Cold Hocker is the next El Guerrouj

Bad Wigins wrote:

Hocker is pretty good but will never be the best, which makes him the next Galen Rupp.

He'll mix it up a bit with the Norwegians and new North Africans, as Rupp did with the East Africans, but he won't ever beat them. He won't lose by very much. Respectable and he will always be honored at Hayward Field.

This is probably correct EXCEPT the odds are pretty good that he won’t even be a factor by the time he is 28. This is the reality. Guys like Centro, Spivey and Scott are the exception. Most middle distance talents are done by age 28.

Then he'll be the next Alan Webb.

Cold Hocker is sick!

Webb ran 1:43.84 in a winning effort, but he had never broken 1:46 until that season when he ran low 1:45 in a small meet in Sweden, I think, and then under 1:44. He always had the speed to do it but hadn't put it together. He was a 1:42 guy in potential, at least, with concentration on the event. But he got injured in the pr race. So, until 2007, six years out of his high school 3:53, he too was a 1:46 guy.

OozmaKappa wrote:

Salvitore Stitchmo wrote:

I'm sorry why wouldn't a fan of American distance running be a fan of Cole Hocker? He's probably the most talented American born miler you have had since Jim Ryun.

I'm not even American and I think his talent is exceptional.

Fair point, as it pertains to liking the guy. Very true. Yeah he's the best we've got, of course americans will be fans. But let's not get fanatical. Problem is a lot of people are delusional about how competitive our country's distance runners are.

Hocker had no international races under his belt in Tokyo.

None. No one else in the 1500 in Tokyo had zero experience, in the prelims, the semis, or the finals.

Jakob has 100s & 100s of professional races already.

Kerr, Cheruiyot, Jakob, Kipsang beat him sure, but Hocker out kicked Wightman, Hoare, & McSweyn in the final which was exactly his 3rd international race ever.

Also of note. ....Hocker's better than Kerr was at this point in the NCAA

In 2024 Hocker is on the podium.

....Along with the even more talented Hobbs Kessler!

Man white Americans have to do the bare minimum to get called a legend lol. Thank you again for the laughs Letsrun messageboard. You girls never disappoint me😂😂.

Bad Wigins wrote:

Hocker is pretty good but will never be the best, which makes him the next Galen Rupp.

He'll mix it up a bit with the Norwegians and new North Africans, as Rupp did with the East Africans, but he won't ever beat them. He won't lose by very much. Respectable and he will always be honored at Hayward Field.

If he gets a silver and bronze at the Olympics like Rupp that would be a pretty good career.

Bad Wigins wrote:

Hocker is pretty good but will never be the best, which makes him the next Galen Rupp.

He'll mix it up a bit with the Norwegians and new North Africans, as Rupp did with the East Africans, but he won't ever beat them. He won't lose by very much. Respectable and he will always be honored at Hayward Field.

Rupp never the East Africans? Rupp won a World Marathon Major and two Olympic Games medals. Lets review.

At the 2017 Chicago Marathon, Rupp beat Abel Kirui, a 2x World Marathon Champion and 2016 Chicago Marathon winner and Bernard Kipyego, the 2014 & 2015 Marathon Winner.

In 2012, in the Olympic 10,000 M Final, Rupp outkicked Keninisa Bekele (and Tariku Bekele in 4th and 3rd respectively). Four people have outkicked Bekele in Olympic track finals - Farah, El G, his brother, and Rupp.

In 2016, Rupp beat Chirmay Chebreslassie, the 2015 World Marathon Champ and Stephen Kiprotich, the 2012 Olympic Marathon Champ and 2013 World Marathon Champ.

Back to original topic: Hocker needs to do more than win a national title to rightfully be seen as the second coming of El G. Especially, since there's already an Olympic record Champ, 3:47 20 year old miler out there.

Burrito Vixen wrote:

Man white Americans have to do the bare minimum to get called a legend lol. Thank you again for the laughs Letsrun messageboard. You girls never disappoint me😂😂.

Reported for racism

You're not seriously counting B-major Chicago as "beating the east Africans" are you? Rupp ran there specifically because the best east Africans don't run it. The best don't even run on US soil at all generally. Olympic marathons don't count either, not only do few of the best want to run them, they're unfairly limited to 3 or 4 entrants from a country that has 20 potential winners. Of course Rupp bets on that. Not on Berlin, London, Doha, where he would be destroyed, a full kilometer or more behind the winner.

The London silver was nice but KB was well past his prime and he didn't beat Farah. Like I said, he mixed it up, but never won. Pretty good! But let's not get carried away.

Bad Wigins is actually making sense here. Let us give credit where it is due.

no he isnt,not unless he can win world titles,and perhaps run 1500's in 3.24,which would be the equivelent time to el guerrouj in vaporfly spikes.i doubt he'll do any of that,although he has great range,and a good finishing kick.

I have been quite positive on Hocker since his 3:50 mile in the early season. Having considered him to be the best bet for an American medal in the Tokyo 1500m. BUT..........

Hocker has only been running at a high level this year so I think we should give him at least one more season before we are evaluating his potential.

Alan Webb had a marvellous season at 18 but didn´t run really well again before he was 24. Webb never had more than these good seasons. AND........

As pointed out by others there is already another youngster (9 month older than Hocker) who might be about to challenge the goat´s WRs. So in order to be the goat himself Hocker needs to improve to be the best ever middle and distance runner (at least born outside Africa). This is a hard task but not impossible.

Hocker needs to train right and with the same discipline as the Norwegian youngster mainly focusing on the development of the aerobic capacity to get there.