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US Sprint Future on Display in Eugene
The World Junior Championships closed out a near week long run Sunday in oft rainy Eugene – yes rain struck yet another big meet here. And while I continue to have my own thoughts about making this remote northwest corner of the country the focus of the sport here in the US, one thing that did become clear is that US sprint fortunes look better than they have for a couple of decades! First my two biggest beefs of the meet. One, it’s Eugene. Yes they know how to put on a meet. They should, playing in the back yard of Big Daddy Nike they get the backing to practice…
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Events I’ll Be Watching at US Nationals
Typically Nationals is one of the two hottest meets of the year behind only the World Championships or Olympics. This is an "off season" however, that once every four years non championship season. So the full complement of elites looking to make a global team is a bit lighter than usual. My biggest disappointment in this regards is the Men’s 100 which is missing Justin Gatlin and the new kid on the block Trayvon Bromell, as neither of the year’s two fastest Americans is entered in the competition. I think that could have been the match up of the meet. That said however, I think there are several match ups…
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My Thoughts on the World Relay Championships
Focusing on coaching my high school kids, I missed discussing the early season to date, primarily the Diamond League and the World Relays Championship. That’s a lot of action/discussion, so will tackle one then the other and will start with the World Relays Championships since the subject has already come up. While I think that having some sort of relay championship sounds like a great idea in principle, with everything done by this sport it really comes down to execution – and in my opinion the execution was horrible. Yes, I said horrible. I know that will incite some people to call me negative – because I don’t just praise…
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NCAA Championships
This was a very busy week of track and field for the true fan of the sport. Oslo, the NCAA Championships, and the New York Grand Prix were all contested within a four day period, with some form of media broadcast available for all four days of action! Finally, technology and track providing fans with serious coverage of the sport. That said, there’s a LOT to talk about. Too much to deal with in a single post, so I thought I would begin by talking about the youth. After all, they are where the sport is headed – and frankly I can’t help but feel that a "Back to the…
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Perhaps the Youth Will Lead
It’s early June and the "elite" track season is about to hit high gear. Pre last week; Oslo today; NCAA Championships started today; and the New York Grand Prix on Saturday. It doesn’t get much better than that if you’re a track fan – or does it? Well, on the flip side of the coin, the high school athletes here in California are just winding down their season. The State Championships were just this past weekend in Clovis and I was fortunate enough to have athletes in three different finals in my first full year of coaching since my kids were born. And after a full season at the high…
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Saturday, A Day of Track and Field
In the year 2014 we finally got what I’ve always known TV could give us - a full day of track & field! The thought of watching track all day on television has been a dream of mine forever.There is an old saying however, be careful what you ask for, you might it. and my day of sitting in the comfort of my home watching track and field had it’s moments. Starting with the "venerable" Penn Relays. I know that the "concept" of "The USA v The World" creates an aura of excitement for Penn and sells tickets, but this year’s squads were really lacking in star power and truly…
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Florida’s Dukes Up at Florida Relays
Two weeks ago, the sprint world got to see young Trayvon Bromwell, come ever so close to the 10 second barrier with sizzling runs of 10.02 and 10.01 at the Texas Relays. In the process becoming the first "breakout" sprinter of the young season. If the question on the table was "Who’s next", it was rapidly answered by the host Gators at last weekend’s Florida Relays, as their sprint corps put their "Dukes" up and delivered an answering blow to the early season sprint wars. Florida had already threatened to be a force with relay marks of 38.29 and 3:01.26. at the Texas Relays Florida has consistently produced to level…
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Young Sprinters Starting to Step Up
The indoor season got started with records falling week after week. As hot a start to a new year as I can remember. Then like a snowstorm it got very quiet. The World Indoor Championships were missing the electric performers and performances of the early season. And while the team competition at the NCAA meet gave some excitement to the end of the indoor season, January was much more exciting. That’s ok, the indoor season is merely an opening act for the big show, and with no major championship this year that usually means the competition is hot throughout the year. I’ve been hoping that would be the case anyway,…
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USATF Champs (The Guard is Changing)
We’re getting close to the debut of the outdoor season. As entertaining as indoors has been so far, it’s merely the prelims for the real show outdoors. That said we still have a few weeks of indoor action left – what should be the most exciting part of all, championships. Last weekend’s USATF meet, set the stage for collegiate conferences, the NCAA’s themselves, and the World Indoor Championships. All of which promise exciting competition. The USATF champs was exciting for a couple reasons. The first because the competition was hot! The other because that hot competition was between mostly new names and faces. Something we need desperately here in the…
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You Know It’s an Off Season When …
Track and Field exists in its own alternate universe where semi finals consist of THREE heats, and the focus on promoting the sport is NOT on the competition, but individual performances! In that same vein, it’s the rare sport where its most outstanding performances tend to occur outside of championship settings and in seasons where there is no major championships at all – the Off Season. We’re not like swimming where records and sensational times fall like leaves from the trees when their World Championships and the Games come around. Especially in events longer than one lap where running fast – for whatever reasons – takes a backseat to tactics.…