A kick in a running race is the ability of some athletes to sprint at the end of an endurance-oriented race. For those who possess the ability to kick, it is a strategic weapon. For those with the liability not to possess a kick, they must seek different strategies to anticipate and diminish their opponent's kicking power, usually by a long extended surge to break away or exhaust their opponent well ahead of the finish of the race. Similar to a sprinter in cycling, a kicker has a finite distance they know they are able to sprint, making their strategy to be in the ideal position at that distance to be able to utilize that speed. Sprinting too early could lead an athlete to tie up, a form of

muscle cramp A cramp is a sudden, involuntary, painful skeletal muscle contraction or overshortening associated with electrical activity. While generally temporary and non-damaging, they can cause significant pain and a paralysis-like immobility of the affe ...

that debilitates a racer from continuing to kick. Thus team tactics might also intentionally or not, box a kicker, meaning to position other competitors to their outside, to disrupt their positioning and timing. Of course, as the finish is nearing and all athletes are straining, this becomes more difficult to accomplish deliberately. In the

800 metres The 800 metres, or 800 meters (American and British English spelling differences#-re.2C -er, US spelling), is a common track running event. It is the shortest commonly run middle-distance running event. The 800 metres is run over two laps of a ...

, some athletes develop the reputation for being a kicker because of their apparent speed at the end of the race, when in reality they ran even splits. Most of that speed is relative to the exhaustion as their opponents slow. Dave Wottle, James Robinson,

Yuriy Borzakovskiy Yuriy Mikhailovich Borzakovskiy (, , born 12 April 1981) is a Russian middle-distance runner specializing in the 800 metres. Early life Borzakovskiy was born at Kratovo, in the Moscow Oblast. He was named for the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagari ...

Nick Symmonds Nicholas Boone Symmonds (born December 30, 1983) is an American YouTube personality and retired Middle distance track event, middle-distance runner from Boise, Idaho, who specialized in the 800 meters and 1500 meters. At Willamette University, he ...

and Amel Tuka would take the beginning of the race out slowly, regaining contact with the rest of the field near the last 200 metres. At the elite men's level, that even pace would be about 26 seconds per 200 metres; a 52-second first lap, as compared with the leaders close to or under 50 seconds. World record holder

David Rudisha David Lekuta Rudisha, State Commendations of Kenya, MBS (born 17 December 1988) is a retired Kenyan Middle-distance running, middle-distance runner who is the world and Olympic record holder in the 800 metres. Rudisha won gold medals in the 800 ...

burned off the kickers during his world record during the 2012 Olympic 800m finals. When he won the 2015 World Championships, he blew away even-paced kickers like Tuka with a remarkably fast final 24.34 200 metre true kick of his own. Generally, most long kickers or extended kickers would accelerate in the penultimate lap or shortly after the bell indicating the last lap has begun. A speed kicker would behave more like an anchor runner in a 4x400 relay, positioning themselves on the shoulder of their opponent and using their burst of speed as late as the final straightaway.

Mo Farah Sir Mohamed Muktar Jama Farah (born Hussein Abdi Kahin; 23 March 1983) is a Somali-British former long-distance runner. Considered one of the greatest runners of all time, his ten global championship gold medals (four Olympic and six World tit ...

developed a reputation as a strategic runner. His finishing kick was not so much a burst of speed, but his extended ability to repeatedly accelerate just enough to discourage anybody from passing him during an intense final lap or so of his races. His Nike Oregon Project teammate Matthew Centrowitz Jr. employed a similar form of holding the lead to win his 2016 gold medal in the 1500. Because of the advantage of having the tool of a kick in a competitor's arsenal, the techniques to train to kick are a common discussion among runners and coaches.

Notable kickers

* Geordie Beamish *

Fermín Cacho Fermín Cacho Ruiz (born 16 February 1969) is a Spanish track and field athlete, winner of the gold medal in the 1500m at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona and the silver medal in the 1500m at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Born in ...

Sebastian Coe Sebastian Newbold Coe, Baron Coe, (born 29 September 1956), often referred to as Seb Coe, is a British sports administrator, former politician and retired track and field athlete. As a middle-distance runner, Coe won four Olympic medals, incl ...

