22 @ 5:40 @ 7,000 feet is too slow to compete with the big boys.
Renato Canova:
"Renato Canova:
"I want to solve the mystery.
In Kenya, we have a place called Nangili, where all the marathon runners living near Eldoret go for their long run.
About one month before the race, we use to do, with the most part of athletes, 40 km (20 km going a little bit uphill, from 2020m till 2180m of altitude, then coming back, with the second 20 km favourable) very fast, as control of the shape, and this is the last workout of full distance at high intensity.
Before 2010, nobody there ran under 2:13:00.
At the beginning of 2011, we started running faster, and Moses Mosop ran 2:07:15.
After his result in Boston, the most part of top marathon runners started to run faster in that course.
Last year, before London, Abel Kirui ran in 2:04:57, and this became the parameter for the other best athletes.
Wilson, in the past, was used to run in about 2:10:00 (before OG 2:09:12 in muddy conditions).
Looking at an attempt of WR, I advised him to put two new things in his training :
1. Something longer than 40 km (and he ran 45 km at 90% of Marathon speed)
2. More intensity (and consequentely longer recovery in between) in some of his workouts of distance.
So, he went on the normal course in Nangili (I repeat, 40 km with 20 going up and 20 coming back) in 2:03:32, beating the "course record" of Abel Kirui.
You must think I consider about 1 minute of difference every 10 km between the same training at sea level (tarmac and racing shoes) and in Nangili (normally, heavy training shoes and road with less grip). The difference in running there or at sea level, instead, if the condition of the road is the same, in my opinion is about 3.0 per km (30.0 every 10 km). This means Wilson practically ran, 4 weeks before Berlin, 40 km in less than 2 hours, referred to the conditions of the race."