Introduction In distance running, pacing is characterized by changes in speed, leading to runners dropping off the leader`s pace until a few remain to contest victory with a final sprint. Pacing behavior has been well studied over the last 30 years, but much remains unknown. It might be related to finishing position, finishing time, and dependent on critical speed (CS), a surrogate of physiologic capacity. We hypothesized a relationship between CS and the distance at which runners "fell behind" and "let go" from the leader or were "outsprinted" as contributors to performance. Methods 100-m split times were obtained for athletes in the men`s 10,000-m at the 2008 Olympics (N = 35). Split times were individually compared with the winner at the point of "falling behind" (successive split times progressively slower than the winner), "letting go" (large increase in time for distance compared with winner), or "outsprinted" (falling behind despite active acceleration) despite being with the leader with 400 m remaining. Results Race times ranged between 26:55 and 29:23 (world record = 26:17). There were 3 groups who fell behind at ~1000 (n = 11), ~6000 (n = 16), and ~9000 m (n = 2); let go at ~4000 (n = 10), ~7000 (n = 14), and ~9500 m (n = 5); or were outkicked (n = 6). There was a moderate correlation between CS and finishing position (r = .82), individual mean pace (r = .79), "fell behind" distance (r = .77), and "let go" distance (r = .79). D' balance was correlated with performance in the last 400 m (r = .87). Conclusions Athletes displayed distinct patterns of falling behind and letting go. CS serves as a moderate predictor of performance and final placing. Final placing during the sprint is related to preservation of D' balance.
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