As part of the preparation for my attempt at the North Downs 50 this year, I decided that it would be helpful to get to know some of the competition.
Unfortunately, I don't know anything about any of the runners who will be there. However, Centurion do have a very handy list of entrants which contains a fair bit of info: http://www.centurionrunning.com/north-downs-way-50-2014/ndw50-2014-entrants/ (as shown on April 7th).
I realised there was quite a lot to be learnt about the individual runners as well as the field as a whole just from this list, so I decided use it to write a North Downs Way 50 2014 preview.
Here are the key bits of info condensed into six bullet points:
1. Runners with the longest name
The longest names in non-blank characters belong to Ranieri Brook Barbieri and Andrew Suenson-taylor. Their names are both an excellent 20 letters long. In a sport which is so preoccupied with length (as in distance), the longest name might not only make other runners jealous, it could also play to their advantage as their name stands out on the name list to other competitors. More people will be aware of them, and this could give them a psychological edge. These two are definitely ones to watch.
2. Team Italy and Team Russia have the longest average name
Mostly thanks to the previously mentioned Ranieri, Italy tops the average name list with an average name length of 17. Russia is joint top thanks to Vladimir Zalesskiy, the only Russian, whose name is (obviously) 17 letters long.
Team UK rank a feeble 9th position here; the UK runner has an average name length of 11.62962963. That is not long at all.
Turkey's sole representative Emre Tok will be reading this with his head in his hands. His name is a shocking 7 letters long. I don't much about the legal name changing process in Turkey, but if it is fairly quick, he still has a chance to address this shortfall before race day. Wishing you the best Emre.
3. Team London representing
36 of the 249 listed runners are from London - a staggering 14.5%. That's nearly 15%.
4. Taxi for South Africa & The Netherlands
All athletes from South Africa and The Netherlands booked a seat on the shuttle bus back to the start. In what some have called an "arrogant show of confidence", others have called "good future planning".
Whatever your opinion, these three international runners will certainly have people watching their splits as race day progresses.
In contrast, only 1.85% of runners from the UK have ordered the shuttle back to the start. This stat speaks for itself. Or at least I hope it does.
5. There is no city from which there are more female runners than male
This is a sadly predictable stat. Obviously everyone wants to see a better balance of male to female runners in ultras. However, there is a glimmer of hope. A gender-balanced utopia looks to be quietly forming in none other than sunny Orpington. Two male runners are balanced out by two female runners: an enviable 50% split.
London could learn a thing or two about gender equality from Orpington: 30 male runners are balanced by only 6 female runners.
6. Mark Haynes is from the Isle of Man
0% of runners who aren't Mark Haynes are from the Isle of Man. Coincidence? I think not.
If I have missed any obvious stats from this list, then please let me know on Twitter: @krispeterrun
Wishing everyone good luck on May 17th.