Ask Yourself Why … by NORRIE WILLIAMSON
ASK YOURSELF WHY …
Ask Yourself Why … by NORRIE WILLIAMSON
Why Riga 2023 is the Future
Having attended the World Athletics Road Running Championships in Riga , Latvia on the first weekend of October , both in a personal capacity as a technical official as well as representing Modern Athlete as a media correspondent , I saw first-hand how the sport is changing in exciting and forwardlooking ways .
The World Athletics Road Running Championships launched the sport on a new trajectory . The strategic mix of distances , participants and objectives brought life to a previously highly-focused championships that ‘ only ’ put the spotlight on those elite athletes who competed over the 21km distance , by including 5km and 1 mile distances for the first time , as well as public participation .
This is thanks to the new leadership in the sport that evolved out of the 2015 Beijing congress and elections , which has seen World Athletics acknowledge the opportunity , requirement and benefits of mixing participation with performance . Road Running is the perfect vehicle for such a project , and is one of a very few sports where the person in the street can line up alongside the very best in the world , compete over the identical challenge and compare results , experiences , and outcomes after the finish line .
Getting back to the elite racing , the South African team ’ s success in Riga , both as individuals and as teams in the half marathon , with nearly all of our athletes posting new personal bests , has been well documented in recent weeks . Equally , their enjoyment and respect for the new competition is going to see many others want to follow in their footsteps , and fight for selection to future editions of these World Champs .
The Mile
While this is true of any road race , the choice of distances adds many more aspects , as the mile has the potential of attracting both track and road athletes . When American Hobbs Kessler and Diribe Welteji of Ethiopia ran 3:56.13 and 4:20.98 in Riga to rewrite the men ’ s and women ’ s World Road Mile Records respectively , they threw down the gauntlet to the world ’ s best track specialists to better their mark and to earn world titles .
Although the road mile has been around for years , the new format includes many features that will ensure a more exciting outcome . The previous tendency was to have an A to B format , which not surprisingly did little to excite spectators , who only saw a flashing glimpse of the competition as it passed , and then awaited news of the outcome . With the record attempts on the road mile now having to conform to road rules of under 50 % in separation of start and finish , and an elevation drop not more than 1.6 metres , the configuration will give spectators more opportunity to watch at two or more points , without having to be ( and beat ) world class athletes . Additionally , as with all road events , there are opportunities to host both women-only events , or women ’ s record attempts in a mixed race ( where male pacers can be allocated to further close that 25 second gap ).
The mile is the ideal distance to bring generations together . Using time as seeding for wave starts , it is possible for three or more generations of a family to compete or share the exhilaration of running the classic distance . Furthermore , it ’ s a distance that is equally as safe for the growing child as it is manageable for the aging grandfather , or even great grandfather , and everyone between . The mile also presents as an ideal test distance for any athlete trying to predict fitness and ability over a longer upcoming race distance , from 5km to 100km . And this ability to have wave starts by relevant categories makes this an exciting event to tap into many communities .
The 5km
Research has shown that the 5km distance is currently the most popular around the world , and importantly , the distance of choice
The exciting road mile saw American Hobbs Kessler set a World Record , and really enthused the spectators
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