I agree on your comment about Dan O’Brian. Even for his world record in 1992 he was only able to produce a 4:42 min over 1,500 meters. I always felt he left points on the track at this last of the 10 events, which ultimately was the reason he could not crack the 9,000 points barrier as the first decathlete in history. Most likely it was a mental barrier for him to attack the 1,500 meter. Somebody who is able to run sub 48 second over 400 meters should be able to run a sub 4:30 minutes over 1,500 meters. Then again nobody is perfect, even the Kings of track & field.
John, I am glad Ayden could destroy a lot of your preconceived notions about decathletes...haha. What a first day and plenty of room for improvement on the second day; besides the phenomenal 1,500 m, maybe.
I am certain I cannot imagine the fatigue that decathletes feel prior to the start of the 1,500 meters. But I have to admit it always bothered me that a decathlete as great as Dan O'Brien couldn't -- or wouldn't -- run a decent 1,500 at the end of most of his decathlons. In regards to Owens, he appears to be giving away a lot of points in the shot put, discus, and javelin. I will be very interested to see what the future has in store for him IF he makes substantial improvements in those three events.
I agree on your comment about Dan O’Brian. Even for his world record in 1992 he was only able to produce a 4:42 min over 1,500 meters. I always felt he left points on the track at this last of the 10 events, which ultimately was the reason he could not crack the 9,000 points barrier as the first decathlete in history. Most likely it was a mental barrier for him to attack the 1,500 meter. Somebody who is able to run sub 48 second over 400 meters should be able to run a sub 4:30 minutes over 1,500 meters. Then again nobody is perfect, even the Kings of track & field.
John, I am glad Ayden could destroy a lot of your preconceived notions about decathletes...haha. What a first day and plenty of room for improvement on the second day; besides the phenomenal 1,500 m, maybe.
I am certain I cannot imagine the fatigue that decathletes feel prior to the start of the 1,500 meters. But I have to admit it always bothered me that a decathlete as great as Dan O'Brien couldn't -- or wouldn't -- run a decent 1,500 at the end of most of his decathlons. In regards to Owens, he appears to be giving away a lot of points in the shot put, discus, and javelin. I will be very interested to see what the future has in store for him IF he makes substantial improvements in those three events.