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The 800m run is one of the most challenging events in Athletics, combining a need both for extreme speed and endurance. The Aussies haven’t claimed gold in the event since 1982, and will be looking to snap a streak of 32 years without a winner’s medal.
What is it?
While the 100m sprint is all about speed, and the marathon is all about endurance, the 800m run is arguably a tougher event because it requires both. If you tire quickly the cause is lost, but there’ll be no tortoise versus hare fairy tales either if you can’t reach top speed quickly.
The Aussies’ only ever Commonwealth gold medal in the men’s 800m came all the way back in 1982, when the games were hosted in Brisbane, and the medal was won by Peter Bourke. Since then the best we have done is a bronze medal to Kris McCarthy in 2002.
The first round of the 800m event kicks off on July 29, the semi-finals to be held on the 30th and the final on the 31st.
The Aussies
The Australian team is fielding three men for the 800m event at Glasgow 2014, with Jeffrey Riseley the most experienced, having previously represented Australia in the Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Olympic Games. His personal best of 1:44.64 is the second fastest ever set by any Australian over the distance.
Hoping to break the record is youngster Alex Rowe, who joins Riseley in the 800m team. Australia’s record of 1:44.40, set by Ralph Doubell at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games, has remained standing for more than 45 years.
There will be plenty of competition amongst the Aussie boys alone. Last but not least is Josh Ralph, who has outpaced both Riseley and Rowe in competitions at national level this year.
The Competition
In the Commonwealth, the powerhouse of the 800m event is Kenya, who claimed not just the gold medal at Delhi 2010, but the silver and bronze as well. This year their team includes Fergusson Rotich, Evans Kipkorir, and 800m world record holder David Rudisha. Rudisha alone is going to put plenty of bums on seats for the final.
Kenya is definitely the team to beat – they have claimed at least one medal in the 800m men’s event in every edition of the games from 1990 onwards, and have won the gold in five of the last six Commonwealth games.
Fast Facts
– 800m is no short distance. To put it in perspective, it would be like running length of the Melbourne Cricket Ground, from fence to fence, about four and a half times.
– The world record of the 800m run is 1:40.91, set by David Rudisha of Kenya at the London 2012 Olympics. It is almost three and a half seconds faster than the fastest Australian time ever run.
– Ralph Doubell’s Australian-record-setting run at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City was an iconic moment in Australian sporting history as he defeated the highly favoured Wilson Kiprugut of Kenya by a narrow margin. It was the only medal every won by an Australian man in the event at Olympic level.
What to Drink while watching
You’re going to be too tense to drink anything while watching this, but you’re going to need a blast of refreshment afterwards. Pineapple juice, lime cordial, ice, mint, and muddle. Remember the ice cream ‘Splice’? The memories will come flashing back when you drink this.
This article was first published on the Tenplay website here.