Forums >General Running>Dream Races
Tell me some fantasy races that never happened, or could never happen (i.e., runners were from different eras, their schedules never synced up to run a particular event/surface head to head, etc.). Runners can be from any background, time period, and specialty. You can even throw in some matchups that could still theoretically happen in the real world, no matter how unlikely. I'll start: Dave Wottle vs. Matt Centrowitz vs Peter Snell, 1000 meters. This race has America's latest 800 Olympic champ, same for the 1500, and the Kiwi who was the only man to win both in the same year. Wottle and Snell had world records to their names, but they ran in less competitive days than Centro. Personally, I'd go with Wottle; we all know about his 1972 gold-medal race, but he also held the 800 meter world record for a time--plus, he actually saw the mile as his best distance, and ran elite times to back the claim. I think Centro's edge from training in the modern age is negligible here, since he consistently relies on a tactical, kick-centric race plan. Snell was a track titan in the mid-60s, but I doubt he would be able to hang onto Wottle and Centro's superhuman finishing speed. Ultimately, I say it's a close win for Wottle, simply because he was less dependent than his fellow American on strategic positioning when beating opponents.
Are we there, yet?
I think you grossly underestimate Snell. Note that it was Snell's 800m record of 1:44.3 that Wottle tied. Snell also held the world record for 1000m, and his then world record of 3:54.4 was run on grass, not the faster surface of a cinder or composite track. He was also capable of running 25 seconds for the final 200m of a 1500m race.
BTW Snell was the second runner to win both the 800m and 1500m in the same Olympics. Albert Hill of Great Britain did it in 1920.
2024 Races:
03/09 - Livingston Oval Ultra 6-Hour, 22.88 miles
05/11 - D3 50K 05/25 - What the Duck 12-Hour
06/17 - 6 Days in the Dome 12-Hour.
You're right about Hill, I forgot him (though I think you'll agree he would be a non-factor in a race like this). You make a fair point about Snell's closing speed, but he wasn't moving as quickly in the prior stages of those fast-finishing 1500 races as Wottle and Centro have on multiple occasions. Therefore, I'm still not convinced that he would have as much left in the tank as the Americans by the time they rounded the final bend.
Snell set the 800m world record on a wet grass track. It's still a NZ national record, and neither Wottle nor Centrowitz have run faster on modern track surfaces. Over 1,000m he would take out either of those two, probably by even more if they'd come down and run it on the grass in Christchurch.
3,000m: 9:07.7 (Nov-21) | 5,000m: 15:39 (Dec-19) | 10,000m: 32:34 (Mar-20)
10km: 33:15 (Sep-19) | HM: 1:09:41 (May-21)* | FM: 2:41:41 (Oct-20)
* Net downhill course
Last race: Waterfront HM, 7 Apr, 1:15:48
Up next: Runway5, 4 May
"CONSISTENCY IS KING"
Problem Child
Hillary Clinton vs Condoleeza Rice.
EDIT: I mean Jim Walmsley vs Scott Jurek or even Kilian Jornet Burgada.
Many of us aren't sure what the hell point you are trying to make and no matter how we guess, it always seems to be something else. Which usually means a person is doing it on purpose.
VDOT 53.37
5k18:xx | Marathon 2:55:22