Why do Kenyan's DOMINATE distance running?

[kurple]

Michael Jordan is Kenyan too.

Proof why he is such a beast.

We can do this for basketball players too. The dark skin ninjas vs the light skinned ninjas.

[Akrazotile]

East Africans let's all just say East Africans.

This confusion is actually an example of the inherent problem when trying to define "race"... There's really no clear cut boundaries to determine race only what we make up. There's lots of overlap among populations around the world, and lots of repeated recent and ancient "mixture" among populations. And we're all not that different/distantly related to begin with.

In general, East Africans are observed to have better bio mechanics for long distance running.

We tend to simplify race based on visual convenience - black, white, yellow. And that's an oversimplification, however it seems pretty obvious that over time, different regions of the globe produced different characteristics in their native populations. It's clear cut. What is there to argue about this?

Jews were forced over many hundreds of years into essentially white collar occupations. As a result, those best suited to them sired the most living offspring, and those genes became predominant in the Jewish gene pool. Today, despite the removal of occupation restriction, Jews consistently score an entire standard deviation higher on IQ tests than the populations they live among. Do you think this is a coincidence? You think physical differences exist but you're sure psychological ones don't? What??

This has nothing to do with any sort of 'superiority.' That's entirely subjective. However, different skills - mental and physical - varied in their evolutionary importance in different regions of the world. Did you know that in scientific tests, Asian babies were more shy than Caucasian babies, which were more shy than African babies? Is that a result of nature, nurture, or both, it's difficult to say. I don't know if cross-parenting studies have been done on it but I am positive that even as small children, different historically separated groups show different personality characteristics.


The point I'm getting at is that people tend to expect cities like Ferguson to behave the same way as a city like Portland. People in Ferguson expect to have the same level of success as a city like Portland. And we're all scratching our head as to why this isn't happening. Is it culture? History? Systematic oppression? Everyone is quick to volunteer those suggestions, but the taboo suggestion is simply demographics. Now I'm not saying this IS the cause, but it's a possibility everyone refuses to scrutinize. If we were actually able to identify it as the problem, then we can all figure out the best course of action from there.

The problem of course is that to suggest a group has distinct qualities from a different group, means you are going to hurt the feelings of everyone who might get lumped in that group, and that's why people are scared to do it. But the reality is, there's no need to fear for anyone's feelings. Group rates don't affect an individual. On average, Japanese people are shorter than American whites and blacks, yet the tallest person ever drafted in NBA history? 7'7 Yasutaka Okayama. The smartest person on Earth could very well be an australian aboriginal, even though as a group they test the lowest on western intelligence tests. Just because we acknowledge certain patterns within a group does NOT mean we are boxing in every individual who shares lineage in common with it.

But we know Kenyan's always succeed in running. We know Jews do well on standardized tests. We know black toddlers are sociable. We know the average height of the Japanese population. These are observable trends. These are scientifically verifiable group traits.


So the point is, are we fooling ourselves to expect all groups to turn out equally across all categories? Whether it be in career success, athletics, relationships, etc? Do we think it's simply culture and history that prohibits us from having success rates mirror population proportions? I honestly don't CARE what the answer is. I'm not someone who's trying to put down anyone or any group, I simply want the REAL answers, not the fairy tale answers the fringe left wants to propagate because they're afraid of being labeled as hateful for straying too far away from the groupthink.

[9erempiree]

Kenyans known for their legs.

[NumberSix]

We are however, pretty much identical on the inside, organs like heart/liver/brain that don't come in direct contact with external changes in environmen.

A liver doesn't come in contact with the environment?

It's a crucial organ for the digestive process. People from a Northern European environment were surrounded by different animals and plant life than people in east Africa, right? Would it be reasonable to think that eating different animals and plants would affect how digestive organs adapt?

Have you ever noticed that in the western world, African people suffer the worst when it comes to things like diabetes, certain cancers, etc.? The western diet takes a greater toll on their health.

As for the heart, have you ever noticed that African Americans suffer more from heart disease? There actually are differences in the heart. On being the size of the ventricles.

The brain? That's a touchy subject for a lot of people. However, brain size and skull shape does differ by race.

[warriorfan]

Why do pinoys dominate nothing?

looks like they are dominating your mind at the moment

[TheSilentKiller]

I haven't read any of the responses but this thread was made for me. I ran competitively from age 13 to 21.

