The massive surprise is the world’s best all-around athlete

Kenya’s Kelvin Kiptum ran three marathons in 10 months in a terrible time range of 2:00.35–2:01.53. PDO

Hand to heart all athletics niels. How many of you a year ago knew the Kenyan endurance runner By Kelvin Kiptum?

So.

Kiptum made a sensational rise in one year from obscurity to the top of the world.

– When we talk about running, we talk about a massive sport. Although Kiptum did not compete in the World Championships in Budapest, his performances in marathons were so great that he is the best all-around athlete of the 2023 season, says Iltalehti’s expert Arto Bryggare.

Kiptum’s name popped up in December 2022, when he timed 2:01.53 in the first marathon of his life in Valencia. In the 2023 season, the man was on the starting line in two races. At the London marathon in 2023, it was almost ME (2:01.25) and in Chicago in October it was ME (2:00.35).

– One can consider how significant a benefit Kiptum and other marathoners get from the new carbon fiber sneakers compared to those athletes who don’t get to brag with special equipment. But the record time is so fierce that he is clearly the season’s best in the world.

There were differences of opinion about the best woman: Faith Kipyegon or Tigst Assefa?

– Assefa revolutionized women’s marathon running. There were male hares in the Berlin record run and there were new shoes, but he had to run those meters. The ME improvement of more than two minutes to the time of 2:11.53 is incredible, Bryggare says.

Twos

Kenyan Kipyegon’s three world records (1,500 meters, mile and 5,000 meters), two World Cup golds and the Diamond League victory were “only” enough for the second best place of the season, according to the expert.

– Before the autumn marathons, I considered Kipyegon to be by far the number one athlete of the season. She has taken women’s track endurance running to a new level, but Assefa’s result in the marathon was an even bigger step.

There was a consensus on the men’s top two: Kiptum is number one and Armand Duplantis two.

– Armand had a huge season, but he still loaded a jump with his last performance that could have gone higher than 623 centimeter, says Bryggare.

– In his ME performance, Armand used a 520 centimeter long and very stiff pole. When using such a device, the athlete must know that the running speed must be fierce. Sometimes it happens that the athlete blindly continues the performance with a very stiff stick and falls into the pit, the expert adds.

Duplantis, representing Sweden, made indoor (622) and outdoor (623) ME performances, won the World Championship gold and the Diamond League final. There were 17 races in the season, of which he won 16.

Triplets

IL analyzes it as the third best for women Gudaf Tsegayn. The Ethiopian endurance runner won 8 of his 9 races. Highlights were the 10,000-meter World Cup gold and the first place in the 5,000-meter final of the Diamond League with a new ME time (14:00,21).

– A somewhat similar story to Juha Väätäinen in Finland. A runner with a nice stride comes from 800 and 400 meters to longer distances. Elastic Tsegay’s stride is well suited to the new endurance running spikes and he has a huge oxygen absorption capacity, Bryggare estimates.

Tsegay’s only loss of the season came in the Budapest 5,000m final, which he ran sick and faded to 13th.

The author of this story likes Jakob Ingebrigtsen as the third best male athlete of the season. The Norwegian raced the rarely contested 2,000m ME, set European records at 1,500m and 3,000m, won two starts in the Diamond League final and took home gold and silver from Budapest.

The expert’s word is more weighty in this matter as well, so the ME man in the shot put (23.56) and the world champion (23.51) take third place. Ryan Crouser.

– His performance was really great throughout the season, even though he finished second in the Diamond League final. The man had health problems before the World Championships, but still he rapped a terrible result. Crouser must also be credited with refining the spinning technique, Bryggare reasons.

Other options

In women, the top three of the season was clear, as the only challenger was a sprinter Shericka Jackson. He was only seven hundredths behind in the 200 meters by Florence Griffith-Joyner of ME considered eternal (21,34).

Ingebrigtsen could have been placed third on the men’s list instead of Crouser, at least on the grounds mentioned above.

– I put Daniel Ståhl almost to the same caste as Crouser’s. Daniel’s last throw in the World Cup final in a windless stadium is one of the greatest discus throw performances of all time. The result of 71.46 without wind aids is huge, Bryggare estimates.

– Crouser was more superior in his sport than Ståhl. Kristjan Ceh and Ståhl met 11 times in the 2023 season. The wins went 6–5 to Ceh.