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News20 Feb 1998


Daniel Komen’s exceptional record in the 5000m indoors presages a new revolution in middle distance running

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Daniel Komen’s exceptional record in the 5000m indoors presages a new revolution in middle distance running
20 February 1998 - Kenyan Daniel Komen’s 5000m world record in the Globe Arena, Stockholm on Thursday evening, is one of the most exceptional results ever obtained in indoor athletics. Although it was considered probable that the 21-year old Kenyan would improve on the world record of 12:59.04 Haile Gebrselassie (ETH) set on the same track last year, nobody could have imagined that the improvement would have been so spectacular: 12:51.48, in other words an improvement of almost eight seconds..

But Daniel Komen, who is revolutionising middle distance running as only Paavo Nurmi (FIN), Emil Zatopek of Czechoslovakia and Henry Rono (KEN) had done in the past, has genetic qualities which surpass our imagination. If we look at the splits of Thursday’s race, it is astounding to see how the pace increased as the fatigue level augmented: 2:34.5 for the first kilometre, 2:38.2 for the second, 2:34.5 for the third (3000m in 7:47.2...), 2:32.4 for the fourth and, finally, 2:31.8 for the final 1000m. It should be underlined that up until the third kilometre mark, Komen was helped by his compatriots Robert Kibet and David Kisang , whilst he was running alone for the remainder of the race. The help given by the so-called rabbits, or pacemakers, is largely psychological, enabling the following athlete to run "relaxed". Komen said after the record-breaking race: "..about halfway through I heard the music in the hall and that gave me my rhythm. That proved enough on its own, but I know I could have run even faster."

This is the secret of champions: being able to economise one’s strength right up to the point where you have to draw on every hidden reserve of energy. "In the marathon, you have to be able to run in your sleep for at least 30 km, if you want to have any hope of winning" was a favourite phrase of Italian Gelindo Bordin, Olympic champion in Seoul 1988.

There is no doubt that, in Stockholm, Komen was dozing until the third kilometre, waking up to kick out for the last two kilometres. A devastating attack which opened new perspective for the forthcoming outdoor season. Just how fast can Daniel Komen go?

There is no doubt that the Kenyan is already able to run the 5000m, on a 400m track in around 12:30, which would knock nine seconds off the world record mark of 12:39.74 he set on 22 August 1997 in Brussels. Indeed, if we estimate at 20 seconds the advantage that a loose-limbed and long-striding athlete like Komen would gain in the longer straights and more open bends, this would be be a conservative estimate. We may well have a taste of the what the season has to offer very soon: in Melbourne, in the first meeting of the IAAF Grand Prix II; three days later, in Sydney, he will run the two miles, with the target of beating his own world record for the distance (7:58.61 on 19 July 1997 in Hechtel).

Haile Gebrselassie was not so successful in the Stockholm meeting and failed to get near the 3000m world record (7:24.90 by Komen on 6 February in Budapest). Truthfully, this was not surprising: that Gebrselassie was not on his best form, we saw in Birmingham the previous weekend, when he had to struggle to better the 2000m world record of 4:54..07, set 11 years before by Ireland’s Eamon Coghlan and take the mark to 4:52.86. Gebrselassie has dropped out of Sunday’s meeting in Lievin, where he was to compete in the 5000m, following his 7:31.70 in Stockholm. He has a slight flu’ and, above all, is tired: his tense style certainly requires him to expend more energy than Komen.

But the middle distance races were not the only events enjoyed by the 20,000 spectators in Stockholm. Excellent the 7.06 in the 60m of Olympic long jump champion Chioma Ajunwa (NIG) and the 50.94 of Grit Breuer (GER) in the 400m, who seems an almost certain winner of the European indoor title in Valencia. The Bulgarian Magdalena Khristova, with 6.92 in the long jump; Maria Mutola (MOZ), with 1:57.90 in the 800m, and Igor Potapovitch (KZK) and Maxim Tarasov (RUS) 5.92 in the pole vault also all set world season’s bests in their events.

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