It makes me uneasy when any Doug, Dick, or Harry charges to the lead of an international running race from the gun, only to saunter off the track after a lap or so.
They’re called pacemakers, but the practice has the ring of chicanery. That’s why I’d rather call them performance-enhancing Dougs (or Dagmas).
From my narrow point of view, they lend as much dignity to the race as a streaker. And if they’re going to receive the attention of a streaker, maybe they could go all the way in that direction instead.
I’d rather watch runners who can make up their own minds about pacing. Isn’t that part of the intrigue? If we want to watch athletes chase a lure, surely a trip to the greyhounds would do.
It would be troubling enough if a sense of mild indignation was all there was to it. But I genuinely wonder if performance-enhancing Dougs have the desired effect anyway. And athletics history has its own tales of pacemakers abrogating their responsibilities. Some have left their ‘opposition’ for dead at the start, and instead of pulling the designated pin, stayed the entire course.
In the 1994 Los Angeles Marathon, Paul Pilkington was reportedly paid good money to set the early pace and then bail. But his intended cronies were so far behind by halfway that he kept going and pocketed the $27,000 for winning.
Such an aberration might also pitch questions about Pilkingotn’s self belief and competitive ethic. Why would he not have entered the race to win? Did his early pace shock him into some realisation about his abilities? And why had he not honoured his part of the bargain? (Sport should be in earnest, but not cut-throat.)
But then, form can be an elusive thing. On any other day his body might have relished the chance of an easy out, but perhaps on that fine day he just couldn’t hold it back. Dilemma, dilemma! I’m guessing he was decent enough to refund his pacemaker fee.
It strikes me as odd that elite runners are thought so bereft of inherent pacing ability that they should benefit from a pacemaker, as if they are being condescended to. If it were not such a convention, I’m sure their natural response might be to judge it a distraction.
From time to time, athletics authorities make noises about banning the practice. Such sentiments can get off to a roaring start, but after a few laps the debate seems to limp quietly to the side. Funny, that.
Perhaps it’s because one of the most revered accomplishments in athletics history (Roger Bannister’s four-minute mile) was Doug-assisted that pacemakers are still tolerated. Maybe they’re a way of enshrining that legacy.
I haven’t been able to establish if the Rio Olympics will be Doug free. I’m hoping they will.
Brad Cooper
Guest
Thanks. I was wondering about that myself.
Punter
Guest
It was not ratified as a world record. It comes with an *.
Brad Cooper
Guest
Thanks, I wouldn't pretend to understand what rules apply to cyclists. The speed they travel at obviously gives positioning greater drag implications than in running. Cycling has probably put a lot of thought into how best to regulate the positioning of competitors, re drag advantage and disadvantage. My article takes a very basic position that part of the runner's challenge should be to judge their own pace. Good point about Libby Trickett. Perhaps it was just one of those situations that hadn't been anticipated by authorities.But my article addressed the practice of pacemakers as an accepted convention in a sport. Swimming has never made that leap.
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
It is basically how road race cycling works. Teams where underlings put in hard work to drag along the "main guy" who's job is to then take off when they are done. But the thing about that generally is that they go out at a pace that's actually a bit beyond what they can maintain and eventually they can't keep it up and drop back. If the guy setting the pace in the marathon is able to just keep it going at a pace that the others can't catch then there is no reason he should artificially slow down to let others past if he's able to keep going. If they are able to keep up the pace longer than him and thus go past him in the latter part of the race then they deserve the win, if not, then they don't.
spruce moose
Guest
Curious article, do you have an objection to cyclists using a team mate to create a draft? Same principles no?
spruce moose
Guest
Except Libby Trickett set a world record using a male as a pacemaker/drafting agent.
Brad Cooper
Guest
Thanks MJ. It still seems a dubious practice to me. Almost a throwback to an earlier, less formal era. It adds a dimension that a sport like swimming doesn't allow. I wonder if an Olympic athlete who clearly has no hope of making a final still might be persuaded by a team mate or management to become a pacemaker. So are you saying the Olympics don't explicitly ban pacemakers?
MJ
Guest
Generally speaking pacemakers are almost like hired guns who'll get some sort of cut from someone, particularly at events where there's no limit on how many athletes from a nation can run, and it's usually a single all in final. However at an event such as the Olympics where there's only 2-3 from the same country and with all of the track events having 2 rounds there's really no room in a team to carry peacemakers with the ambition of a national federation generally being to sweep the podium. Plus a lot of weekend warriors running in the bigger events love having pacers at slower than elite times to help them. I know the 4 hour group will probably be crowded on the Gold Coast in 5 weeks.