Wilfred Bungei, the former Olympic 800m champion, believes the world record over the two-lap race is on sight going by last year’s results and the ripe talent in the competition currently.
The current record is held by David Rudisha who cut the tape in 1:40.91 at the 2012 London Olympics.
Bungei is optimistic the current exclusive field and boosted by the advanced shoe technology makes the world record an inch closer. He singled out the current Olympics champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi, world champion Marco Arop of Canada and France’s Gabriel Tual as candidates to lower the record.
“Rudisha’s record has endured, but it’s no longer untouchable. With the likes of Wanyonyi, Arop, Sedjati, and Gabriel Tual pushing the limits, it’s only a matter of when not if. These athletes are consistently clocking 1:41 and if they push each other in one race, the record will fall,” said Bungei, who won gold in the 2008 Summer games in Beijing, China.
Wanyonyi, 20 and the world championships silver medalist, inched closer to the record during the Lausanne Diamond League in August last year, winning in 1:41.11 to bring himself within 0.20 seconds of the legendary Rudisha record.
Bungei, a 1:42.34 runner however, says Kenya’s Wanyonyi holds the edge over the others and backs him to up the ante with a world record breaking run this year.
“The fact that Arop has the height advantage over Wanyonyi, it does count. But Wanyonyi has proven himself with his front-running. Look at how he won the Olympics he led from the gun to the tape and ran a good time. Both athletes have strengths, but Wanyonyi has the edge,” he said.
While optimistic, Bungei acknowledged that breaking the 800m record requires more than just talent. He emphasized the importance of ideal race conditions, fast tracks, and proper pacing.
“Laser pacing beams show athletes if they’re on world record pace. If I had access to such technology, I believe I could have run 1:40.70 or even 1:40.50,” he said, reflecting on his lifetime best of 1:42.34.
Bungei also cautioned Kenyan athletes against over-racing with the run up to the 2025 World Championship in Tokyo, citing past examples of burnout.
“For anyone who wants to win the World Championship, history has shown us that limiting races is key. Take for example America’s superstar Noah Lyles before he went to the Olympics, he only had two major races. I would advise our athletes to limit themselves to a maximum of three races over the short and middle distances,” the world championships silver medalist added.
Rudisha, mentor to Wanyonyi, has tipped his mentee as the most likely to shatter his 12-year-old record. He also helped him clinch the Olympic gold by advising him to follow his 2012 tactics.
“Wanyonyi is a young talented athlete. He has so much potential, and all he needs to do is fine-tune his craft, and this will see him push his time even lower,” said the newly-wed Rudisha.
