El G leaving practice in his Jeep. The mile king has departed, which doesn't stop the self-directed roadside training session of three young schoolboys, who say they "want to be like El Guerrouj." These kids have observed enough world-class distance runners in action around Ifrane to pull off a passable imitation of their heroes' and heroines' form drills. Three Moroccan runnners, two women and a man, run roadside strides near the Royal Circuit forest above Ifrane (altitude c1800m/6000ft). A Royal Moroccan Track & Field Federation (FRMDA) van. The federation invests large amounts of energy and money in identifying and developing young talent, especially middle distance and distance runnners. Only in a country like Morocco near a town like Ifrane are you likely to spot a runner the caliber of Hasna Benhassi (1:57.45 PR for 800) just by driving down the road. El Guerrouj, bundled up in an overcoat against outside temperatures that have dropped to freezing or below on the penultimate evening in March, meets journalists at their hotel for an interview session over dinner. El G's rail-thin build seems accentuated by the street clothes. El Guerrouj mulls over an interview question. The topic of this Q&A session was the upcoming 50th anniversary of Roger Bannister's historic first sub-4:00 mile. El Guerrouj--who debuted in the 1500 at 4:01 and in the mile at 3:53--admitted his personal perspective offers limited insight into the "4:00 barrier" and events of 1954. Time marches on. The Royal Moroccan Institute of Track & Field, housed in a former hotel in Rabat, serves as a full-time training facility for 150 athletes, 115 of whom are housed here. There are two athlete dining rooms at the Institute of Track & Field. This list is posted on the door of the elite restaurant, where stars who have achieved certain performance standards sit at reserved tables and are served by wait staff. The list identifies which athletes may eat therein.