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Aug
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I have just finished reading an Interview of Samuel Wanjiru on Daily Nation Newspaper, on how he won Beijing Olympic Marathon. If you thought lack of sleep, anxiety, fear and self doubt is the stuff of amateur runners, you will be interested to know Samuel Wanjiru didn’t sleep on the eve of the marathon.
Samuel Wanjiru Couldn’t sleep on the eve of the marathon.
The 21 year Olympic medal winner admitted he spent the whole night thinking about the marathon. He only relaxed in the morning when he met fellow runners, Martin Lel and Luke Kibet who also admitted they had also not slept at all.
Lack of sleep on the eve of a marathon afflict all runners, the best advice I read was on the runners guide book of my first Stanchart Nairobi marathon: If you cant sleep you can try to relax. If that is hard you can check my previous post, Foods you can eat to help you sleep on the eve of a marathon
Samuel had doubts about his chances
He was confident of a Kenyan win but he knew team mate Martin Lel would win the race because he has a stronger finishing kick.
Who said progression running is the best race strategy?
In soccer they say the best defence is attack. Samuel hit the tarmac on a fast pace because according to the assumptions of his Japanese coach, “It was hot and humid in Beijing and thats why it was important for Wanjiru to run fast in the lead group so that by the time the temperatures rose, it was difficult for the chasing pack to catch him. I think that is what happened. A perfect strategy by the coach!
The Pounding heart
I remember as he zoomed into the bird nest, I saw a smiling face but according to Samuel, his heart was pounding heavily. Sometimes looks can be deceiving!
Samuel Wanjiru Beijing 5K split times
1st 5 Kms – 14 mins 52 secs
2nd 5 Kms (10Km) – 14 mins 34 secs
3rd 5 Km (15Km) – 15 Min 11 Secs
4th 5 Km (20Km) – 14 Min 33 Secs
5th 5 Km (25Km) – 14 Min 48 Secs
6th 5 km (30Km) – 15 Min 16 Secs
7th 5 Km (35 Km) – 15 Min 23 secs
8th 5 Km ( 40 Km) – 15 Min 17 Secs
At 21 years, you can expect to hear more from this young man.
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