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Where is US Sprinting Headed?
The US scored a huge medal haul in Rio – something always expected, but not always materialized. The expectations are always there because of our purported sprint and hurdle prowess. I say purported because in Rio it was our middle and long distance crew that led the way, as our sprint and hurdle crew has gotten a bit long in the tooth. We scored some "speed" medals, but not the haul we accumulated a decade or more ago. Where we were once THE single dominant power in the speed events, the New Millennium has seen vast improvement from the Caribbean nations. In addition, more recently a resurgence from Africa, Canada,…
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Olympic Trials Part 1 – Upsets & Speed
We’ve finally arrived to that part of the season that really matters – Olympic team qualifying! That means EVERYONE had to show up. That means some of the best competition of the year. That means watching track and field the way it is supposed to be watched – in a stadium; with ALL of the events represented! And guess what? No one leaves early. No one is worried about "attention spans". No one needs bands playing in the parking lot, or portions of the meet in the street! Why? Because when you get the best athletes available to compete, the sport in its purest form is as good as ANY…
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Doha and Kingston Heat Up the Season
Penn was the unofficial start to the outdoor season. The "USA v The World" is sort of the kick off to things. That was last weekend. This weekend sh*t got real, as the Diamond League got under way with the first stop in Doha on Friday. And to make sure that things were underway, the Jamaican International Invitational in Kingston made sure that there was plenty of hot action. We’re now officially on our way to Rio! As usual, the sprinters are in mid-season form – especially the women. Not that the men weren’t impressive. LaShawn Merritt is proving to be in fine form. After running 19.78/44.22 the past few…
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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…