Interview: Bernard Lagat

by Travis Floeck

The best miler in the United States has been representing the country for less than a year. This summer marked the first time Bernard Lagat, a native of Kenya, ran for the U.S., after earning his citizenship in 2004. He had another sensational summer setting an American 1,500m record — which was previously held by Sydney Maree — of 3:29.30 in Rieti, Italy, and running 12:59 for 5,000m in Berlin. His personal record of 3:26.34 is the second fastest time ever in the 1,500 meters, behind Hicham El Guerrouj's world record.

Lagat first galloped onto the scene in the late 90s at Washington State University, where he won two NCAA individual championships (the 3,000m and mile indoors and 5,000m outdoors, all in 1999) and was an 11-time All-American. At the 2000 Olympic Games, Lagat surprised many when he won a bronze medal in the 1,500 final on the heels of El Guerrouj (silver) and his countryman Noah Ngeny (gold). That was no fluke. Lagat only improved on that performance, running sizzling times each summer, which set up a classic gut-wrenching duel against El Guerrouj at the 2004 Olympic Games. Lagat passed El Guerrouj in the homestretch of the 1,500m final, trying to hold on to a narrow lead. El Guerrouj willed himself past Lagat to earn the gold and a place in history, while Lagat took home a silver medal.

We caught up with him in mid October, before he traveled to Kenya to visit family.

MensRacing.com: Why did you choose to run for the United States, and why now?
Bernard Lagat: I wanted to wait to compete for the United States until after the [2004] Olympics, then at the next Olympics, run for the United States, that is how everything was planned out. I wanted to finish strongly as a Kenyan at a very important competition like the Olympics. I wanted to start running for the United States having no ties to Kenya. It's good to now be representing my new country.

MR: Were there any problems representing Kenya that contributed to your decision to represent the US?
BL: For me it is nothing to do with the organization or anyone treating me badly or the federation. Nothing like that at all. Basically it came down to me living here in the United States for a long time. It is going to be my 10th year now. I have stayed here a long time. This is where I want to raise my family. I told them the reasons and after they gave me the OK, I did it.

MR: What are your thoughts on your new American record in the 1,500?
BL: My goals are to run against the competition. The race started really slow. When I was running the 1,500, I wanted to get my personal record, but I got the American record. That is very important to me. Anytime you run under 3:30 it is very good, so I can't complain.

MR: You ran a great 5,000 this summer clocking a 12:59, where you blasted a 25 second last 200. Tell us your thoughts on that distance and how it plays into your future.
BL: I just run one race after another. My focus right now is the 1,500. When I run the 5,000 meters it is a tough race [laughs]. When I ran 12:59, I felt it was a really tough race. It's not only the toughness that makes me not want to think about running the 5,000. I just want to think about the 1,500 as my event, because going into the Olympics that is the event I want to go run. I just want to keep my focus. After the Olympics I may run the 5,000, you never know. I'm not ruling that out. I still will run two 5,000 meters a year, that still puts me in 5,000 meter competitive mode. I still want to be in 1,500. If I run more 5000s, my 1,500 will suffer and I don't want to do that. The 5,000 is just for conditioning and for fun at the moment.

MR: Is it safe to assume your goal is to win the 1,500 in Beijing?
BL: Yes. Absolutely. If that were to happen, that would be a dream come true. It would be my third competition. My mom told me that the next one is going to be the gold. I'm going to go by what my mom told me. To get that gold medal, it's not easy. You have to fight so hard at the Olympics. I have to do everything right. That is why I train so hard, for the Olympics.

MR: Would you rather run the Olympic Trials in Eugene or Sacramento? [Ed. note: The Trials have been awarded to Eugene.]
BL: Probably Eugene. I like Eugene because it is [track] friendly. Everyone loves [track]. I'm not saying Sacramento can't give that, but after running for four years at the University of Oregon — actually more than that because I ran against the U of O guys in the Pac-10 — [I know that] the atmosphere there is unbelievable. Everyone is shouting. Everyone is following track. They have the knowledge of the sport. The people there love the sport. That is when you perform your best. You have nothing to worry about. Everyone supports you. All you have to do is leave it on the track.

MR: Have recent findings on the lack of accuracy of EPO testing given you some vindication over your positive A sample in 2003?
BL: Everything for me was known a long time ago. The test was unreliable; I have known this for a long time. So whatever we find out now is going to be good for people to read, so we can address the problems of the old system. Everybody now has to open their eyes and look at everything written and talked about with this test. There is so much I can say, I don't want to take up all your time. I will say everybody who use to doubt the athletes like Bernard Lagat should take a second look right now with the way things are going.

MR: Talk about how your experience rising to the top of the world as a runner differs from how a majority of Kenyan runners get to the world-class scene. It seems there are a lot of Kenyan runners that are world class at age 18 and unheard of three years later.
BL: My situation has been different. For one I started much later than other people. I started when I was 21, to run competitively I was 22 actually. My coach likes to say I'm a late bloomer. I started late, but when I was running in college, the experience I got there helped me a lot. I felt it was so important for me to run in college. I learned to manage my time. When I was in college, I just wanted to run and win college races, but I knew then my ultimate goal was to be the best in the world. So I trained really hard. The guys back home have the greatest amount of talent and they run really hard. It was different for me. I had a coach and great facilities here. Over there they don't have great facilities, they don't make enough money. So when they race, they are so good, they just want to maximize everything. They want to make the most out of it, but instead they are actually sacrificing the longevity of their career. For me, I want to take it easy. I believe money should come second. It is good to run and make money. Try to be the best and put running foremost and money second. That is something my coach put in my mind every time. If somebody is going try to make the most of it right away and they become so good right away, it's not going to last. I have wanted to be there for a long time performing at the highest level and I feel I have done that.

