I keep asking myself why Sanya Richards felt she needed to run 48 flat to win the women's 400m? Why did the announcers keep saying she needed to put away the field early?
The 400m is always run on a knife edge of speed and relaxation: run the first 100 meters too slow and you might never make it up; run it to fast and... well, we've all experienced that desperate feeling when the legs won't move any more, when the body seizes up and the track turns to sand as in some sort of bad dream.
I've watched the NBC video many times now, trying to take Richard's splits. As best I can determine, she runs the first 100m in just over 11 seconds. For some reason, the announcers think this is perfect. She "relaxes" a bit, and by my reckoning goes through the 200 in 22 high, way ahead.
After the race, Richards talked about how her hamstring cramped up. I haven't heard anyone talking about what happens to any athlete when they run the first 200 of a 400 at or just above their 200 PR pace. It's not nice to fool mother nature.
Richards ran her third 100 in about 13s, and her final 100 in about 15s. She was caught in the final stretch, and faded to third. Actually, I think she did very well to hold on to third. Those last few strides must have been very painful, indeed.
I wish I could replay that race, but with Richards running the first 100 in 11.5, and hitting the 200 in 23.5.
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