Training and Preparation Methods Relevant to Elite 5000 m Track Performance: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Elite 5000 m track performance depends on the integration of endurance training, race-specific speed, tactical decision-making, technology, physiological characteristics, and individualized athlete support. This systematic review synthesized peer-reviewed evidence available as open-access full texts that was either specific to the 5000 m event or explicitly applicable to elite 5000 m preparation. Searches of SPORTDiscus, ProQuest Central, Scopus, and PsycINFO were completed in February 2025 and updated on 17 August 2026, with reporting guided by PRISMA 2020 and PRISMA-S and narrative synthesis structured with reference to SWiM. Following duplicate removal, 1439 records were screened; 430 reports were sought, 39 were not retrieved, 391 were assessed, and 11 publications met the deliberately narrow event-relevance criteria. The update search identified 11 records; three duplicates were removed, eight unique records were screened, and no additional eligible publication was identified. Methodological and reporting quality were appraised using QuADS. Evidence was considered separately across warm-up, training-intensity distribution, tapering, altitude exposure/training responses, pacing/tactical behavior, footwear technology, physiological profiling/performance determinants, and nutrition. The most direct event-specific evidence comprised a 5000 m warm-up trial in trained runners and observational championship pacing analyses, whereas most other evidence was indirect to exclusive elite 5000 m specialists. Confidence was low or very low across components. The pragmatic open-access retrieval restriction, small evidence base, methodological heterogeneity, restricted database coverage, and indirectness limit certainty and generalizability. The findings should therefore be interpreted as conditional considerations rather than prescriptive recommendations.