Kenyan Marathoner Falls Short of Record After Nikes Fail--Update2
September 27 2015 - 8:12PM
Dow Jones News
By Sara Germano
One of Nike Inc.'s elite runners was the first to cross the
finish line at the Berlin Marathon on Sunday, but his custom Nike
sneakers barely made it half way before coming apart.
In an embarrassing display for Nike, Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge won
the race but fell short of a world record after the neon-green
insoles of his white running shoes came apart less than an hour
into the competition.
Mr. Kipchoge finished the race in 2 hours, 4 minutes--a personal
best, but 63 seconds short of the world record, which was his goal
for the day.
"It wasn't a good day for me in these shoes, although they're
actually very good. I tested them in Kenya, but just had bad luck
on the day. I had problems from the first kilometer," he said. "My
goal was the world record but it wasn't meant to be today."
Mr. Kipchoge's insoles appeared to be slipping out of the back
of his shoes by at least the 16-kilometer mark, or nearly 10 miles
into the race, less than halfway through it, according to the
official Berlin Marathon report.
"As he has done in previous races, Eliud was testing a prototype
racing flat which we've been working on together for several
months, said T.J. Crawford, a spokesman for Nike, which sponsors
Mr. Kipchoge. "As with any prototype, elements can sometimes go
wrong. On this occasion, the sockliner didn't work. As in all
innovation, we will learn quickly from mistakes."
Mr. Crawford added that the company will continue to work with
Mr. Kipchoge, and that Nike was pleased to see him run a personal
best.
Faulty sportswear is an occasional headache for top athletes,
and an issue that Nike, which was founded as a running-shoe
company, has grappled with previously.
In 1997, the laces on Kenyan John Kagwe's Nike running shoes
came untied three times en route to his winning the New York City
Marathon, though the malfunctions cost him a course record. Nike
took responsibility and decided to pay him the $10,000 bonus he was
due if he had succeeded in setting the record.
To be sure, other companies have faced issues providing gear to
elite athletes. U.S. speedskaters said they believed their suits,
supplied by Under Armour Inc., slowed them down at the 2014
Olympics, where the team was shut out of the medals.
It isn't clear how much time the faulty shoes might have cost
Mr. Kipchoge. His hopes of a world record in Berlin weren't futile:
The men's field passed the halfway mark in 1:01:53, just a few
seconds short of world record pace. The current world record of 2
hours, 2 minutes and 57 seconds was set last year in Berlin by
Dennis Kimetto, also of Kenya.
It is too soon to tell whether Mr. Kipchoge's performance Sunday
will affect his possible inclusion in Kenya's Olympic marathon team
next summer. Nations can enter no more than three athletes in the
event, which is particularly limiting for Kenya, whose runners hold
eight of the top 10 best marathon times in history. The nation's
sport governing body, Athletics Kenya, typically chooses its
Olympic team by committee, and a world record likely would have all
but solidified Mr. Kipchoge's inclusion on the team.
Write to Sara Germano at sara.germano@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 27, 2015 19:57 ET (23:57 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2015 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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