Historical Perspectives on Races
This section provides a statistical look at many of the major races around the world. National championship series are listed under National Championships.
Race Winners. We try to list the male and female winners for each year the race has been in existence. For Olympic events and various championships, gold, silver, and bronze medal winners are listed as known.
National Records. All current national records that were set in this race and that meet the standards for inclusion in the ADR database are listed.
Prize Money. The total prize money awarded to runners in the ADR database is shown by sex and combined. This may not represent the actual prize money purse for several reasons. The prize money distribution may not be known to us or may be incomplete. Prize money may also have been distributed to runners who do not qualify for inclusion in the ADR database. Prize money awarded in currencies other than US$ and in gold bullion have been converted to US$ at the prevailing exchange rate at the time of the event.
Race Time Bias. The race time bias is calculated from a regression analysis of a runner's performances within one year of the race date. The difference between a runner's actual time and that calculated by the regression is determined. Generally, five or more such differences are averaged to provide the race time bias. If there are fewer than five such comparisons, the race time bias is not computed. Race time biases are calculated separately for men and women.
The race time bias is a measure of how fast (negative bias) or slow (positive bias) the race was. Year-to-year fluctuations are largely determined by weather conditions. The average race time bias generally reflects the difficulty of the course and typical weather conditions.
Competitive Level. The competitive level of a race is determined on the basis of the competitive point levels of the five highest ranked runners going into the race. It is standardized so that it nominally ranges from a maximum of 1000 to a minimum of zero altho occasionally values may exceed these limits. International level races generally have competitive levels above 600 points; national level races generally have competitive levels between 300 and 600 points; regional level races generally have competitive levels below 300 points.
Quality Performances. For standard distance events, the number of performances achieved in the race over all of the years is provided for a range of time standards. For example, the number of men's performances for a marathon under 2:07, 2:08, 2:09,......,2:20 are shown to the extent contained in the ADR database.
Finishers. When this data is provided and is reasonably complete, the number of finishers for each year and other related information is provided.
Course History. When this data is available, changes in the course are documented and certifications are noted. Start/finish separation and net elevation change are also provided where available.
ROAD RACES
OFF-ROAD RACES
The ARRS is always looking for data to make our statistics as complete and
accurate as possible. Please send corrections and/or additions to kcy@frontiernet.net or mail hard-copy to Ken Young,
PO Box 219, Petrolia CA 95558. Credit will be given for additions for a particular race.