Competitive runners who exhibit better and faster paces more frequently use a narrowed scope of attention compared to those using a more expansive or open scope.

“And what we found is that those people who have better pace, faster pace, better time, they use that narrowed strategy more often than this more expansive or open scope of attention.”

“So when we start to look at, well, people who aren't sprinters, who are accomplished, but who are more long-distance runners, that's what we find that they do, is that they're using that narrowed attention strategy strategically, and it increases in use, they use it more often as the race progresses, and they really start to do this major switch [laughing] at about the halfway point of say like a 10-kilometer run.”

“Now, when they're running a short distance, that target might literally be the finish line, the line that they're trying to cross. If it's a longer distance, they set sub goals, like, you know, the person, the shorts on the person up ahead that they're trying to beat. Or they choose some sort of stable landmark, like a sign that that they would pass by.”