Watching the start of the subsection of the London Marathon dedicated to blind people and people who suffer as arm amputees, I, as a person who promises himself to get out on the road to do a little fitness training but usually puts it off for another day, am in awe.
To run, being totally blind, even partially blind is a challenge which I can hardly comprehend.
Running in a totally undefined vacuum might describe it, since all the stimulus or warning signs are missing. There's no sense of how far or how near, there's no sense of what's in front of me as I pick up speed or negotiate a corner, my world is disconnected with only sound to link me to others around me as I pound the road, heading in a direction which is meaningless, no signposts no milestones only the rhythm of my feet.
There is a mindset in running whereby the overseas athletes from Africa seem to have a self -belief which sets them apart from the European runners. The start of the race amplifies this as the Africans stride out from the starters gun and leave the others in their wake. In no time at all they are 100 -200 stretching to 300 metres ahead and expanding the gap with each stride. They are not superhuman, they aren't from the planet zog, they have, if anything a desire to run at a certain cadence because, as they grew up their fellow countrymen and women were running at speed through the dirt roads in a way which meant it became 'normal' to expect to do so.
Confidence is crucial, if you tell yourself, "this is what is normal" then you rise to the normal.
The Europeans have a different perspective of what is normal and they run to their normal.
Of course the television and the Internet which helps the picture reach all corners of the world has made the marathon, a must do event for many. Ordinary people spend hours pounding the streets in an effort to get fit and take part. It's a cliche but for most of them it's taking part that matters. There are no medals in their sights other than the finishing medal and the commitment to the charity they represent. This running for a charity is in itself a phenomenon. Dressing up in the most improbable gear, (someone went around a couple of years ago in a deep sea diving suite and took about 2 days) is a reflection of the quaintness of the British for self ridicule. Bizarre is a better description, it's no mean feat encouraging people to laugh at you.
The men are off and again it's an African dominated event. It's not a matter of seconds, it's minutes faster than the nearest white man and one has to ask, is it genetics.
The best sprinters on the track are all of black origin and whilst it may not be politically correct to ask, what are the factors at play here ? There are no Indian top flight runners for instance and whilst the Chinese compete reasonably well they are not top flight.
Even within Africa it's a limited Only in parts of Africa, Ethiopia, the Kenyans, Tanzanians is the cream of distance running observed whilst people from lower down the continent simply do not feature.
The muscular North American sprinters perhaps rely on the bulk that living in a prosperous country brings and with it the inherited physical power of having such a large body mass makes a difference. Long distance runners, on the other hand are slight, fitting the profile of their countries lack of prosperity as they grow up as children, the goal of riches comes from running.
What ever the reason there will be many tired limbs tonight as they settle into bed, all the more reason to marvel at that limited band of runners "the 10 tenners", people who succeed in completing 10 marathons in 10 days. That's nothing to do with genetics, it's simply a form of masochism !!
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