Whittni had knee surgery a few months back and is going to the Olympics.
the roller coaster she's been on, thinking surgery might end her Olympic quest, only to rehab and make it to the Trials, come in 5th and think she just missed it, then finds out a week later she's going to Paris. Unreal.
smart to not double the 5 and 10 in Olympics. would have been brutal.
I still wonder if Hobbs Kessler doubles. for as talented as he is, that's a hell of a lot of running for someone his age.
Very different from someone like Parker who just went through a full NCAA season
Also the schedule is so great for him. The 800m is all gravy and he can run free, which means he may run better.
I'm impressed Parker's not holding on to both spots like a hoarder, just cause she can. With Hobbs in those events, anything can happen. But with Parker in the longer events, it does make sense that "anything can happen" is more likely to happen if you focus on one.
The 10000m is a straight final - she can put all her eggs in one basket and go for it. Now that there are no time qualifiers for 5000m, the races will likely be tactically about kicking - not her strength.
It was low to mid 60s for her 30:50. If she gets lucky with similar weather, I’m sure she can improve on that by at 10-20 seconds in a fast race. 6 weeks off to prepare for one race helps a lot.
The 10000m is a straight final - she can put all her eggs in one basket and go for it. Now that there are no time qualifiers for 5000m, the races will likely be tactically about kicking - not her strength.
Sweet Jesus, didn't we put this to bed? She wins by a country mile, she must not have a kick, she runs down Karissa and darn near Kelati, she still has no kick?'
Explain something to me, where are all these sit and kick races she has lost that earned her this scarlett letter?
Shes not Hassan, but she kicks as well as any american , clearly (above 5000). Show m any evidence at all to the contrary?
The 10000m is a straight final - she can put all her eggs in one basket and go for it. Now that there are no time qualifiers for 5000m, the races will likely be tactically about kicking - not her strength.
I think we could see the race-within-the-race string out. In the recent Euro Champs (run at night in warm conditions), with 800m to go, Diane van Es (25yr) and Keith (22yr) were right there with Battocletti (24yr), but the latter broke away with 600m to go, finishing in 30:51, closing in 70/65. Diane van Es closed in 72/69, and Keith in 75/74.
Thus, Kelati will need to be ahead of Battocletti at the bell to have a shot at beating her. Kelati might be following a faster African, trying to approach her 30:34 PB, a challenge in the heat of Paris.
Battocletti will be stalking Kelati, hoping to better her 30:51 PB, maybe with a 30:45, or even a 30:40 if she runs only the 10000m.
good choice after a long season. Could have been tough for her to make the 5k final anyway, might as well just put all your eggs in one basket and help someone else make it to Paris