Well I have 6 years to get to 2:30 with the advantage of being a man but the disadvantage of not having been an excellent junior runner. 2:13 I think might just be beyond me a tad.
Yeah, and in the post race interview she reminded me a lot of Stephanie Cook immediately post Sydney gold - in that both seem totally amazed at their own performance, and utterly humble.
Great performance by TM, she only got an entry because Bud Baldaro sorted her out after being turned down, how many other olympic hopefulls, or potential UK internationals have we lost from the sport because they were turned down for a place in favour of that bloke who didn't train and just ate fry up's every day?
Imp - to be fair I think most hopefuls would probably have been able to get a GFA place if they needed it. TM is (I assume) a bit of a one-off in not having a sub 3:45 to post in the last two years.
Definitely the story of the day, fantastic achievement, it would be nice to think I could knock an hour off my marathon time but i have a) no talent and b) no intention of running another
Pleased that Jon Brown made his time, despite all the BS about his involvement
I think that one or two people have been a bit hard on JB. He's a decent man who works hard at his game and has a record that stacks up pretty well against that of a certain Mr Bedford (who never came fourth in any major championships BTW). I don't think he should have got appearance money, but I don't think he deserved the slagging he got either.
Well done to Tracey though - gives us all hope....
Whatever you think of Brown he looked so good, obviously taking it reletively easy, he's easily the best distance runner in the UK at the moment and our only hope for a top finish in Athens. Chaos, Morris may be a one off, but how many good runners get turned down for places every year. There could be loads of runners who run their first marathon in the mid 3 hours and then decide to train harder just like Morris but we loose them because some bloke wants to walk round in 7 hours. Then we all moan because British elite distance running is rubbish.
Tracey will have started with the elite women wont she? Whatever you say about the organisation, the GFA entry system is a "good thing" and is open to everyone.
The only real way to do what Tracey Morris did is to clock an elite time elsewhere, and get in that way. Its getting harder to do because of the reduced number of opportunities that present themselves, as the available pool of remaining UK marathons reduces.
There's nothing to say you have to run your Olympic qualifying time at the FLM. I'd have thought it might be a little easier to do it at smaller marathons. Just because it is so difficult to get a place for London isn't a barrier to improving your marathon time. Just means you wont get all the telly coverage.
But the cr@p in todays rag: Ive just read my Mates Sun on pages 14. Quote "Fun Runnner Wins Olympic Place - Page 46". They're referring to Tracy Morris as a fun runner, and then they do they're typical comparison between TM and Paula Radcliffe (ie earnings to date etc).
Let's be fair, the TV coverage and especially the guys on the radio went a bit over the top with their description of Tracey as 'a novice' and 'only been running for 18 months'. It is certainly true that she's only been training 'seriously' for 18 months or so, but she was still capable of very fast times before then!
Not that I'm having a go - she has transformed herself massively and it just goes to show what you can achieve through hard work (and trust me, Tracey is amazingly fast in training!)
Well done Tracey, even I had a tear of happiness in my eye as you finished.
Well she certainly appeared to have enjoyed her race - better than some of the po faced reactions elsewhere. She's no novice though, and anyone who says she is hasn't done much research.
It may well be possible to post an Olympic Qualifying time in a "Provincial" marathon, however I doubt it would carry as much weight as one posted at London.
Who knows maybe she will be the dark horse in Athens! She did 2:33h with hardly any experience over the marathon distance, maybe with a few more months full time training she can be around 2:25h. Hope it will inspire more people to get into running.
I think weight might in this case mean future sponsor/start money-plus it's a bit harder for selectors to over look you when the tabloids and public are putting your case forward.
I suspect that the selectors would do a double take if Tracey had clocked her time at (Say) Blackpool or Leeds, and another, better known runner had done a qualifying time at London. The public would expect the FLM runner to get selected becuase they'd had to sit for hours listening to Messers Cram & co burbling about it for hours on end.
In those circumstances I wouldn't bet my mortage on Tracey.
Yep, it may not happen any more but I vaguely remember 20+ years ago there being some upsets when less well known runners had clocked better times than those selected but were not considered to have a sufficient track record to be trusted with a place. Please correct me if I'm wrong on that.
Comments
now what was that trainig schedule?
And which charity was Jon Brown running for?
I met him at Lanzarote´s International Challenge last November. A very nice guy, an authentic club runner who now is on his way to Athens.
Tracey Morris - inspirational performance
BO
Apparently TM was an excellent junior runner who let it go for a number of years. A great story.
15 J Brown (Sheffield) 2:13:39
16 D Robinson (Tipton) 2:13:53
Now 36 - that is inspiration!
- 'Eat and Breathe' running (ie no other job), supported by a whole team of professionals (physios, nutritionists, ...) and 140mpw: PB = 2h15
or
- Have full time job, 36 yo, been running for only 18 months, 70mpw: PB = 2.33
Great story, great stuff. Weren't the Olympics supposed to be about people like TM?!
Pleased that Jon Brown made his time, despite all the BS about his involvement
Well done to Tracey though - gives us all hope....
Chaos, Morris may be a one off, but how many good runners get turned down for places every year. There could be loads of runners who run their first marathon in the mid 3 hours and then decide to train harder just like Morris but we loose them because some bloke wants to walk round in 7 hours. Then we all moan because British elite distance running is rubbish.
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr ...
But the cr@p in todays rag:
Ive just read my Mates Sun on pages 14. Quote "Fun Runnner Wins Olympic Place - Page 46". They're referring to Tracy Morris as a fun runner, and then they do they're typical comparison between TM and Paula Radcliffe (ie earnings to date etc).
Not that I'm having a go - she has transformed herself massively and it just goes to show what you can achieve through hard work (and trust me, Tracey is amazingly fast in training!)
Well done Tracey, even I had a tear of happiness in my eye as you finished.
It may well be possible to post an Olympic Qualifying time in a "Provincial" marathon, however I doubt it would carry as much weight as one posted at London.
I suspect that the selectors would do a double take if Tracey had clocked her time at (Say) Blackpool or Leeds, and another, better known runner had done a qualifying time at London. The public would expect the FLM runner to get selected becuase they'd had to sit for hours listening to Messers Cram & co burbling about it for hours on end.
In those circumstances I wouldn't bet my mortage on Tracey.