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NYC HALF MARATHONMarch 15, 2013Wilson KipsangNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK Q. Are you doing anything special? WILSON KIPSANG: Today? Q. Yes. WILSON KIPSANG: Training. Q. In Central Park? WILSON KIPSANG: Yes. Q. How far do you go? WILSON KIPSANG: 40 minutes. Q. You don't go hard up there. It's closer to the race? WILSON KIPSANG: Yes. Q. Did you go by yourself or get somebody else? WILSON KIPSANG: Well, with Eddie‑‑ Q. With Abdi. Okay. He was there yesterday. What's it mean to be back in New York City? Q. Last time you came here, they didn't make you race. WILSON KIPSANG: Yeah, last time I came here, the race was cancelled. Nice to be able to come again, have an opportunity to compete. Q. Are you excited for the race? WILSON KIPSANG: Very much. Q. What do you think you can do? WILSON KIPSANG: I think it's going to be a nice race and a tough one, and with these weather conditions, I think, will be challenging. Q. Did you mention a time? I'm sorry. What do you think you can do in this race? WILSON KIPSANG: Trying to hope for sub‑60. Q. Really? WILSON KIPSANG: Yeah. Q. We talked a little bit about last time being in New York, so after the race was cancelled, where did you kind of have to pick up the pieces there with your training? What did you end up doing? WILSON KIPSANG: Last time in New York when it was cancelled, went back to Kenya, training, and took an opportunity to compete in Honolulu Marathon, competed there, winning, then back to Kenya. Took off for two or three weeks and then start training. So this is the first race this year. Q. Honolulu, I think a lot of people‑‑ I guess some people thought that most of the runners would try and do a race within a couple of weeks, if possible, of New York, after that was cancelled. But Honolulu was about a month later, right? You managed to maintain in pretty good condition over that month? WILSON KIPSANG: Yeah. For someone like me, I like to keep my shape. So it was a test to make sure that I stay fit for the next one month because the shape was already there. Q. Was it warmer in Hawaii than here in New York City? WILSON KIPSANG: Pardon? Q. A little bit warmer in Hawaii than New York City? WILSON KIPSANG: Yes, Hawaii was very warm, and you find that the race starts very early. Q. When it's still dark, right? WILSON KIPSANG: Around 5:00, 5:00 a.m., so you know it's going to be still dark. Less oxygen. So it was very tough to race in the early part of the race. But as we raced, we find that it was becoming warm and warmer. Q. You liked that it got warmer? WILSON KIPSANG: It was good because I tried to really‑‑ I did a nice calculation for the race, which was really good, and I was able to just go through. Q. Is it common for you to‑‑ before a major marathon, like you're going to do in London, is it common for you to try and find a race like this one, a half marathon, a month before? WILSON KIPSANG: Yes, I think I'll be really doing this for the previous‑‑ before a marathon, try to book a half marathon to see how the body is responding, to see how fast I am, to see the endurance part, how it is, it's good. I notice too it's like a start to give the body that push to get used to the competing atmosphere. Q. What do you think of the field for this race? WILSON KIPSANG: Like I say, it's strong because there are some guys who have a lot of experience in road racing, and we have new guys that are competing, which we find that they are very dangerous sometimes. Faster guys like Bernard Lagat, he did 5,000, but you never know if he's done enough training for the half marathon. Sometimes these guys, sometimes they've got a surprise. So we have to be very, very sharp and keep a close watch on them. Q. Well, for example, Julius Arelia? Is that how you pronounce his name? Do you know him well at all? WILSON KIPSANG: Arelia? Q. He's got one of the best times coming in. Do you know him? WILSON KIPSANG: Julius Arelia, do I know him? Q. Have you trained with him? WILSON KIPSANG: I know him, but he's not really a threat to me. Q. He's not really a threat to me? WILSON KIPSANG: Yes. Q. Okay. Q. How's the training going overall for London? WILSON KIPSANG: The training is going very well. The duration is after this race, it will be five weeks to London. So it will be a real test of training. Q. Are you training with Geoffrey Mutai? WILSON KIPSANG: Yes, at times training with Mutai, maybe sometimes not. Q. Who's coaching you? Do you have a coach? WILSON KIPSANG: This time, self coaching. Q. And there's been some news about the drug test thing in Kenya that's made some news. A couple of Kenyans have been caught with drugs. Has that affected you in any way. Do you have any thoughts on that? WILSON KIPSANG: No, it doesn't because I think the issue maybe isn't the drugs, it's on an individual basis because, if one decides to use and is caught, he or she carries across. For me, I don't speak for all. I don't generalize that because it's an individual affair. Q. Have you ever suspected that there much going on there in terms of drug use? WILSON KIPSANG: Excuse me? Q. Have you ever suspected that there was much going on in the country in terms of drug use? WILSON KIPSANG: I don't think so because there are so many guys that are training hard, and you see the kind of training and the way they're going, it really contributes much to their performance in various races. But I think it's mainly some guys that tried to trick the guys, to trick them, that those drugs, because they are the agent, they try to tell these guys this is the medicine to use so they can become well, and the treatment are some substance which is prohibited. So they find themselves in a problem without realizing. They took advantage of some guys. It's not good. Q. So it's really the agents that you would blame? WILSON KIPSANG: No, not the agents. Q. Medical people? WILSON KIPSANG: Yeah, the medical people, yeah. Q. Looking ahead to London, the field is so incredible. Last year you destroyed a very strong field there as well. Obviously, the goal first is to win. Do you think the world record could possibly go with the field, or the running course has too many turns? WILSON KIPSANG: I think the course this time for London is really very strong compared to all other races which are previously in London. I think this time it will be very competitive. In a competitive race, you find that sometimes it is very challenging for the guys to race because you have like seven or eight guys, very strong potential, each and every one has the opportunity of winning. So you find that sometimes it is very challenging. It will depend on how the guys will conduct and how the race will be handled from the start. If the person is strong enough to keep the pace at the world level pace. So those that are strong enough can honor the pace and win the race. Q. Is it usual that the top athletes like yourself actually request a certain pace of the pace makers? Don't you actually like tell the pace makers what you want the pace to be? WILSON KIPSANG: So it depends because sometimes you might require a very fast pace, and then the course requires a very slow pace for the first half. And then they hold the faster pace in the second half. Some guys really like a faster pace and then the second half try to maintain. So many athletes disagree. Q. Going back to London, after your Olympic experience, what will that mean to you? WILSON KIPSANG: I think going back to London really means a lot because trying to look back last year, I did really well in the UK. London Olympics, bronze, going back there, Marathon I was winning. So I think going back again this time, I really look forward to defend my title and try to really secure the win. Q. Do you think‑‑ do you look at London as kind of a second home, someplace that's very special to you? WILSON KIPSANG: Yeah, yeah, very much. Q. What's your favorite part of London?  The city or the course or the competition? WILSON KIPSANG: I think it's very good. I try to look at the city. The course is very nice. And the competition, the strong field. Even last year was a strong field, and this year is more strong than last year. So I think it's very nice there. And the local people cheering. Sometimes the weather is not very bad, cold but not too cold, warm but not too warm. So sometimes it's very conducive to race in such weather conditions. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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