The Science of How Nike Nearly Cracked the Two-Hour Marathon | WIRED

Runners have been trying to break through the 2 hour marathon mark for decades. Here's the incredible science behind how Eliud Kipchoge came within 25 seconds in Nike's Breaking2 project.


Also, check out the free WIRED channel on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV. Here you can find your favorite WIRED shows and new episodes of our latest hit series Tradecraft.

ABOUT WIRED
WIRED is where tomorrow is realized. Through thought-provoking stories and videos, WIRED explores the future of business, innovation, and culture.

The Science of How Nike Nearly Cracked the Two-Hour Marathon | WIRED

[njungee]

Who else is here after he broke the record in Vienna today

[seer]

The most obvious variable was the incredible talent of Eliud Kipchoge, a once in a generation athlete.

[castlecallahan]

To say Nike nearly cracked the 2 hr marathon would discredit the athletes

[kjc]

Who’s here after Kipchoge cracked 2 hours in Vienna?

[danielponga]

Beyond sponsorships and all of that, I love the fact that Nike and the runners did all they had in their power to see how far the human body can go

[Hardcaslte]

Dude wtf, 2 hour marathon is running 13 mph for 2 hours. An average person that's starting in cycling with a nice bike would probably average about 15 mph on a BIKE. The every day person riding a bike would probably average 12-13 mph on a BIKE. He did that on his feet running. That's insane.

[edwardgutierrez]

I think another trick to add to this experiment would be to unleash a wild animal like a lion or bear after him the last quarter mile of the race and I would guarantee you he would've gone under 2 hours.

[heershah]

Wired: Almost impossible to do a 2 hour marathon.

Eliud Kipchoge: Hold my Milk Cartons

[JCQuadcopters]

Can we just remind everyone that kipchoge is the one who ran this and deserves credit, not nike

[chrisstephens]

At 0:22 the woman holding the finish line and clapping is Joan Benoit Samuelson. The first women to ever win the marathon in the olympics. 1984.

[einseinseinseins]

Between 10 and 4, 4 degrees Celsius ideal temperature and 12, 8 degrees on race day

[iekezie]

2 has finally been broken!
Today Eliud Kipchoge ran 26.2 miles in 1 hour 59 minutes and 40 seconds!!
Congratulations to him and to everyone who made this possible.

[RichardsWorld]

It's nice that they let some white dudes run with them for a little bit.

[issaahmed]

Who's here after Kipchoge broke the 2 hour barrier.?🤯

[kimani]

The man did us proud today.. We have alot of issues but there's no better day to be Kenyan than today🇰🇪🇰🇪

[ethanbagshaw]

dufuq their pace for a marathon is faster than my mile's pace

[eluzon]

Who’s here after Kipchoge just ran a sub 2 hour marathon

[mothereric]

I wonder if this will impact running like the full body fast suits impacted olympic swimming at the Beijing Olympics. The suits were actually banned because they worked so well.

[hallow]

4:40 Eliud Kipchogae just beat the marathon world record at berlin. Suprised at the accuracy of this video.

[ethanprince]

Shit i dont even wanna drive 26.2 miles