EDIT: What’s wrong with people? Who’s to tell him when to stop? :mad:
Published on 04/11/2008
An article published by ‘FeverPitch’ on April 27 last year posed whether it was time for the great distance runner, Paul Tergat, to hang his decorated spikes.
Then 38, Tergat, a five-time World Cross senior champion, twice Olympic silver medallist and former marathon record holder had just finished sixth (2:08:06) at the London Marathon.
Having been a permanent fixture on the distance running scene for more than a decade, the boldness of that piece drew both fierce criticism and support. The author felt that the epic triumph at the 2005 New York Marathon, where Tergat beat South Africa’s Henrick Ramaala by three-hundredth of a second, had sealed his legendary status.
He opined there was no need for Tergat to prove anything to anyone beyond that but the genial athlete soldiered on.
On Sunday, Tergat ran 2:13:10 for an impressive fourth place finish at the New York Marathon displaying there is still gas left in the grand warrior’s tank. However, a generation that has grown watching the runner conquer or lose marginally in major races cannot entertain the thought of him being an also run.
Yes, he made a valiant attempt to mix it with the big boys and left with his dignity intact but at 39 few can foresee Tergat ascending to the top of the game where most top runners are a decade or more his juniors.
However, by hanging on even with the knowledge that his blessed legs cannot match his mental willpower, Tergat risks soiling his rich legacy.
Global icons such as FIFA World Cup winner Zinedine Zidane and seven-time Formula 1 champion Michael Schumacher retired while they were still on top. Their equivalent in distance running, Tergat, should follow suit.
http://www.eastandard.net/sports/InsidePage.php?id=1143998523