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Noah and the 4×4
Of all the competitions in track and field, the World Indoor Championships tends to be one of the least popular championship meets in the sport. That’s typically because most athletes are still in their base training mode. As a result, the fields in most events aren’t nearly as deep as they will be come Olympic Trials time. The one caveat is that athletes that do compete indoors, do so with a purpose. To sharpen elements of their events. Trying new techniques. Rehabbing injuries. Running odd distances to strengthen their normal events. This year was no different, though those athletes that did show up, definitely brought their “A” game to the…
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The 4×1, Third Leg
Since I’ve given my 100m thoughts, I’m going to jump to the relay before discussing the deuce. Mostly because we’ve had so much failure in this event and I want to get my thoughts out there early. I was talking about the US relays recently with a coach friend and we agreed that it’s really not that difficult to put a squad together – or to coach it. So let me share my thoughts on relay construction. I’m going to start by saying that there is no “standard” way to put a 4×1 together. It depends on who YOU have available. I say this because so many people have this…
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Trials Preview
Now that we’ve gotten past the first big championship meet of the year (NC’s) we’re days, not weeks, away from US Trials. Days as in about 10. A meet that many consider as tough as Worlds. Given its depth and cutthroat nature. This year should be no different with several high level matchups on the horizon. In some ways that’s an understatement, because basically every event has some sort of high level matchup. This year, however, there are some matchups that seem more exciting to me than usual. For example. Trey Cunningham v Devon Allen – Men’s 110H At the start of the season, most would have predicted…
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NCAA Regionals and Pre
Well that was one Hell of a weekend. Basically three high level meets, since the NCAA treats the first two rounds of its National Championships as two separate meets. Thoughts on that in another post. Either way, this past weekend was hot hot hot. In spite of two of the competitions having inclement weather! That’s how good the sport is right now – sizzling hot. So, where do I begin with my highlights? Let’s go with the West Regional. Looking at the distribution of talent between the two Regionals, the East “seems” deeper. Watching the competition however, and the results at the top end of both regions, I say a…
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Time to Break the Men’s 4×1 World Record
Yes, you read that right. I, a citizen of the United States, am talking about breaking the 4×1 record. Of course, given our men’s international record in the event since the mid 90’s. I’m sure many of you are either chuckling, or laughing out loud. I mean, just last year, we failed to make the Olympic final. In spite of actually finishing the race. A first for the US – finishing a heat and not advancing. Add that to the numerous dropped batons and disqualifications, and I completely understand the laughter. However, to quote an ancient Persian phrase, “this too shall pass”! And it’s my belief that this “passing” will…
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How Fast in 2022?
The full question is actually duplicate questions. Spurred by the boasting of one Fred Kerley. The questions are. How fast will Fred Kerley run in 2022? And, how fast will the fastest sprinter run in 2022? Where does this come from? It comes from Kerley saying he is going to break the WR this year. Now, this is as bold a statement as an athlete can make these days. As the current record in the event is 9.58, set by Usain Bolt in 2009 in Berlin Germany. Many say it’s not possible because it was Bolt that set the record. I say no, not because it was Bolt, but because…
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Amazing US Male Sprint Depth
The Olympics and World Championships used to be fairly easy to predict. The US and Jamaica would split the sprint medals. Kenya and Ethiopia would split the middle and long distances. Europe would win the throws. And a hodge podge of athletes would scramble after the jumps and multi medals. That’s kind of how track and field had been divided up amongst the world. However, something changed during the two year hiatus caused by Covid. After the dust settled, the competitions were complete, and the results were finally tallied from Tokyo, most long time track and field coaches and fans agreed. The rest of the world had gotten better. Take…
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Prefontaine Highlights
This was easily the most anticipated single meet of the year outside of championships and it lived up to the hype! Nike put its considerable wallet into play, producing Olympic quality fields across the board. Oh to have Nike’s money. That said, let’s discuss the elephant in the room. The matchup between Sha’Carri Richardson and “The Jamaican Medalists”. After all, if you were “new” to watching track and field, that’s why you tuned in. And if you are a long time fan, you wanted to find out the outcome. Well, you were treated to one of the most exciting races the sport has ever seen. Sha’Carri just didn’t feature in…
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It’s Prediction Time – US Trials Relays
This season has been moving along so quickly, that it’s been too fast to keep up with – pun intended. Literally every few days something extraordinary has occurred. Athing Mu, Trayvon Bromell, Allyson Felix, Kenny Bednarek, Gabby Thomas, Terrance Laird, and this is just the tip of the iceberg! It’s now mere weeks from the NCAA Championships and the Olympic Trials – and time to start to spec out who’s going to be taking that trip to Tokyo. So that’s what I’m going to start doing – give my predictions of who I think us young to represent the US at the Games. I’m going to begin a bit differently…
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Happy 202One
I’ve started several posts to be ready for the new year, because I think that on the heels of 2020, we’re all going to find joy in what transpires in 2021! There’s no need to replay last year. It only takes one word to describe 2020 – Covid. Because it defined the entire year. Enough said. With that, my first post of the year is going to be about the things that I’m looking forward to in the world of track and field this year. Because this year is going to be HOT. I can feel it in my bones. So, let’s start with: The Vaccine Roll Out – This…