Two Hours
The Quest to Run the Impossible Marathon
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- ¥1,800
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- ¥1,800
発行者による作品情報
“Essential reading for every runner.” —Men’s Fitness
“Compelling…As becomes clear not long after its starting gun, this book transcends the search for a two-hour marathon.” —The Washington Post
Two hours to cover twenty-six miles and 385 yards. It is running’s Everest, a feat once seen as impossible for the human body. But now we can glimpse the mountaintop. The sub-two hour marathon will require an exceptional combination of speed, mental strength, and endurance. The pioneer will have to endure more, live braver, plan better, and be luckier than anyone who has run before. So who will it be?
In this spellbinding book, journalist Ed Caesar takes us into the world of elite marathoners: some of the greatest runners on earth. Through the stories of these rich characters, like Kenyan Geoffrey Mutai, around whom the narrative is built, Caesar traces the history of the marathon as well as the science, physiology, and psychology involved in running so fast for so long. And he shows us why this most democratic of races retains its brutal, enthralling appeal—and why we are drawn to test ourselves to the limit.
Two Hours is a book about a beautiful sport few people understand. It takes us from big-money races in the United States and Europe to remote villages in Kenya. It’s about talent, heroism, and refusing to accept defeat. It is a book about running that is about much more than running. It is a human drama like no other.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Debut author Caesar, a journalist and war correspondent, explores the world of elite marathon running and what it will take for someone to crack the two-hour barrier. Using the tale of champion Kenyan long distance runner Geoffrey Mutai as the through-story that holds the book together, Caesar jumps around, covering the origin and history of the 26.3-mile race, the science of long-distance running, and the role athletic shoe companies may play in an athlete achieving this record-breaking goal. Much of the book focuses on a tiny section of Africa where the best marathoners in the world including Mutai come from. Caesar, who has reported widely from Africa, does great work capturing the lives, training routines, and proud ancestry of these amazing runners, not to mention the pitfalls and dangers they face before and after they achieve fame. This strong tale covers the joys of athletic triumph and the pain of missed opportunities, whileinvestigating what it means to be born or bred a champion and what it will take to for someone to make running history. Caesar proves himself an engaging storyteller with a book whose time has come.
