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The Problem With US 4×1’s
Ok, I really thought this was going to be the year. After all, we won the men’s 4×1 in ’19 and ’23, which was the closest thing to a winning streak that we’ve had since the ’90’s. This year we’d dominated at the World Relays running 37.40 without our best team. We showed up to Paris with the group that won in the Bahamas with Fred Kerley and Noah Lyles also ready to go. With Noah and Kenny Bednarek getting ready for the 200m final, our subs ran yet another 37.4 to lead the semis. Then we found yet another way to lose yet another Olympic final! With Noah out…
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It’s All About Timing
This past weekend track fans had events from Thursday thru Sunday! An entire weekend of track and field to enjoy. Literally nearly every corner of the globe was hosting a meet of some type. It was great to see so much action, especially with several meets being televised and streamed. I noticed a lot of criticism aimed at athletes who are not performing up to the expectations of some fans. In sport, timing is everything. It doesn’t matter the sport the most important thing is to be ready when it’s “winning time”. In the NFL and NBA that means playoff time. In track and field that means championship time. Which…
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US Relay Thoughts Heading Into Budapest
Now that teams have been selected for Worlds, one of the biggest questions roaming the internet is, who will represent the US in the relays? Relay selection for us is nearly always controversial. While most countries either know exactly the composition of their squads, or have a pretty good idea who will represent them. Our selection process leaves us with new squads every year. In some cases with repeat members. Sometimes with completely new squads! In the 4×4 it’s easily manageable, because exchanges are simple. In the 4×1 it is a bit more problematic however, because passing the stick requires more coordination and timing at those speeds. And in general…
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Can the US Top the Podium After A Decade
Ten years. A decade. A lot can happen in 10 years. Ten years ago, the iPhone made its debut – now no one can remember how we lived WITHOUT smartphones. Before that Blackberry and Nokia ruled the cell phone world, and if you were really cool you owned a Razr! Young people today can’t remember either of those names with a market dominated by iPhones and Galaxy’s. A decade ago was the last time the US men won a Major 4×1. Winning in Osaka against a Bolt/Powell lead squad 37.78 to 37.89 – Jamaica’s first sub 38! Believe it or not, that race was run with a substitute on anchor…
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Can the US Return After a Decade?
Ten years. A decade. A lot can happen in 10 years. Ten years ago, the iPhone made its debut – now no one can remember how we lived WITHOUT smartphones. Blackberry and Nokia ruled the cell phone world, and if you were really cool you owned a Razr! Young people today can’t remember either of those names with a market dominated by iPhones and Galaxy’s. A decade ago was the last time the US men won a Major 4×1. Winning in Osaka against a Bolt/Powell lead squad 37.78 to 37.89 – Jamaica’s first sub 38! Believe it or not, that race was run with a substitute on anchor for the…
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Post Rio Notes
The Rio Olympics are in the books. In spite of all the “worries” heading into the meet, it was the competition that ultimately (always does) stood out! Such is the nature of track and field – when we get our best together, the sport shines brightly. I’ve commented on most of the events during the course of the meet. Following are some additional “thoughts” on the competition as we head towards the completion of the season. US medal count The United States brought home 32 medals! Yes, we’ve won more – 35 back in 1932. But that was back when the entire world, specifically the African nations, did not compete.…
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How to Win the 4×1 in Rio!
It’s one thing to be dominated in the sprints by an athlete like Usain Bolt, but during the same time span we’ve seen a comedy of horrors take place in what was also an American staple – the 4×1 relay. The American men haven’t won a 4×1 in a major since 2007 – approaching nearly a decade! This is tragic, and the first step to righting this ship in my opinion, is to admit FAILURE and move on. I don’t want to hear about Bolt, because the races have been lost before Bolt has gotten the baton – he’s not had to catch anyone from behind. And the one time…
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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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My National Relay Plan
I was catching up with a friend a couple days ago and since it had been a while we began to review the Olympics. Bolt’s double, Felix’ exploits, Mo Farah, David Rudisha. I had almost forgotten just how outstanding the London Games were. Being old relay teammates however, we talked a lot about the relays – the 4x1s. After all, how often do you get to see WRs in both races AND get to see barriers broken at the same time? Don’t bother looking, it’s the first time that it’s happened in the same meet with electronic timing. We went through both races with a fine toothed comb. The personnel…
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Relay Chatter – The 4×1’s
Relays are fun, exciting and frankly if it were up to me we would have more than just four of them in the Olympics – or Worlds. We need some sort of global world relay gathering. Maybe replace the outdated World Cup with such an event. Something more exciting that would get the world’s best together in a different and exciting fashion – and I’m talking about the field events as well. A quadrennial event that’s truly “team” oriented, and takes into account all of the various talented athletes the sport has to offer. Don’t get me wrong I love the speed events, but I’d love to see Rudisha, Uceny,…