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 Read More...
The CHill Zone of T&F: Conway's View From the Finish Line
Who’s Windows are Threatening to Close?
Mar 20th, 2013
9:57 am PDT
9:57 am PDT
A common phrase in the world of sports refers to an athletes "window" closing – to his or her window of opportunity expiring. In most cases we're talking about the opportunity to win a title, but the term can also refer to obtaining records or other significant performances. Every couple of Olympic cycles or so, as the sport's population begins to age at the top end, we get a group of individuals who's windows begin to close Read More...
2012 400 Meter Rankings – Men/Women
Dec 26th, 2012
10:18 am PST
10:18 am PST
While the short sprints have been on fire since 2008, the 400 has struggled a bit. The previous two men's Olympic champions - and sub 44 performers - have suffered injuries at the wrong times. While several emerging stars have been up and down, and injury prone. on the women's side, we seem to have difficulty getting out of the 49 second zone - a barrier broken back in 1976! There was good news on the men's side in 2012 however, as we saw the first non American run under 44 Read More...
2012 200 Meter Rankings–men/women
Dec 22nd, 2012
5:01 pm PST
5:01 pm PST
The 200 meters belongs to the United States and Jamaica. That's the conclusion one must come to when looking at this year's results on both the men's and women's sides. Yes, others are on the track, and even occasionally make an appearance in the 3rd or 4th position, but reality is that in spite of the lack of focus on the event outside of major championships, this event is undergoing major change and only two nations are keeping pace Read More...
What are the Sport’s Best Rivalries (pt2)
Sep 20th, 2012
10:37 am PDT
10:37 am PDT
The last time around I took a look at some rivalries on the men's side of things that l think would be a good sell to build the sport from a marketing perspective. Today I want to broaden that to include the women (and a hybrid) - who actually tend to compete against reach other on a more regular basis than the men Read More...
Stockholm Begins Post Olympic Season
Aug 17th, 2012
5:46 pm PDT
5:46 pm PDT
The post Olympics season began today in Stockholm and I proved to myself just how big a track junkie I am as I watched the meet on my cellphone as I drove around taking care of business today - such is the life of a track nerd! Unless the first meet after a major is Zurich, that first one is usually a bit “down” compared to the Games - and Stockholm fit that description Read More...
London Olympics – Bolt Repeats
Aug 5th, 2012
4:58 pm PDT
4:58 pm PDT
Another exciting day of track and field, though I've missed most of it. The feed on my tablet was only clear for about 30 minutes, and froze completely at the introductions for the men's 100 final! Knowing from the start of the morning that the app on my tablet was having trouble, I turned on my trusty lap top, and believe it or not, I never got NBCOlympics Read More...
Sanya Richards-Ross and the Money Tweets
Jul 20th, 2012
8:24 pm PDT
8:24 pm PDT
Now to paraphrase Mrs. Ross, she wants the athletes to get paid much more than they are currently earning. She would love to have sponsorship opportunities such as using your uniforms/warm ups, a la NASCAR. And she would like to get paid for her Olympic participation. Before I give my personal opinion on the matter, I have to say that the reason I feel the need to respond is that she was taking a lot of flack from her followers for her opinions on the subject Read More...
Trials Day 3 – Redemption Sunday
Jun 25th, 2012
8:06 am PDT
8:06 am PDT
Today's agenda was short but sweet - 8 events, 7 finals and 1 semi. But when the names involved include Cantwell, Hoffa, Gay, Gatlin, Richards Ross, Merritt, Wariner, and Suhr you're talking about one high powered afternoon. Not to mention a lot of athletes looking for redemption - and most got just that Read More...