Long-distance runners everywhere felt a certain validation in the brutality of their sport last Sunday after Lance Armstrong clearly struggled with his first marathon at the ING event in New York City. The seven-time Tour De France winner and cancer survivor painfully finished the 26.2-mile race, using all his super Lance Armstrong might to limp to the finish line in under three hours.
His official time of 2:59:36 was respectable for his age group, placing him roughly in the top 10 percent, but it hardly demonstrated what his potential as a world-class endurance athlete would likely have indicated. Armstrong, who admittedly included Coronas and nightclub hopping as part of his training regiment, also admitted to under-training. His longest run was only 16 miles before attempting the behemoth. And while it’s true that nagging shin splints hindered Lance’s progress, that kind of injury itself is a beginner’s ailment brought on by carelessness and erratic training.
But the validation for serious distance runners doesn’t come from the elite cyclist’s ill preparation for a foot race. That a fighter of Lance’s caliber took such a beating from a marathon says more about the race itself than the athlete. Armstrong’s pain revealed that in any duel with 26.2 miles, the race will conquer whomever has not prepared for its cruelty.
The recent wave of non-athlete celebrities who have finished the race, including Oprah Winfrey, P. Diddy, and most recently model Kim Alexis, may have proven that hard work can help anyone conquer the mileage. But Lance showed that a respect for the race is necessary to reach any individual potential. Given the athlete’s character, however one can guess that the next time he toes the line at a marathon (give him a week – he’ll get over the initial negative response) – the super-athlete America knows and loves will have given the race the training it deserves. If for no other reason than to avoid the pain of another New York.
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