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Is Marcell Jacobs Injury-Prone? Yes. However That’s the Wrong Question
The Olympic champion’s recurring injuries aren’t evidence that he’s fragile. They illustrate the razor-thin margin between elite sprint performance and the body’s ability to tolerate it. At the ’26 European Championships, the headliner in the men’s 100m was defending champion Marcell Jacobs of Italy, holder of the 9.80 European record set during his 2021 Tokyo Olympic triumph. After an effortless semifinal win, securing another title seemed like a formality. Then, roughly 40 meters into the race, Jacobs pulled up with an injury – reigniting debate over whether he is simply too fragile to sustain elite sprinting. The Injury Prone Label When Jacobs first appeared in the Tokyo Olympics, I was…
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World U20 – The Future Is Bright
The just concluded World U20 Championships was easily one of my favorite meets of the year. This is what the sport looks like whenever we get our best together to compete. A reminder that this should constantly be our goal, looking for ways to get our best athletes on the track. Both track AND field, because once again the field athletes showed that the best story opportunities are in the field. Multiple chances to perform leads to a give and take that is often electric in high level competition. Highlights in the Field Easily one of the best competitions of the meet was the men’s triple jump, where the top…
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The Truth About US Nationals
The US Track & Field Championships have come and gone, and that phrase alone pretty much describes them. They happened. There were a handful of exciting races. Noah Lyles stepping on the gas and blitzing to a 9.79 win. Melissa Jefferson Wooden doing the same in the 200m in 21.69. A photo in the 110H finding Cordell Tinch 13.00 an eyelash ahead of Bradley Franklin’s 13.00. Unfortunately, the meet was more notable for who wasn’t at the meet. As a majority of defending champions, record holders, and elite competitors elected to bypass the meet with no global championship berths on the line. Resulting in a rather bland overall championships. Reflecting…
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An AI Analysis of Kerr’s WR 3:42.66
SPECIALIZED ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE REPORT The Engineering of a World Record: Josh Kerr’s Project 222 Athlete: Josh Kerr (Great Britain) Event / Date: London Diamond League / July 18, 2026 Record Achieved: One Mile — 3:42.66 On July 18, 2026, Olympic medalist Josh Kerr shattered one of track and field’s most elusive benchmarks: Hicham El Guerrouj’s 27-year-old men’s mile world record. Clocking an extraordinary 3:42.66 at the London Diamond League meet, Kerr lowered the previous mark of 3:43.13 by 0.47 seconds. Rather than an accidental peak in fitness or a purely spontaneous display of tactical grit, this historic milestone was the result of a highly targeted, multi-month blueprint code-named “Project 222″—signifying…
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Josh Kerr 3:42.66 in London
There have been several WR attempts this year, mostly over 800m, and of course Mondo in the PV. Mondo has an advantage however, as his attempts are specific, and he has a mark to shoot for. .Everyone else is taking a shot in the dark. So missing is understandable, as everything must go just right. The only success we’ve seen prior to London, was Keely Hodgkinson taking the indoor 800m record. Until London. About four months ago, Josh Kerr told the world that he was taking aim at the mile record. A mark that has stood since 1999. A stunning 3:43.13. I’m old enough to have watched that race. Hicham…
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Pro Or College – The Elite Athletes Choice
As we take a look at the growing number of elite track and field athletes that are now being developed in high schools, we need to also look at the choice that these elite talents face when they graduate. The traditional choices for elite high schoolers has changed dramatically in just the past few years. For athletes like Allyson Felix in the early 2000’s to Noah Lyles and Michael Norman in the late 2010’s, the choice was pretty simple. Sign a professional contract with a shoe company for what they were willing to pay, or run under the constraints of the NCAA. Each with its positives and negatives. Go Pro:…
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Tate Taylor – The Future Is Here
Track fans are always looking to anoint the ‘next’ superstar, but most fizzle after high school. While names like Noah Lyles, Michael Norman, and Erriyon Knighton have successfully bridged that gap, I believe the – next true sprint star has arrived: Tate Taylor. In general, most fans have become obsessed with times. An athlete runs a fast time, he’s designated as the next star. Times are nice, but it takes other things to become a star, and that’s what I’m going to speak on today. Let’s start with the basics. Tate has a near ideal sprinting build at 6′ 2″, 165 lbs. At his height he’s still able to move…
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What Are They Feeding These Kids
Everybody is asking the question, why are kids suddenly running so fast? I’ve been asking that same question myself, because we’ve seen a massive shift in what’s been considered national class speed at the high school level. For example, pre Covid 10.50 or better in the boys 100m, 4:55 in the girls mile, and 4:12 in the boys mile would have made you national class in your event. Today in order to be considered national class you must run 10.30, 4:42, and 4:01 respectively. We’ve seen this level of change/improvement across the board in the four years since Covid caused politicians to shut everything down for two years. The question…
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800m Takes Center Stage
Stockholm Sweden, the fifth stop on this year’s Diamond League calendar. On a day when Mondo Duplantis was supposed to reign supreme before the home crowd, it was Audrey Werro, Cooper Lutkenhaus, and the 800m that took center stage! First Mondo did make history, losing for the first time since 2023, ending a 40 meet winning streak, after clearing only 5.80m. That was NOT the biggest news of the day however, as the 800m stole the spotlight from Mr Duplantis. First was seventeen year old Cooper Lutkenhaus, the youngest ever world indoor champion in the 800m. Fresh off finishing his junior year in high school, Cooper headed to Sweden for…
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Preview – Rabat & NCAA Regionals
The 2026 season is now fully under way. We’re two Diamond League meets in, which i must say have been better than usual this early in the season. Indicative of the fact that this is an “off season”. Meaning there is no global major to focus on at the end of the year, so athletes are free to compete as they see fit all year long. Great for the athletes, even better for the fans, because as we’ve seen already, we’ll get treated to a lot of outstanding performances all year long! So, what’s up next? More Diamond League and the NCAA Regionals are on tap for this upcoming week.…