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Top Ten 100 Meter Races of all Time – Women
This was a very interesting exercise. The men’s list was relatively easy to put together, as there have been some very memorable races for the men. As I started putting this list together however, I found that getting the top women together AND performing as a group at a high level has not been as frequent as one would have thought. Especially when it comes to the final times. The one exception was the 90s where a group of Gail Devers, Merlene Ottey, Gwen Torrence, and Irina Privalova dominated most of the decade and this list with four races – and another just narrowly missing the cut. That race being…
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Top 100 Meter Races of the Modern Era
A reader had a great idea, to go through and create lists of the top 10 races by event. Nice idea, so I decided to give it a shot. So I’m starting with the 100 – first the men then will follow with the women – and will work my way up in distance if its something that people like/find interesting. Obviously my rankings will be based on races that I’ve had a chance to see, which means live, TV, or video. If there are others that I’ve not been privy to, please bring them to my attention. I’ve also tried to look at overall races and results – not…
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My Favorite All Time Intermediate Hurdlers
Ok, now that the high hurdlers are done, let me give thought to the intermediates – another difficult list. Once again, I find I have a list that is heavy on one era. In part because I’m not including current competitors, but largely because that era was simply the best ever in my humble opinion.I also find myself listing a couple of athletes that may draw question. Once again these are my favorites and not necessarily reflective of a GOAT list, because I agree that a GOAT list should be a bit more "restrictive". All that said, here are my favorite intermediate hurdler’s. Have at it. 1. Edwin Moses - …
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My Favorite All Time High Hurdlers
I was ‘re-watching the final two Diamond League meets of the year this past weekend, and was just as impressed by Merritt’s WR run as I was when I first saw it. So much so that I began comparing it/him to icons of the event’s past. So while it is all fresh in my mind, I’m going to take a quick detour and put together my all time favorite hurdlers list. Because while Merritt just set a tremendous record and standard, there were several athletes before him that lead to this achievement. I have to say that this was a difficult list to compile – perhaps the most difficult yet…
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No Changes for Bolt in 2016
I’m going to continue with my “Favorites” lists, but there is news that crops up even when things are “quiet”. So for those wondering what Usain Bolt plans to be doing in the year 2016, apparently it will be the same as in. 2012. Word out on Twitter in the last couple days is that Bolt will not be changing events, and is looking to attempt to repeat as sprint king in Rio de Janeiro. Personally I don’t find the news astounding. Bolt has always shied away from the 400 throughout his career in spite of showing promised in his youth. And the move to something like the long jump…
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My Favorite All Time Female Middle Distance
Well I see my female sprinters list raised a few questions. But then the history of women’s sprinting is full of superstars, which make trying to come up a with a list of 10 is difficult regardless of the criteria. I’ve found the same to be true when taking a look at the history of women middle distance runners. Same basic rules apply. No current athletes are eligible. Only athletes whose careers are over. And I must say, that perhaps even more than the sprints, drugs have had an impact on these events – making it difficult to separate "fact from fiction" so to speak. So with that lets go…
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My Favorite All Time Female Sprinters
I was going to continue in order and take a look at distance runners next, but decided to give the women their due and not wait until the end. So let’s take a look at my all time favorite female sprinters. The tough part for me as I look back is that my favorites mostly come from the same time period – 70s through 90s. Unfortunately that was the heart of the drug era for women and the peak of the Eastern Bloc. So there will be some women on here that some may find questionable. I will simply give my reasons for including them and hopefully you will understand.…
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My Favorite All Time Middle Distance Runners
I’m still working on this years top 10 lists, so going to take another trip down memory lane and look at my favorite middle distance runners. As stated previously,you must be retired to make the list so that precludes the addition of current athletes like David Rudisha. It doesn’t diminish the list however, as some of the best ever have already graced the track. That said, I also want to remind that it’s not a Greatest of All Time list. It’s a list of my personal favorites. With that, lets give it a go. 1. Wilson Kipketer – Before David Rudisha there was Wilson Kipketer. Not as fast as Rudisha,…
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My Favorite All Time Sprinters
It’s that time of year for lists – typically “Top Ten” lists. And I am in the process of doing research to put together my end of the year lists. While I’m doing that however – there is lots of data to go over – I thought I would start by sharing some of my “Favorites” in list form. Favorite hurdlers, middle distance runners, field event athletes, etc. Since the world’s most recognizable athletes right now are sprinters – Usain Bolt, Tyson Gay, Yohan Blake, Justin Gatlin, et al – I thought I would start with sprinters. Let me state up front, that I am not going to list anyone…
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Are the Athletes Truly Ready to Make Change?
One of the big off track stories of the Olympics, was the athlete protest against IOC Rule #40 which prohibits athletes from promoting their sponsors during the Games. No tweets, headphones, headbands, in short nothing that in any way would “advertise” any sponsor that is not an “Official” Olympic sponsor. Which left the athletes a bit bothered. After all they make their bread and butter from the people that sponsor them, and certainly wanted to show a bit of love during the biggest moment of their lives. So, for the first time I can think of since the 60’s when protests were common place and people like Steve Prefontaine voiced…