MR: With the recent success of the Ethiopians, what do you feel the Kenyans need to do to keep pace for the Olympics in 2008?
BL: I think to be able to compete in 2008 the government, the Kenyan Federation, and the National Olympic Committee of Kenya should encourage athletes and listen to the athletes. Just treating athletes with respect and being generous, little things like that will make everyone on the team run very hard. For example, when athletes run their best at the Olympics and they get back and get slaughtered by the media and the government officials accusing them of not running their best. They are running their best. They just can't do it alone. They need support, but no one is supporting them. After they run sub-par they are being accused of not running hard, that is not good. They ran to win. I think treating athletes with respect and giving athletes incentive will help. There has never been a meeting to discuss what athletes want. They need to find out what the athletes want and need. Kenyan athletes are focused, they are serious, and they are willing to run for the country really hard. If no one considers them Kenyan champions and they don't treat them like that, then I don't blame them if they don't perform that well.

MR: Many believe that the current crop of athletes in the United States is moving forward and competing on a higher level. What do you think about being in the mix with these athletes, leading the charge into the 2008 Games and what do you think is needed to compete on that world scene?
BL: I always have said that in the United States there is plenty of talent. How that talent is being managed for long-term benefit is the only problem, I feel. Americans have great talent; they can actually perform like the champions of Kenya. If there is one example right now, it is in the 1,500 meters were we have Alan Webb. I believe Alan Webb is [as good as] anybody out there. No one is better than him. There are some with more experience than him, but he is getting experience and he is also very competitive.

I think people are getting sick of hearing this, but I have always said we need to focus on being the best in the world, not just the United States. Alan Webb is an example of this. He wants to be the best in the world. When he goes to a race, he fights hard. If we find athletes that fight hard, like Tim Broe in the 5,000, that is the type of thing we want to see. We want to have people like Tim Broe or Alan Webb inspiring the young people. We need to inspire them to come out and not be afraid. They can do anything they want. They can be like Alan Webb, who is really strong right now. When you think about it, in the 1970s and 80s, some of the US distance runners and milers were [among] the best [in the world]. It can happen again, if people think in terms of being the best in the world.

MR: Now that you have had a long, successful career do you train the way you always have or are you constantly tweaking the routine?
BL: I don't change my training that much. We train three months ahead of time. So when November, comes and I start again I know what I will be doing for three months and when those three months are up, I know again what I will be doing for [the next] three months. We plan ahead and figure when I should peak, when I should rest, when I should focus on speed, and when I should focus on volume. My training has always been tough. When I do things, I try to think of the competition and try to run tough.

MR: What workouts throughout the year give you a ton of confidence?
BL: What gives me confidence is when I do mile repeats. When I'm able to do them in 4:20 or so with little rest. I feel good. When I was doing this in Flagstaff with Abdi [Abdirahman] last year, I knew things were going well. When I don't feel totally tired, then I know my shape is coming really well. That is when we have to make the transition of doing shorter stuff. However, when I start to feel like I'm shuffling and only able to do them at around 4:30, then that is when we go back to more volume. So we are always evaluating what I need.

MR: Is [Abdirahman] your primary training partner?
BL: Yes, he is. Sometimes when my brother [the University of Arizona's Robert Cheseret] isn't going to class, I try to run with him. I train most of the time with Abdi because he is very disciplined, that is why I like him.

MR: Yeah, he's also a funny guy too.
BL: Yes, he's funny. Nothing is boring when Abdi is around. It is always fun [laughs].

MR: What type of ambitions do you have when you are done competing?
BL: I would like to travel with my wife to places I have never been. I would like to go to South America. I would also like to help in athletics however much I can. Especially for young people in poor countries who need support in order to be good athletes. I want to focus on academics. I won't support people solely to run. I want to support people for academics. I feel if you are a good runner and your academics are questionable, I think everything will be questionable at some point. Athletes have to be their own driver; they have to know everything that is going on. Especially athletes who make money, they have to learn to deal with every kind of situation. One important thing about education I want to stress to people I'm going to support is running is difficult and is not going to last forever so when that is over they have to have something to do afterwards. That is why I'm starting this foundation. I'm going to Kenya to work on my foundation. It is for kids who are very smart, but come from poor families that can't afford education.

MR: We hear you have a baby on the way.
BL: Yes! We have a baby on the way. That is the most exciting thing. This is my first child, my wife's first child. We got married last year and now we have a baby coming!

MR: Where do you get a majority of your inspiration?
BL: Before I came to the US, my sister inspired me a lot. She was one of the best Kenyan athletes in the 1980s. She traveled the world and she told me I could be a good athlete. Every time I do anything, I want to be like my sister. When I came over here, I wanted to be the best in the world because my sister told me I could be the best. Getting inspired as a little child was because of my sister. There were also people I always read about. For example running against people like Hicham [El Guerrouj]. He ran hard and always took it from the beginning not looking back. He is a gentleman; you get inspired by running with him. Every time I run with him, I run fast. I love to see [how] we inspire young people.

(Interview posted November 16, 2005)