Bolt tonight. But the call by NBC and Tom Hammond didn't make her fully aware of how truly special Rudisha and the field were in the final.
Bolt is truly great, but today's 800 should be the above tomorrow's cutline - not below it.
I don't know why anyone is getting all excited about Rudisha, or Bolt for that matter. Yes, they are great, champions, world record-holders, etc.... but then, by definition, everyone they beat are mere journeymen. So, what's the big deal about beating journeymen - seems sort of average and every day to me ! You know, there is only one non-journeyman allowed per event, right ? No wonder our sport is do damned boring !
beasleye wrote:I watched the race live on BBC One and the commentators made it known that this 800 was truly epic. And after the race, paraphrasing Michael Johnson, he indicated the sport fails to promote itself or its heroic performances outside of Bolt or sprinters. And as I watch NBC's prime time broadcast the way the race was called on the BBC and the way Tom Hammond called it was a major contrast with NBC not even acknowledging the great performances from all the entire field. There was no mention of the two Americans running sub 1:43 or the fact that two teenagers ran faster than the American and Olympic records and from places 1 - 8 were the best marks ever for place.
I called my wife at work and told her she'd see something special and not just from Bolt tonight. But the call by NBC and Tom Hammond didn't make her fully aware of how truly special Rudisha and the field were in the final.
Bolt is truly great, but today's 800 should be the above tomorrow's cutline - not below it.
Truth to be told, maybe they should not have the 800m final on the same night as the 200m. Bolt is evidently the major showpiece of the sports (even when he runs 10.04 ) so he was always going to overshadow anyone else. It's unfair to Rudisha to have set a world record and play second fiddle. Dont do it again Mr. IOC.
zidan wrote:Truth to be told, maybe they should not have the 800m final on the same night as the 200m. Bolt is evidently the major showpiece of the sports (even when he runs 10.04 ) so he was always going to overshadow anyone else. It's unfair to Rudisha to have set a world record and play second fiddle. Dont do it again Mr. IOC.
I agree with you but remember that NBC is the tail wagging the IOC dog. Do you remember when the swimming finals were moved to morning so that American viewers could see them in primetime? And what about the recent schedule change that has track closing out with the 4x100 instead of the 4x400? The IOC caters to NBC and NBC caters to Joe Sixpack.
DrJay wrote:Diamond League 800s coming up in Stockholm (Aug 17) and Zurich (Aug 30).
I thought about the DL, but then how is Rudisha ever going to find a rabbit as good as himself? Think about it, the reason that all those PR's were set today is because you had an elite field chasing a rabbit that is of a much better quality than the rabbits they'll ever face on the DL circuit.
) so he was always going to overshadow anyone else. It's unfair to Rudisha to have set a world record and play second fiddle. Dont do it again Mr. IOC.