I’d never say it to their faces, but as a scrawny distance runner I’ve always enjoyed watching muscle-bound decathletes run their final event, the 1,500 meters. They make it look almost as hard as the pole vault would be for me. Of course, they don’t actually have to race against middle-distance specialists. In cycling, on the other hand, the sprinters, time-trialists, climbers, and all-arounders all compete in the same Grand Tours. Imagine, for example, if Usain Bolt had to finish the marathon within a certain time limit in order to start the 100-meter final the next day. What would that take?