Fernandes, G.D.; Maldonado, V. The Sub 2-h Marathon Is at Hand: How Kelvin Kiptum Can Use Drafting to Improve His Impressive World Record. European Journal of Applied Physiology 2024, doi:10.1007/s00421-024-05458-7.
Fernandes, G.D.; Maldonado, V. The Sub 2-h Marathon Is at Hand: How Kelvin Kiptum Can Use Drafting to Improve His Impressive World Record. European Journal of Applied Physiology 2024, doi:10.1007/s00421-024-05458-7.
Fernandes, G.D.; Maldonado, V. The Sub 2-h Marathon Is at Hand: How Kelvin Kiptum Can Use Drafting to Improve His Impressive World Record. European Journal of Applied Physiology 2024, doi:10.1007/s00421-024-05458-7.
Fernandes, G.D.; Maldonado, V. The Sub 2-h Marathon Is at Hand: How Kelvin Kiptum Can Use Drafting to Improve His Impressive World Record. European Journal of Applied Physiology 2024, doi:10.1007/s00421-024-05458-7.
Abstract
Drafting is a common technique to reduce the drag experienced by elite runners on races, leading to better running efficiency and energy savings. The tactic has been successfully used in previous races where world records were set, especially by Eliud Kipchoge in the 2018 and 2022 editions of the Berlin marathon. In the 2023 edition of the Chicago Marathon, Kenyan runner Kelvin Kiptum broke the Marathon record after a 2:00:35 finish. This feat becomes even more impressive by the lack of use of drafting formations, despite the availability of two pacers for the majority of the race. In this study, the drag faced by Kiptum and his pacers during the race is calculated by means of computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The performance of each runner is evaluated from an energetic standpoint, and the analysis is extended to include more efficient drafting formations. Our results indicate that, by properly using the advantages of drafting, Kiptum could have finished the race at a staggering 1:57:34, a full three minutes better than his own record and 215 seconds better than the previous world record.
Keywords
marathon; world record; drafting; drag; CFD
Subject
Engineering, Mechanical Engineering
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
