Gold Medal-winning Kenyan runner Eliud Kipchoge on Saturday in Italy completed the "fastest marathon ever run" as part of Nike's Breaking2 effort, which was as much a "Nike marketing play and a laboratory experiment as a sports competition," according to Jere Longman of the N.Y. TIMES. Kipchoge ran the marathon in 2 hours 25 seconds "early on Saturday in an extremely managed setting of pacing and drafting." That pace was "more than two and a half minutes quicker than the official world record, 2:02:57." The attempt to break the two-hour barrier was "viewed by some critics as a publicity stunt rather than a valid sporting contest, emphasizing audacious performance over competition." It came "weeks before Nike was set to roll out a new line of running shoes." Marathon coach Kevin Hanson said, "This has everything to do with shoe sales and very little to do with marathoning." Others were "intrigued by the attempt -- albeit greatly orchestrated -- to redefine the limits of human endurance." Nike had "acknowledged long before Saturday’s record attempt that it would not be considered for a world record" (N.Y. TIMES, 5/7). FIVETHIRTYEIGHT's Christie Aschwanden noted the event was "live-streamed on Twitter," with Nike bringing in Gold Medal-winning runner Carl Lewis, women’s marathon world-record holder Paula Radcliffe and comedian Kevin Hart for commentary. Ultimately, Saturday’s event was "more than just a publicity stunt." It was also a "real-world test of the promises that companies like Nike make about the power of science and technology to enhance human performance" (FIVETHIRTYEIGHT.com, 5/6). The AP's Daniella Matar noted Chicago Marathon GM Mike Nishi and four members of his team were "enlisted to help manage details" of the race, which included "pacers entering mid-race and drinks being given to runners via mopeds" (AP, 5/6).
TWITTER REAX: ESPN The Magazine's David Fleming tweeted, "We just watched the evolution of running, and, on a much less significant scale, the evolution of marketing and sports TV." Univ. of Houston cross country coach Steve Magness: "Fantastic marketing from Nike. Even if no one comes close, we've all sat through a 2 hour marketing promo." But prior to the event, Franklin Pierce Univ. track coach Zach Emerson tweeted, "Will this sub 2hour marathon stunt by Nike succeed tonight? Even bigger question...am I going to stay up until 2am to find out? No & no."
