CAPITOLA >> Bernard Lagat was going to run Sunday’s Wharf to Wharf race.
That’s the Bernard Lagat who has won a silver and a bronze during his five Olympic appearances. The one who has held five American records and five world championship gold medals. The one who holds the second fastest 1,500-meter time ever run.
Or so organizers thought. Not until after they invited an athlete they believed to be the 42-year-old legend to compete as an elite runner in their 6-mile race between the Santa Cruz and Capitola wharves did they learn that this Bernard Lagat is actually a 22-year-old Kenyan who landed in the U.S. for the first time last month. According to his agent, this Bernard Lagat “has run well — but has yet to equal the accomplishments of his illustrious namesake.”
Bernard Lagat won’t be racing either way. Karma caught up to the younger one, who injured his back in a race last week and had to drop out of the Wharf to Wharf. His more famous namesake, meanwhile, is likely enjoying semi-retirement and the occasional appearance fee, which the Wharf to Wharf does not pay out. Still, the mixup only hints at the tricky undertaking Wharf to Wharf organizers navigate every year when trying to fill the race’s elite men’s and women’s fields.
“We have so many people contact us,” said Katie Gott, who is in her first year as the Wharf to Wharf Elite Athlete Coordinator. “To a normal human being, all their times are astounding. You hate to say, ‘Your personal best isn’t enough.’ But it isn’t enough. It’s astounding to see how fast all their times are.”
Elite racers must meet a minimum time requirement to even be considered. The men must have a personal-best 10-kilometer time of 29 minutes or faster, while the women must be able to cover that same 6.2-mile distance in at least 34 minutes.
Speed is only one factor in the equation, though. Gott and race director Scott McConville also look at a variety of other elements, including an athlete’s history with the race, how they’ve fared in comparable races and even what country they represent.
“We want to make the race fun,” McConville said. “But we want to preserve the integrity, too.”
NUMBERS GAME
The Wharf to Wharf offers cash prizes to the top four male and female finishers ($1,000 to $4,000). That, in turn, dictates how many elite runners can toe the line on race day. McConville said the sweet spot is between 10-15 runners — enough to make it interesting while also giving racers a realistic chance of lining their pockets. Many more than that apply for an elite bib, however. Online applications and calls start rolling through in April, and they really start piling up in June.
To sort through it all, McConville has established a pecking order. Or, maybe call it loyalty rewards.
“We like to build relationships with the athletes,” he said. “By bringing them back year after year, they become more relatable to our community. … There’s so many we have to turn away, but first and foremost, we welcome back past champions.”
This year, that explains the return of defending champion Isaac Mukundi Mwangi as well as Silas Kipruto, the 2011 champion whom Mukundi nipped at the finish line last year. Both are from Kenya. The third-place finisher from 2016, Teshome Mekonen of Ethiopia, is also back, fresh off a win at the Crazy 8s 8k race in Tennessee last Saturday.
In addition, the men’s field includes Tonny Okello of Uganda and a handful of Americans led by Salinas’ Diego Estrada, who is coming off a fourth-place finish in the 10k at the USA national championships.
That’s the kind of international mix McConville strives for.
“It’s nice to have your elite field represent the world,” McConville said. “Just like in the rest of the race, we want as many people to come here from as many places as possible. It’s nice to have that global influence on your event.”
He is less pleased, however, with the diversity of the women’s field. It is highlighted by Buze Diriba of Ethiopia, Monicah Ngige of Kenya, Grace Kahura of Kenya and Aptos’ own Amy Schnittger.
Risper Gesabwa, who has won the last three Wharf to Wharf women’s titles, was expected to compete for a fourth until last week, when the Kenyan backed out for unknown reasons.
Her withdrawal highlights another difficulty for the organizers: figuring out who is actually going to show up.
At the Wharf to Wharf office here Tuesday afternoon, the list of elite athletes seemed to revolve like a water wheel, with athletes being added and dropped seemingly every few minutes. Gott said she doesn’t consider an athlete confirmed until he or she has booked air travel for the race weekend.
“I am really surprised at how many changes we’ve had this week,” Gott said. “I figured there would be a lot of shifting the last few weeks, but we had some who didn’t book travel until today.”
TAKING A SLANT
Often times, athletes are put on a waiting list because they don’t check one of the boxes in terms of speed, diversity and desirability. That’s when organizers start hearing from their agents.
“Some are cutthroat,” McConville said. “They make you feel bad about saying ‘No.’”
With good reason. Most of the international runners stay in the U.S. for about three months before returning home. Since their winnings during that span may be the main means of support for a family of up to 30 in Africa, it is imperative to both them and their agent (who pockets 15 percent of their winnings) that they race every weekend and that they choose events that give them a chance to win.
For many, the Wharf to Wharf is just such a race.
Owen Anderson, the agent for Monicah Ngige of Kenya, who will race in the women’s field this year, said he tried for a couple years to get his athletes in to the Wharf to Wharf, with no luck. Then, last year, three of his athletes ended up at the start line.
“As a manager, you’re looking for good races,” said Anderson, who started the Michigan-based Lansing Sports Management in 2014. “That means decent prize money. You want a race that is well-operated so you know there’s no cheating, that’s well marked and has cones and barriers so they won’t go off course, the courses are well-timed and there’s support for runners — that they’ll be picked up from airport and taken care of so they can focus on racing. Wharf to Wharf has great reputation in that aspect.”
Considering the stakes, Anderson — who is also the young Bernard Lagat’s agent — said sometimes managers have to get creative and “slant” runners to fit the profile that elite athlete coordinators are seeking.
“Many have a narrative,” said Anderson, who develops his athletes through a training camp in Nyahururu and a youth camp in Marmanet he set up. “A lot of people believe races are try to bring together the fastest competition they can get, but that’s not always true. A lot of times they have a narrative that is good for marketing and sponsors and will slant the race. …So, sometimes you try to slant the athlete to fit the narrative. You never tell race directors that, but you do sometimes try to slant.”
Anderson said that wasn’t what we was trying to do with Lagat, whom he said often is mistaken for his counterpart, who is more well-known but not necessarily better recognized. He noted that several fans have approached the young Lagat for a picture, saying they’ve always wanted to meet him. Having no idea until recently that he had an iconic namesake, the racer typically happily obliged.
However he did it, Anderson succeeded in getting Lagat on the start list. The injury has since knocked him off, to be replaced by someone else from the waiting list or an attractive runner whose schedule suddenly opened up. By now, organizers hope their list of racers has stabilized, but they won’t call it set until the athletes are lined up Sunday in front of the Boardwalk.
“We’re trying to balance the early portion of who to accept and how can we save a spot if a super-good athlete wants in,” McConville said. “If someone who is super good (approaches us), even now, we could find a spot to get them in.”
Take note, Bernard Lagat.
Contact Julie Jag at 831-706-3257.