There are a plethora of reasons why Africans (not just Kenyans) dominate distance running. I'll give the top 3

1) From the earliest of ages, they have to travel great distances to get things they need. Several accomplished runners have told tales of walking/running to school ten kilometers each day, while carrying books. Walking/running far to get water/food each day for your family. All of this builds up and incredible aerobic base from a very very young age that can later develop into a background for professional distance running.

2) The environment in which they grow up is very conducive to high aerobic development. Kenya (and several other countries in Africa) are at a higher elevation than most places in Europe and the United States. Living at higher elevation has been studied and found to drastically increase aerobic development.

3) Running is one of the few ways for young Africans to find success / gain money for their families. In a sport that requires nothing but your determination and will, running is incredibly accessable from a young age. You don't need equipment or a field, just the world around you. If

[TheSilentKiller]

OK after reading this thread most of ya'll are idiots.

[riseagainst]

Kenyans dominate it because they deliver mail/packages via human transportation. They don't have the luxury of riding in cars. They just run everywhere. Instead of talking on the phone, they run 50 miles to their mom's house just to tell her good night.

[Heilige]

The point I'm getting at is that people tend to expect cities like Ferguson to behave the same way as a city like Portland. People in Ferguson expect to have the same level of success as a city like Portland. And we're all scratching our head as to why this isn't happening. Is it culture? History? Systematic oppression? Everyone is quick to volunteer those suggestions, but the taboo suggestion is simply demographics. Now I'm not saying this IS the cause, but it's a possibility everyone refuses to scrutinize. If we were actually able to identify it as the problem, then we can all figure out the best course of action from there.

What do you personally feel are the reasons cities like Portland have more levels of success than cities like Ferguson?

[DonDadda59]

I haven't read any of the responses but this thread was made for me. I ran competitively from age 13 to 21.

There are a plethora of reasons why Africans (not just Kenyans) dominate distance running. I'll give the top 3

1) From the earliest of ages, they have to travel great distances to get things they need. Several accomplished runners have told tales of walking/running to school ten kilometers each day, while carrying books. Walking/running far to get water/food each day for your family. All of this builds up and incredible aerobic base from a very very young age that can later develop into a background for professional distance running.

2) The environment in which they grow up is very conducive to high aerobic development. Kenya (and several other countries in Africa) are at a higher elevation than most places in Europe and the United States. Living at higher elevation has been studied and found to drastically increase aerobic development.

3) Running is one of the few ways for young Africans to find success / gain money for their families. In a sport that requires nothing but your determination and will, running is incredibly accessable from a young age. You don't need equipment or a field, just the world around you. If

Someone always has to come into a thread and derail it with logic

Bold- reason why so many athletes who are training for endurance make sure to hold training camps in high altitude locations (or just use EPO instead ). Training in higher altitudes increases your red blood cell count/mass and helps muscle metabolism. Now imagine nomadic people living their entire lives, for generations, under those conditions without the luxury of transportation systems. It's not really that hard of a puzzle to put together.

The funny thing is, as recently as the late 20th century, there was a prevailing stereotype in track and field that Black people couldn't compete in long distance races, that they could only excel in sprints. Then Back people from certain regions in Africa started competing and dominating in long distance events.

[Derka]

I always thought it was due to the higher elevation they train and live at.

[DonDadda59]

I always thought it was due to the higher elevation they train and live at.

Nah bro, it's because of some phrenology, eternal jew shit. Check the stats.

[Akrazotile]

Someone always has to come into a thread and derail it with logic

Bold- reason why so many athletes who are training for endurance make sure to hold training camps in high altitude locations (or just use EPO instead ). Training in higher altitudes increases your red blood cell count/mass and helps muscle metabolism. Now imagine nomadic people living their entire lives, for generations, under those conditions without the luxury of transportation systems. It's not really that hard of a puzzle to put together.

The funny thing is, as recently as the late 20th century, there was a prevailing stereotype in track and field that Black people couldn't compete in long distance races, that they could only excel in sprints. Then Back people from certain regions in Africa started competing and dominating in long distance events.

Right. Over many generations, the ones most suited to success in the climate probably had, on average, more offspring that were born better suited to success in that climate. No?

[dude77]

or maybe because they're dopers

Rita Jeptoo banned 2 years

[TheSilentKiller]

Right. Over many generations, the ones most suited to success in the climate probably had, on average, more offspring that were born better suited to success in that climate. No?

This isn't about race... this is about environment



Guess who just started high altitude training within the last 20 or so years? - America




Guess who just won an Olympic medal in the 10k - An American