Record pickle: Is FAT 2:19.83 faster than 2:19.7?
Thank you, Karin Wahlstedt. You spared us a debate on hand-timing vs. FAT for records consideration in events over 400 meters. Who is Karin Wahlstedt? Well, on March 3 in in Bollnäs, Sweden, she ran the 800 in 2:18.16 — easily better than the listed W45 world indoor record. But, nah. Let’s have the debate. Here goes: A month ago at the Swedish masters indoor nationals, Karin won the W45 800 in 2:19.83. The listed world-age group record is 2:19.7 by Britain’s Caroline Marler in 1997, a hand-timed mark, notes Annette’s Seite in Germany. So which was faster? Karin’s FAT 2:19.83 or Caroline’s stopwatch time of 2:19.7? Which was the world record?
Since I had trouble parsing the German Web site story, I wrote to Stefan Waltermann (say hi to him in Boston; he’s in the M55 60, 800 and pentahlon).
Stefan graciously wrote:
It’s a math problem. It goes like this:
Hand Timing: If combined-event running events, from 400 meters down (including hurdles), are hand-timed, the times have to be corrected before multiplying by the appropriate Age Factor. Then the score must be looked up in the fully automatic portion of the scoring Tables (The hand-timed portions of the scoring tables are never used in masters combined events scoring).
The IAAF corrections to apply are: 50 through 300 meters add 0.24 seconds to the hand time, 400 meters add 0.14 seconds to the hand time, all above 400 meters add nothing (use auto or hand time as is) (WMA and IAAF Rules).
800m W45-World Record: 2:19,7min (Caroline Marler, GBR) hand-timed Add 0.14 sec (400m adjustment) = 2:19.84. Swedish Indoors 800m: Karin Wahlstedt 2:19.83 electronic timing
The way I see it, yes, it’s a world record and no, it’s not a world record. After all, the IAAF rules clearly state: (For) all (distances) above 400 meters, add nothing. But Karin ran faster than Caroline, don’t you think?
Here’s a rough translation of the German post:
Supplement: W45-Weltrekord and M80-Weltrekord in Sweden Karin Wåhlstedt (*1960, Järvsö IF) was called the large Siegerin of the Swedish Resounding championships to 17. /18. February in Borås. Those ever more strongly becoming W45-erin if the 400m in 62,18sec won, hold back constantly the 1500m in 5:00,42 min, became second over 200m in 28,83sec and set then with one, of the supervisors surveyed Resounding world record over 800m in 2:19,83 min “one drauf “. The world record was ignored obviously, because in the record list only hngestoppte 2:19,7 min (Caroline Marler, GBR) are specified. The time of the Swede run now is however after the rule customer accurately hundredths better than – nevertheless ten years old – the time the Britin. Because with all distances to 300 m inclusively become in Comparison with the electronically measured time always 0,24sec added, starting from 400 m then always 0,14sec. Arithmetic problem: 2:19,7 + 0.14 = 2:19,84 seconds . . .
So as I said: Thank goodness Karin made moot the record. But the dilemma posed by her earlier mark will pop up again, I assure you.