Eamonn Coghlan Eamonn Christopher Coghlan (born 21 November 1952) is an Irish former track and field athlete who specialised in middle distance track events and the 5,000 metres. He is a three-time Olympian, held the world indoor mile record and was world c ...

Alberto Cova Alberto Cova (born 1 December 1958) is a retired Italian long-distance track athlete, winner of the 10,000 m at the 1984 Summer Olympics and 1983 World Championships. Biography Born in Inverigo, province of Como, Italy, Alberto Cova was charac ...

Haile Gebrselassie Haile Gebrselassie (; born 18 April 1973) is an Ethiopian former Long-distance running, long-distance track running, track, road running athlete, and businessman. He won two Olympic gold medals and four World Athletics Championships, World Cha ...

Shelby Houlihan Shelby Houlihan (born February 8, 1993) is an American middle distance runner, Olympian and World Record holder in the 4x1500m relay. Houlihan competed in the 5000m final at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, finishing 11th. She is a 12-time US Nati ...

* Ezekiel Kemboi *

Bernard Lagat Bernard Kipchirchir Lagat (born December 12, 1974) is a Kenyan-American former Middle-distance running, middle and long-distance running, long-distance runner. Lagat was born in Kapsabet, Kenya. Prior to his List of eligibility transfers in at ...

* Douglas Lowe *

Billy Mills William Mervin Mills (born June 30, 1938), also known by his Oglala Lakota name Tamakhóčhe Theȟíla, is an American Oglala Lakota former track and field athlete who won a gold medal in the 10,000 metre run (6.2 mi) at the 1964 Tokyo O ...

Steve Ovett Stephen Michael James Ovett, (; born 9 October 1955) is a retired British track athlete. A middle-distance runner, he was the gold medalist in the 800 metres at the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow. Ovett set five world records for 1500 metre ...

Jim Ryun James Ronald Ryun (born April 29, 1947) is an American former Republican Party (United States), Republican politician and Olympic track and field athlete, who at his peak was widely considered the world's top middle-distance runner. He won a si ...

Peter Snell Sir Peter George Snell (17 December 1938 – 12 December 2019) was a New Zealand middle-distance runner. He won three Olympic gold medals, and is the only man since 1920 to have won the 800 and 1500 metres at the same Olympics, in 1964. Snel ...

Miruts Yifter Miruts Yifter (, affectionately known as "Yifter the Shifter", 15 May 1944 – 22 December 2016) was an Ethiopian long-distance runner and winner of two gold medals at the 1980 Summer Olympics. His date of birth is often given as 15 May 1944, th ...

Cole Hocker Cole Hocker (born June 6, 2001) is an American middle-distance running, middle- and long-distance runner who specializes in the 1500 metres, 1500 meters. He won the gold medal in the event at the Athletics at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Men's 1 ...

Extended kickers

Kenenisa Bekele Kenenisa Bekele Beyecha (; ; born 13 June 1982) is an Ethiopian Long-distance running, long-distance runner. He was the world record holder in both the 5000 metres, 5,000-metre and 10000 metres, 10,000-metre from 2004 until 2020. He won the go ...

* Matthew Centrowitz Jr. *

Steve Cram Stephen Cram, (born 14 October 1960) is a British retired track and field athlete. Along with fellow Britons Sebastian Coe and Steve Ovett, he was one of the world's dominant middle-distance runners during the 1980s. Nicknamed "The Jarrow Arro ...

Hicham El Guerrouj Hicham El Guerrouj (; ; born 14 September 1974) is a retired Moroccan middle-distance runner. El Guerrouj is the current world record holder for the 1500 metres and mile, and the former world record holder in the 2000 metres. He is the only m ...

Lasse Virén Lasse Artturi Virén (born 22 July 1949) is a Finnish former long-distance runner, winner of four gold medals at the 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics. Virén recaptured the image of the "Flying Finns" promoted by runners like Hannes Kolehmainen, Pa ...

References

{{Reflist Sport of athletics terminology Track and field strategy