With two weeks until Worlds and no other meets to look forward to, my mind is now fixated on the World Championships and Berlin.

The World Championships have been a staple in Europe since its’ inception in 1983. So far eleven renditions of the meet have been held and all but three of those have been on the European continent – the other three were held in Japan (twice) and Canada.

The thing that I find most interesting is that not once has the event been hosted by the United States. In the twenty six years that the World Championships have been in existence the US has hosted two Olympic Games (Los Angeles, 1983 and Atlanta, 1996) and is currently a finalist in the bids for the 2016 Games. But we have yet to play host to the World Championships.

Rather ironic when one takes into consideration that we are routinely at the top of the medal charts come Worlds. We lead the way on the track, its time we stepped up to lead the way off the track. Hosting the World Championships is one way to take a step towards that lead position – not to mention the benefits it would have for the sport here in the US.

Hosting the Worlds would bring the sport’s top track and field athletes to the United States. Not just one or two at a time, but an entire week of the best in the world competing right here at home. And with New York and Eugene becoming members of the new Diamond League and these meets moving to the summer, we could see a huge bump in the number of top level athletes participating in these meets as well! The end result would be three VERY high class track competitions taking place on US soil. The level of which is typically only seen in Europe.

There is no greater way to bring the sport to life here in the United States. Soccer experienced a huge rise in popularity in the US during the mid to late 90’s – due in large part to the FIFA World Cup being hosted by the United States for the first time in 1994. Since then we have hosted the Women’s World Cup in 1999 and 2003 – further strengthening soccer’s image in this country and maintaining the fervor that the sport enjoys here. Hosting the World Championships in Track and Field could pay the same sort of dividends in terms of popularity and awareness of the sport in this country.

And now would be a most opportune time to place such a bid. President Obama is a big sports fan and just last week met with the head of FIFA to lobby on behalf of the US effort to host another World Cup. So it is conceivable that his aid could be enlisted in putting together a bid to host the World Championships of Track and Field.

We’re long overdue. Our athletes are showcased all over the world, its time to showcase them right here at home. And in spite of our placings in meets all over the world including the Olympics and Worlds, I do not believe that the rest of the world takes us seriously as the “leader” in the sport. Hosting a Worlds would go a long way towards overcoming some of the negativity that has come our way over the past decade and assuming a leadership position internationally. It’s time to step up and make that move.

Stockholm closed out the first half of the European Circuit in fine style. Several potential medal contenders competed and gave us some indication of how they might perform in Berlin. Among them:Jeremy Wariner (US), 400 meters. Wariner won handily in Stockholm. But the time (44.83) and the manner in which he won the race (laid back and kicking in the end) didn't give me pause to believe he can beat Lashawn Merritt Read More...

The athletes get their final big tune up for Berlin tomorrow in Stockholm. Being the final stop we get a chance to see several potential medalists in their final races before worlds. Among them the most intriguing match up on the day should be in the Men's 100, where world leader Tyson Gay (US) meets up against former WR holder Asafa Powell (JAM) Read More...

It's been a while since we've headed towards a Major and I've felt we had a real shot at a medal in the middle distances on the women's side. Not since Jearl Miles Clark in the 800 in the late 90's and Suzy Favor Hamilton in the 1500 at the start of this decade have we really had the talent to make an impact internationally Read More...

With the sports' big headline makers this season - Tyson Gay and Usain Bolt - taking a break today, one would have thought that the Monaco Grand Prix would be a bit lackluster. Nothing could have been further from the truth! Today's meet may have been the most overall exciting to date - as it should have been with the World Championships just a few weeks away Read More...

Only two big meets left to the end of July and the two week break before the World Championships. Monaco will be the penultimate stop on the road to Worlds, and presents several interesting events.The men's 100 will be without Usain Bolt or Tyson Gay for the first time in weeks. 200 man Wallace (US) is entered however, and will get to test his speed against Beijing finalists Churandy Martina (AHO) and Darvis Patton (US) Read More...

As Usain Bolt and Tyson Gay traded eye dropping races this weekend in London in preparation for their impending showdown in Berlin, the sport once again finds itself once again dealing with the news of multiple doping offenses coming out of the sprint community. This time, the news comes not out of the United States - which has gotten more than one black eye this decade via doping scandals - but out of Jamaica, the home of multiple WR breaker Asafa Powell and the sports newest wunderkind double Olympic champion Usain Bolt Read More...

We're heading towards the home stretch on our journey to Berlin and no one is blazing that stretch like Tyson Gay and Usain Bolt. London was the first time we've seen them on the track together this year - though it was in separate races. Neither had any difficulty dispatching with their competition Read More...

London will be one of the final tune ups before the big party in Berlin. As such it will be one of the best attended venues by top athletes this season. So we'll get a peak at some of the athletes that should shape events in Berlin. Among those in attendance we will get a look at:• 4x1 relay squads from the US and Jamaica Read More...

In track and field the 100 is typically the showcase sprint at almost every meet. In Berlin, the women's 200 has the potential to upstage the 100 as two of the world's best sprinters happen to be competing in this event - Allyson Felix (US) and Veronica Campbell Brown (JAM). These two women have dominated this event in the big meets since the middle of the decade Read More...