Kenyan Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge is in Italy, "preparing to don shoes with carbon-fibre plates" at a Formula 1 track and launch a multi-million-pound "assault on the two-hour barrier," according to Rick Broadbent of the LONDON TIMES. The "miracle record" will not stand even if Kipchoge or his two co-runners "dip under a mark deemed near-mythical for decades." The course at Monza has been ratified and the Nike Zoom Vaporfly Elite shoes have been passed by the IAAF’s technical committee, "but the use of drop-in pacemakers, who join after the start of a race, is not permitted for official records." The world record is 2 hours, 2 minutes, 57 seconds. Knocking "so much off that mark this weekend would be astonishing" but Nike said that scientific studies proved its shoe gives a 4% performance boost. A 3% improvement on the present record is needed. While some have "likened the quest" to Roger Bannister’s attempt to break the four-minute mile barrier in '54, others have "dismissed it as a publicity stunt" designed to maximize Nike's sales. What is "certain" is that the "athletics' space race is accelerating," with Nike and adidas developing shoes to "take on the challenge." Nike has the first chance "to make history if not the record books." As well as Kipchoge, Nike recruited Zersenay Tadese, the world half-marathon record holder from Eritrea, and Lelisa Desisa, one of Ethiopia’s "rising stars" and a two-time winner of the Boston Marathon. In February, adidas debuted its Adizero Sub2 shoe and, "with a degree of sniffiness," said that its two-hour project was geared toward achieving fast times in "race environments." Nike's attempt "has been shrouded in secrecy," increasing the skepticism in "some quarters" (LONDON TIMES, 5/3). REUTERS' Andrew Both reported Nike's attempt "might not produce" a sub-two-hour marathon, but it will "probably lead to a world best time," three exercise physiology experts said. Assuming conditions "are conducive to fast running -- cool and not too windy" -- all three predict a time inside Dennis Kimetto's '14 world record. Michael Joyner, an expert in human performance at the Mayo Clinic, said, "This is physiologically possible, the athletes attempting it, the pacing scheme, the shoes and the course should all make a difference. However, a 2.5 percent jump in a distance running record is very big by historical standards and the weather is the wild card." Mike Hahn, the director of the Bowerman Sports Science Clinic at the University of Oregon, predicted a winning time of roughly 2:00:30. Hahn: "It is physiologically possible (for someone to break two hours). It’s a little harder to pin down exactly when it will happen" (REUTERS, 5/3).
