OK, what if...

find a pacer who can get them to 10km, but then eases off for a bunch of laps to recover, gets lapped a few times, but then picks it up again to pace them for the last 10km. While this first pacer is taking it easier, a second pacer has picked it up to lead them for the 2nd 10km (while taking it easy and getting lapped in the first 10km)

Is that legal? If getting lapped and staying in the race is legal then they can have just about any set of pacers.

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Munq

I love that loop around the lake in St. James park for intervals (that and Green Park) when I have had layovers or biz in London. It's almost going to be like a 'track' marathon for this. Will they stay exclusively in the park or will the loop go onto the Mall to get the Buckingham Palace backdrop? Seems like you need that backdrop to one up the Brandenburg Gate backdrop where these guys set their world records.

I believe in road racing and track there is no issue with someone lapped getting back in the game! Seems like a totally legit strategy....maybe this has been the story all along to get around the pacer issue but they are not disclosing it until it happens!!!

That is false in track. A lapped runner cannot assist. This happened in 1992 Barcelona 10K on the track with collusion between Moroccans and DQed.

I Think the best Bet is to have a couple If pacers in good shape running close 1/2 WR, and keep them going under 2hr pace until they blow up and let the two help each other. The main problem being that neither of them want to help the other become the legend. Lets say bekele wins with 1:59:something, How much money Will it take to get kipchoge To agree with that? Unless he’ll actually beat the time at one point, he’ll just ve a foot note, where the other Will be the Living Legend. They’re have to decided it during the run, as to whom is to go sub 2 and the financial benefit to being the “loser” has to be much greater than the one with the honour.

ZERO PACERS

thanks.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

Normal pacers are OK....the guys who go redline from the gun and then drop off the bat and jog it in. But the question was if a guy gets lapped can he get back and pace. Kny says the lapped runner in track cannot interfere with the race. As this would be under IAAF rules, I assume same thing applies on a road course. Kny, please confirm.

A true head to head race would have zero pacers. I want to see these two dudes go mano y mano by themselves. Otherwise it's dumb for me. They don't get pacers in the Olympics.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

As far as I know, anyone still in the race, are allowed to run their own pace, even un-lap themselves and eventually win. So, if someone’s lapped and Picks up the pace, wether it’s to act as a pacer or not, should Be allowed to do so, unless rulles state you’re pulled out when lapped. Then there’s going to be the discussion about being lapped, does that mean over taken?

Yes, but they get pacers in Berlin, London, New York, Tokyo....and many other world marathons besides the world marathon majors. Its part of marathon running because the fields are never really as deep as in track. With no pacers who are paid ot hold a high pace to a certain point, it would be pretty lonely in most races. The only way those pacers subvert any payday for a slower race is getting paid for an overall slower race, but a higher front end. Most of the marathoners who end up being pacers are insanely fast in their own right. Its partially why the Olympic marathon is always 'slow' (well besides being run in mid summer in the northern hemisphere). They are racing mano mano which implicitly means slower times at the marathon.

Then it's not a real head to head race for me. Those races can have their rules, but how often do you get a head to head these days in the Men's field? True races are clearly only at the Olympics for the Marathon or at Marathon trials for the countries that select via trials.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

Anyone know where we can get a live stream overseas?

Bummer that Bekele is out!

https://www.bbc.com/...t/athletics/54386016

VPN mate.

Haha...I got Liege Bastogne Liege and Giro Stage 2 going on at the same time too!!!

I found this link for anyone interested:

https://www.virginmoneylondonmarathon.com/...-coverage/index.html

With Bekele out, the head to head is less compelling now but will try to get into this.

Less exciting than I had hoped. With Bekele out to start and then Kipchoge going for some jogging in 2:06 in 8th place:

https://www.runnersworld.com/...rathon-2020-results/

Probably no racing along the way really hurts the pointy end for these guys (plus mindset....or maybe many overtrained people because they are on a continuous build with no races in between to rest up for)

The more observant amongst you would have seen that one of the pacers today was none other than Sir Mo Farah.

It’s also worth noting that everyone at the front had the same footwear..... apart from Kipchoge.

Yeah I noticed the shoes. I assumed Kipchoge’s were just a personalised model.

Wow! He was -700 to win what a Buster Douglas level upset! Even the best have off days.

I would hazard that most of us were asleep. (I'll watch the replay) I think I've started to do some in depth thinking on pacers. If pros can have them, so should amateurs. In general, pacers for the pro degrades the actual race itself. But with that, interesting Kipchoge was dusted like that.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

There are pacers for amateurs.

No doubt your in depth thinking has already covered this but how are you defining a pace maker?

As mike s says one runner can set the pace for another runner, pro or amateur. What you will sometimes see called out is someone who is not actually entered in the race pace make for someone. That isn't allowed because of congestion and other things but people who are actually in the race can do it. At least partly because it would be hard to stop.

I'm specifically talking about some of these Marathon Majors that allow rotating pacers. I understand quite well that you can have a de facto pacer if the person is registered in the race. It's not actual mano y mano racing when you have a ton of pacers. The tactics completely change. It also makes for a rancid broadcast product.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.

Rotating like they did in the sub 2 runs? I haven't seen that outside those races or rotating like taking turns but still running the race from the beginning?

Kipchoge posted on social media that he slowed because of a "blocked ear". Not really sure what that means. Does that mean it screws with his balance so he needed to slow down or is that just like water in the ear feeling. A very weird issue.

So, that's a "thing" I suppose. https://www.healthyhearing.com/...my-ears-feel-clogged

But basically if you're probably trying to smash a marathon and you have this feeling you may have what feel like episodes of vertigo? idk that's just my googleMD thing.

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Washed up footy player turned Triathlete.