How'd you feel about your positioning as you neared the finish on Fifth Avenue?Bernard Lagat: Finishing fourth today was not something I wanted. I just wanted to win. I came here really hungry for the win. I came close to winning last year, but I lost to a good guy, too, last year..... I''m not going to stop until I win. I'll come until I win this race. That fuels my hunger for next year.
When the track season ended in Thessaloniki (Greece, where Lagat was second in the 3000 at the World Athletics Final on September 12), did you still feel you had some lift in your legs?
BL: Yes. The last week has been really tough because of the long flights from Thessaloniki to Germany, and Germany to the U.S. And then I had only one night in my house (in Arizona) and then I went to Washington State for the Hall of Fame induction, and then coming back (to New York) again. I'm not really resting. It's more like flying all the time and then resting on planes. Sometimes I feel like I'm tired all over. Yesterday was the first time that I felt "wow, I'm really feeling good." I was running in the park. All the other days, I felt tired. I don't know if that has anything to do with how I felt today but, you know, I don't want to blame anything. I really ran all out. I gave my all the last 400 meters. It's just the way it was.
Did you have a clear route the whole way on Fifth Avenue ? Andy (Baddeley) found an open route on the left.
BL: I had an unobstructed way all the way, so nobody obstructed me. It was clear the entire way. Boaz (Lalang) was running on my left. Leo (Manzano) was the one who came on the outside, on my right. Nobody messed with me at all. It was clear. Nobody got tangled in there. It was a fantastic clear race. It was very nice.
Now that two more Americans (Dathan Ritzenhein and Matt Tegenkamp) have broken 13:00 for 5000 meters, and next year has no international championships for Americans, what would be the chances of getting a very high quality 5000 in this country where everyone agreed to shoot for 12:50. Is that something everybody could get together on?
BL: Of course. It is really possible. I look at the Reebok (NYC) meet earlier this year. I ran 13:03. I think we were actually on pace to run 12:55, but the wind was unbelievable. (Haron) Lagat, who was here today, was our second pacemaker and he was struggling the entire way. There was so much wind. So it can be organized. I look at that race in Icahn Stadium (New York) and it's possible to organize it..... It's a matter of just bringing the best guys in to the meet. Like you bring the Kenyans, the Ethiopians, and of course you bring our own local athletes like Matt and all these guys who have the potential of running under 13:00 anytime
Do you think the Diamond League (an expanded version of the current Golden League) would help that?
BL: I think so. But I might not get the best out of that race because (Kenenisa) Bekele's not running the race that I want to run. But hopefully Bekele's going to be running most of the fives (5000s) and I get into a race like that and there are attempts to run fast. It's just a matter of getting into a race with the guys that are always better than you.
The first one (Diamond League meet) is in Doha, I think. And the guys from Kenya go through (directly) from training, and they all run 7:28 (for 3000 meters). I cannot understand that. They all run hard. While if I was to go there I'd say "whatever, it's my first meet," and if I was to run 7:33, it's okay. But those guys all run 7:27 or 7:28 in the 3k.
Were you present for your induction into the Washington State Hall of Fame?
BL: It was so fun. It was amazing. It was really nice. Peter Koech (was there), and there were two coaches and there were athletes - football, basketball, two track athletes and one swimmer. It was unbelievable. It was an honor. It was well-organized. The president (of the university) was there, the AD (athletic director), and my former coaches were there as well.
When had you last been there?
BL: I was there in 2007 when they invited me to go to a basketball game. It was after Osaka (where Lagat won two World Championships), and in December they declared Bernard Lagat Day. It was really fantastic. The mayor of Pullman did that.
THX RunnersWorld
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