{"id":415,"date":"2010-11-09T17:39:00","date_gmt":"2010-11-10T01:39:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=415"},"modified":"2010-11-09T17:39:00","modified_gmt":"2010-11-10T01:39:00","slug":"haile-gebrselassie-the-greatest-ever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=415","title":{"rendered":"Haile Gebrselassie \u2013 The Greatest Ever?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/view.picapp.com\/pictures.photo\/entertainment\/dubai-marathon-press\/image\/7602076?term=haile+gebrselassie\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/view3.picapp.com\/pictures.photo\/image\/7602076\/dubai-marathon-press\/dubai-marathon-press.jpg?resize=234%2C285\" border=\"0\" width=\"234\" title=\"Dubai Marathon press conference\" height=\"285\" oncontextmenu=\"return false;\" ondrag=\"return false;\" onmousedown=\"return false;\" alt=\"Jan. 20, 2010 - DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - epa01996932 Olympic and world champion athlete Haile Gebrselassie attends the press conference about the 13th edition of Marathon Dubai, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 20 January 2010. The 13th edition of the competition will see thousands of runners representing around 100 nations in a three-race card dominated by the classic marathon over 42.2km on 22 January 2010. It will also feature the traditional 10km race and the 3km Fun Run.\" \/><\/a><script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"http:\/\/view.picapp.com\/\/JavaScripts\/OTIjs.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The big event this past weekend was the New York City Marathon. An event won by Ethiopia\u2019s Gebre Gebremariam in 2:08.14 \u2013 unspectacular when many of the world\u2019s top races are being won in times of 2:04 \/ 2:05. <\/p>\n<p>The big news coming out of New York, however, was not who won, or even the results of the those that finished. Rather, the real news was the possible end to what may be the greatest career ever in the world of track and field. As Ethoipia\u2019s Haile Gebrselassie \u2013 forced out of the race midway due to tendinitis \u2013 Gebrselassie said in his post race interview that injuries are bringing an end to his brilliant career. <\/p>\n<p>How brilliant? Well he is the current World Record Holder in the marathon (2:03:59). His personal bests from 1500 meters through the marathon are absolutely world class:<\/p>\n<h3>Personal Bests<\/h3>\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" width=\"400\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"143\">1500<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"257\">3:33.73<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"143\">Mile<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"257\">3:52.39<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"143\">2000<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"257\">4:56.1<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"143\">3000<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"257\">7:25.09<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"143\">Two Miles<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"257\">8:01.08<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"143\">5000<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"257\">12:39.36<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"143\">10000<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"257\">26:22.75<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"143\">Half Marathon<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"257\">58:55<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"143\">Marathon<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"257\">2:03:59<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>And brilliant enough to set World Records over every major distance.<\/p>\n<h3>Major World Records<\/h3>\n<table border=\"0\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" width=\"400\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">5000<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">12:56.96<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">Hengelo<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">6\/4\/94<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">12:44.39<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">Zurich<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">8\/16\/95<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">12:41.86<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">Zurich<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">8\/13\/97<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">12:39.36<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">Helsinki<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">6\/13\/98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">10000<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">26.43.53<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">Hengelo<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">6\/5\/94<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">26:31.32<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">Oslo<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">7\/4\/97<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">26:22.75<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">Hengelo<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">6\/1\/98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">Marathon<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">2:04:26<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">Berlin<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">9\/29\/07<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">&nbsp;<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">2:03:59<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">Berlin<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" width=\"100\">9\/28\/08<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>All told he set 15 World Records indoors and out, including&nbsp; non standard events. And he was just as prolific on the medal stand. He won an Indoor World title over 1500 and three World Indoor titles over 3000 meters.He garnered World silver over 5000 meters. And over 10000 meters he won four World titles, World silver and bronze and an Olympic gold. Then moved outdoors and won a World Half Marathon title!<\/p>\n<p>The only other athlete I can remember moving up in distance with that kind of success was Said Aouita \u2013 1:43.89, 3:29.46, 3:46.76, 12:58.39 \u2013 Olympic bronze over 800, Olympic gold over 5000, World gold over 5000, World bronze over 1500 \u2013 WR in the 1500, 2 WR\u2019s over 5000. And even Aouita is lacking when compared to Gebrselassie.<\/p>\n<p>Definitely one of the greatest careers of all time, if not the greatest. I will have to sit down and take a look at those I consider the greatest and compare him with them to see where they all rate. A nice off season project that I will undertake shortly.