Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
In a message dated Tue, 14 Aug 2001 11:02:01 PM Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Jeez, do the rest of the nations of the world have the same problem getting their top athletes to compete? Seems TF is in a pretty sorry state in that case - I don't see much diminution in competitiveness among Euro and Latin soccer (football) players in non- World Cup years. I never said there was a diminution in competitiveness for U.S. track people in the off years. They just don't have any incentive to compete at the nationals, and save themselves for meets w/ significatn paydays (i.e., Euro Circuit). Many (most?) other nations don't have similar problems in track because they have government-based subsidies for the top athletes, and that buys loyalty. In the end, it all comes down to money for everyone, and I don't mean that in any venal sense, just the ability to eke out a living that allows one to continue to train at the levels needed. gh
Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
Buck wrote: I dunno' about the mediocrity part. Did you see that last foul by Stringfellow? I know talking about a scratch is like arguing about whether Superman could beat up the Hulk, but dang! It wasn't THAT much of a scratch and it LOOKED like a mid 28' jump and if the Hulk got REALLY mad... Cheers, Buck Jones True Buck ... But ya know in 1981 Carl Lewis close fouled what looked to be 30' !!! AND he raised his hands and eased off on his way to 19.75 .. And of course it was just a matter of time before he garnered BOTH records for his own ... Right ??? Well seems to me that Carl's 200 PR is still 19.75 .. And in only one competition did he manage to go over 29' - oh and he lost to Powell's WR !!! I bet that made the HULK mad !!! Conway Hill [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
Both you guys make good points. I have been able to watch Savante develop over the last few years and he will be anything but mediocre, I also believe that the other Americans in the final - Pate Phillips have bright futures. All three of the young men have what it takes - Speed , decent techniques and good coaching. So look for them to be around for years provided they keep a good head on there shoulders. Mike Conway [EMAIL PROTECTED] 08/14/01 10:54AM Buck wrote: I dunno' about the mediocrity part. Did you see that last foul by Stringfellow? I know talking about a scratch is like arguing about whether Superman could beat up the Hulk, but dang! It wasn't THAT much of a scratch and it LOOKED like a mid 28' jump and if the Hulk got REALLY mad... Cheers, Buck Jones True Buck ... But ya know in 1981 Carl Lewis close fouled what looked to be 30' !!! AND he raised his hands and eased off on his way to 19.75 .. And of course it was just a matter of time before he garnered BOTH records for his own ... Right ??? Well seems to me that Carl's 200 PR is still 19.75 .. And in only one competition did he manage to go over 29' - oh and he lost to Powell's WR !!! I bet that made the HULK mad !!! Conway Hill [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
Mike wrote: Both you guys make good points. I have been able to watch Savante develop over the last few years and he will be anything but mediocre, I also believe that the other Americans in the final - Pate Phillips have bright futures. All three of the young men have what it takes - Speed , decent techniques and good coaching. So look for them to be around for years provided they keep a good head on there shoulders. I agree that all three have great potential .. And all acquitted themselves nicely in Edmonton .. My reference to mediocrity lies in that the previous generation of jumpers (Powell, Lewis, Myricks, Pedroso, Emmiyan) put the bar so far out there as to render anything less than say 27'6 mediocre .. Since '79 when Myricks went 27'9 at the World Cup, championship battles have taken place in the 28' range .. Randy Williams won the '72 Olympics at 27'4 as a Junior .. And Boston, Robinson and Ter-Ovanesian were battling in the low 27's in the 60's .. But I guess depends on ones perspective and what we (or should I say the athletes) are willing to settle for ... Conway Hill [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
In a message dated Mon, 13 Aug 2001 8:08:47 PM Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Was a hard meet to get up for for some reason .. Didn't seem to have the usual electricity associated with the Worlds I think the WCs have lost luster ever since the IAAF went for the money and doubled the frequency of the meet. The post-Olympic year WC seems to be particularly hard hit, whereas at least the pre-Olympic meet has the anticipation of the impending Games to heighten the excitement. Sorry, but I think switching from quad- to biennial WCs was one of Primo's worse decisions (although I'm sure everyone's the richer for it, so I doubt we'll see a return to the old schedule) I've got a two-word answer to that line of thinking: Houston and Cerritos. As in the nationals of '89 and '90, where the domestic version of the sport, imho, came close to dieing at the top end. The doubling of the Worlds and the concomitant rise of Goodwill as a big-bucks meet meant that every year's nationals was a must-go destination for the nation's top atheltes, instead of just half the years. And I fear that next year's nationals (w/ Goodwill unfortunately moving to this year), with only the single-athlete World Cup as motivation, will once again be kaka. Craig and Co. are going to have to be very creative in making whatever site we get (Stanford still the leading--indeed, ONLY--grapevine candidate) able to host an artistic success. i.e., one w/ a significatn number of the big names. gh
Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
Message text written by INTERNET:[EMAIL PROTECTED] I've got a two-word answer to that line of thinking: Houston and Cerritos. As in the nationals of '89 and '90, where the domestic version of the sport, imho, came close to dieing at the top end. And I have a one-word answer to the same line of thinking. Wimbledon.
Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
Message text written by INTERNET:[EMAIL PROTECTED] I've got a two-word answer to that line of thinking: Houston and Cerritos. As in the nationals of '89 and '90, where the domestic version of the sport, imho, came close to dieing at the top end. And I have a one-word answer to the same line of thinking. Wimbledon. Absolutely. If you pay five figures as far down as 16th place in every event. And add a century long tradition of being the most prestigious meet in the world. And make it one of the four meets in the year that everyone considers a major. And we need to let everyone compete, not just U.S. athletes. My point is that Wimbledon is far different than USATF nationals and there is no immediate hope on the horizon that the money will be available for it to become more like Wimbledon. It's not that we can't learn from the way tennis (and golf) do things. But the money has to come from somewhere. - Ed Parrot
Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
In a message dated 8/14/01 5:06:54 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: The doubling of the Worlds and the concomitant rise of Goodwill as a big-bucks meet meant that every year's nationals was a must-go destination for the nation's top athletes, instead of just half the years. So the USATF tail wagged the IAAF dog, saying, If you don't increase the frequency of big meets for our athletes to qualify for, our nationals are going to die off? And Primo Co owed Ollan a favor, and saw a way to make some bucks on the side at the same time, so doubled the fun? Maybe. Jeez, do the rest of the nations of the world have the same problem getting their top athletes to compete? Seems TF is in a pretty sorry state in that case - I don't see much diminution in competitiveness among Euro and Latin soccer (football) players in non- World Cup years. Jim Gerweck Running Times
t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
Some of my thoughts following Edmonton: Men's 100 Greene is the best ever in the event .. Times, averages, consistency, competitiveness he has it all .. The question now is whether Montgomery is for real or is he the Andre Cason of 2001 ?? If he is for real he Greene and Williams could form the greatest trio in history .. Men's relays While the rest of the world may be catching up in individual events, the US is still too deep for everyone else ... Women's relays Ditto on the women's 4x1 - too much foot speed for the rest of the world .. And the women's 4x4 showed much heart but more importantly the most class of the meet as they gave the most gracious losing interview I have ever seen .. Men's horizontal jumps Thank God for old men Pedroso and Edwards .. When they leave mediocrity will reign ... Women's 100/200 Jones appears flat all season .. Need for coaching change ?? OR has she peaked ?? 2 more weeks and Miller may have given her another defeat at 200 !?! Women's Pole Vault IS FOR REAL !!! Great job by the women vaulters .. Women's 400 Perhaps Grit Breuer is past her prime as well .. Should have dominated this group but instead failed to medal .. Katharine Merry the future of the event ?? Should Jones run here ??? Men's 200/400 No Greene, no Johnson, no Washington, no Harrisons NO LUCK !! Should be just a blip on the map for the US as injuries decimated here .. Men's and Women's 800 One word for the US .. HELP Men's Middle Distances Here's hoping Webb and Ritzenhieim and Hall mature quickly !! Women's 100H Model for the US as the old and the new blended perfectly and there will apparently be no drop off in production as we transition when Gail decides to retire .. The Worlds Was a hard meet to get up for for some reason .. The first couple of days were very exciting as the 100 men burned up the track .. But things cooled off and seemed to stay that way .. Didn't seem to have the usual electricity associated with the Worlds .. Was nice however to see TV coverage that featured competition over fluff !!! On to Zurich Conway Hill [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
On Mon, 13 Aug 2001 13:55:29 -0700, Conway Hill wrote: On to Zurich Ah yes, Zurich...the Swiss stud that 38-year-old Regina Jacobs has been saving herself for...:-) By the way, TFN reports that El Guerrouj is gonna race a 5K at Zurich this Friday... ...what are the odds for a sub-13 debut? RT
Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
In a message dated 8/13/01 5:05:58 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Was a hard meet to get up for for some reason .. Didn't seem to have the usual electricity associated with the Worlds I think the WCs have lost luster ever since the IAAF went for the money and doubled the frequency of the meet. The post-Olympic year WC seems to be particularly hard hit, whereas at least the pre-Olympic meet has the anticipation of the impending Games to heighten the excitement. Sorry, but I think switching from quad- to biennial WCs was one of Primo's worse decisions (although I'm sure everyone's the richer for it, so I doubt we'll see a return to the old schedule) Jim Gerweck Running Times
Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts
Absolutely! - Original Message - From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, August 13, 2001 7:55 PM Subject: Re: t-and-f: Post Edmonton thoughts In a message dated 8/13/01 5:05:58 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: Was a hard meet to get up for for some reason .. Didn't seem to have the usual electricity associated with the Worlds I think the WCs have lost luster ever since the IAAF went for the money and doubled the frequency of the meet. The post-Olympic year WC seems to be particularly hard hit, whereas at least the pre-Olympic meet has the anticipation of the impending Games to heighten the excitement. Sorry, but I think switching from quad- to biennial WCs was one of Primo's worse decisions (although I'm sure everyone's the richer for it, so I doubt we'll see a return to the old schedule) Jim Gerweck Running Times
