Date: Sat, 31 May 2003 13:12:06 -0400 From: Jim Gerweck <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: Re: t-and-f: Sandrock: Wetmore no fan of NCAA meet setup
on 5/30/03 9:16 PM, edndana at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> Just as head to head competition at the Olympic Trials does not mean we will
> have the best people at the Olympics.
Right - just the best COMPETITORS (see F. Mamede, 1984 10,000, WR holder DNFer).
If you want time trials (which, IMO, are the main reason for many of the problems in our sport) go watch the Euro GP circuit.
I'll jump to Ed's defense here. I think he's being sarcastic, pointing out that most of us (and most fans) probably view the Olympic Trials as a successful qualifying system that better captures both the American ideal and spirit of the sport, despite complaints from elite athletes' agents about the need to actually compete to make it to the Olympics. The NCAA Regionals is an attempt to capture that type of success at the collegiate level.
As for Wetmore's self serving complaints, the NCAA champs are not set up for the dozen top collegians who might compete effectively at the USATF--they're about crowning the collegiate champion period. If Wetmore thinks that Torres and Gorton are better off trying to make the World Champs team, then he should cut them loose from their collegiate obligations and skip the NCAA. Somehow, I don't think he's thinking along those lines and he's just showing a streak of greed that surprises me.
As for his comment about head to head racing at Stanford, that was against NON-collegians. The NCAA is promoting collegiate competition, and while it should be cognizant of the elite competition, it doesn't sanction open meets directly.
Richard McCann