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The big event this past weekend was the New York City Marathon. An event won by Ethiopia\u2019s Gebre Gebremariam in 2:08.14 \u2013 unspectacular when many of the world\u2019s top races are being won in times of 2:04 \/ 2:05. The big news coming out of New York, however, was not who won, or even the results of the those that finished. Rather, the real news was the possible end to what may be the greatest career ever in the world of track and field. As Ethoipia\u2019s Haile Gebrselassie \u2013 forced out of the race midway due to tendinitis \u2013 Gebrselassie said in his post race interview that injuries are bringing an end to his brilliant career. How brilliant? Well he is the current World Record Holder in the marathon (2:03:59). His personal bests from 1500 meters through the marathon are absolutely world class: Personal Bests 1500 3:33.73 Mile 3:52.39 2000 4:56.1 3000 7:25.09 Two Miles 8:01.08 5000 12:39.36 10000 26:22.75 Half Marathon 58:55 Marathon 2:03:59 And brilliant enough to set World Records over every major distance. Major World Records &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 5000 12:56.96 Hengelo 6\/4\/94 &nbsp; 12:44.39 Zurich 8\/16\/95 &nbsp; 12:41.86 Zurich 8\/13\/97 &nbsp; 12:39.36 Helsinki 6\/13\/98 &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; 10000 26.43.53 Hengelo 6\/5\/94 &nbsp; 26:31.32 Oslo 7\/4\/97 &nbsp; 26:22.75 Hengelo 6\/1\/98 &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Marathon 2:04:26 Berlin 9\/29\/07 &nbsp; 2:03:59 Berlin 9\/28\/08 All told he set 15 World Records indoors and out, including&nbsp; non standard events. And he was just as prolific on the medal stand. He won an Indoor World title over 1500 and three World Indoor titles over 3000 meters.He garnered World silver over 5000 meters. And over 10000 meters he won four World titles, World silver and bronze and an Olympic gold. Then moved outdoors and won a World Half Marathon title! The only other athlete I can remember moving up in distance with that kind of success was Said Aouita \u2013 1:43.89, 3:29.46, 3:46.76, 12:58.39 \u2013 Olympic bronze over 800, Olympic gold over 5000, World gold over 5000, World bronze over 1500 \u2013 WR in the 1500, 2 WR\u2019s over 5000. And even Aouita is lacking when compared to Gebrselassie. Definitely one of the greatest careers of all time, if not the greatest. I will have to sit down and take a look at those I consider the greatest and compare him with them to see where they all rate. A nice off season project that I will undertake shortly.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-415","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pa3DCY-6H","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":418,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=418","url_meta":{"origin":415,"position":0},"title":"The Greatest Of All Time!","author":"CHill","date":"November 24, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"The recent retirement, then retractment, by Haile Gebrselassie got me thinking about who the greatest athlete has been in this sport. Primarily because that could be Haile himself \u2013 if nothing else, he is probably the greatest distance runner of all time.Of course, track and field has a very long\u2026","rel":"","context":"With 12 comments","block_context":{"text":"With 12 comments","link":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=418#comments"},"img":{"alt_text":"LOS ANGELES, CA - AUG 11 1984: Carl Lewis of the USA waves the flag during a lap of honour after he anchored the USA team to victory in a new world record time of 37.83 seconds in the 4 x 100m relay during the 1984 Olympic Games at the Colliseum Stadium on August 11, 1984 in Los Angeles. (Photo by David Cannon \/ Getty Images )    ","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/view4.picapp.com\/pictures.photo\/image\/3904067\/carl-lewis-the-usa\/carl-lewis-the-usa.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":447,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=447","url_meta":{"origin":415,"position":1},"title":"Tamgho WR Highlights Weekend Activity","author":"CHill","date":"February 21, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Teddy Tamgho (FRA) is at it again. Last year he set the World Indoor Record in the triple jump with a leap of 17.90m (58\u2019 8.75\u201d). This weekend in Aubiere, France he went one centimeter better with a new record of 17.91m (58\u2019 9.25\u201d) \u2013 increasing his previous world lead\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"image","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lh3.ggpht.com\/_q69RXDGKhjE\/TWLQ2mBCrfI\/AAAAAAAAAHQ\/nHQpCFLM5tM\/image_thumb.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":120,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=120","url_meta":{"origin":415,"position":2},"title":"High School News","author":"CHill","date":"March 16, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"The preps also closed out their indoor season this past weekend with two championship meets - Nike Indoor Nationals in Boston, and the National Scholastic Championships in New York City.While the high school kids typically don't get a lot of attention, they are the future of our sport here in\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1210,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=1210","url_meta":{"origin":415,"position":3},"title":"Hot Weekend After Ostrava","author":"CHill","date":"May 27, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"This weekend was a reminder that this support is not always as predictable as we like top think it is. For example, the hot meet was supposed to be in Ostrava. After all that was the meet with all the \"names\" - Bolt, VCB, Spearmon, Merritt, and Semenya among others\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Aman\"","block_context":{"text":"Aman","link":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?tag=aman"},"img":{"alt_text":"Maurice Mitchell","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/trackchill.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/05\/Maurice-Mitchell_thumb1.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":285,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=285","url_meta":{"origin":415,"position":4},"title":"World Indoor Championships Meet Records","author":"CHill","date":"March 7, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"World Indoor Championships Meet RecordsMen60 - 6.42 - Maurice Greene, US - '99200 - 20.10 - Frankie Fredericks, NAM - '99400 - Butch Reynolds, US - '93800 - 1:42.67 - Wilson Kipketer, DEN - '971500 - 3:33.77 - Haile Gebrselassie, ETH - '993000 - 7:34.71 - Haile Gebrselassie, ETH -\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"Sergey Bubka","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/cdn.picapp.com\/ftp\/Images\/f\/8\/0\/7\/c5.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":626,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=626","url_meta":{"origin":415,"position":5},"title":"Rupp Enters U.S. Marathon Trials","author":"CHill","date":"December 19, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"The calendar has yet to turn to 2012, but already we have news that may shape the U.S. Olympic team for London, as Galen Rupp was a last minute entry into the marathon trials scheduled for January 14thin Houston, Texas. 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