World Record Holders not chosen for Olympic Team

Randy Matson: WR in the SP and 1968 OG champ, fourth at the 1972 US Olympic Trials, SOL.

Lee Evans: WR in the 400 and 1968 OG champ, fourth at the 1972 US Olympic, SOL (individually--he *was* selected for the relay, but it didn't run).

I'm not real sure on the chronology but Daniel Komen (7:20, 7:24i, 7:58) never made an Olympic team. Sup wit dat?

Komen set the 3,000 WR in '96 and the 5,000 WR in '97. Ran 12:45 in '96

1994 World Junior Champ in 5 and 10

1997 World Champ at 5,000m

No Olympics

Seb Coe 1988

Seb Coe, Randy Matson and Lee Evans did not set their WR within a year of not being selected to their Olympic team.

Coe set his 1500m PR in 1986, so he wasn't far off form.

His 800 record was still standing from 1981 at the 1988 Games (as well as the 1992 and 1996 Games).

Plenty of reigning World Record holders do not make the Olympics.

Like every single woman for this and the prior Olympics.

I don't think Mike Powell is going to make the US long jump team this year, either.

But, yes Coe was a controversial miss in 1988. He had a pretty good year in 1989.

And Peter Freaking Rono wound up winning Gold in '88.

Okay, just in the men's marathon, Belayneh Densamo '88, Ronaldo Da Costa 2000.

This points up the absurdity of the 3-per-nation rule. I mean really. A recent world record holder doesn't get to go. absurd. absurd. absurd.

Yeah it is a bad thing. Dear Mr. Rogge, let Makau run!

agip wrote:

This points up the absurdity of the 3-per-nation rule. I mean really. A recent world record holder doesn't get to go. absurd. absurd. absurd.

This complaint gets old. The Olympics are about nations first, not individual merits.

Brazil only gets one football team. India only gets one field hockey team. Jamaica only gets three 100m sprinters.

* wrote:

Seb Coe, Randy Matson and Lee Evans did not set their WR within a year of not being selected to their Olympic team.

Ah, thanks for making your criteria a bit clearer. Okay, how about Calvin Smith? WR in the 100 in 1983, only relay duty (and gold) in 1984.

Or Adolph Plummer? His 44.9 for 440 *yards* in 1963 was ratified as matching the world record for the (shorter) 400 meters; not at the OG in 1964.

Khannouchi in 2000

Harrison Dillard in the 110m hurdles in 1948 (co-WR holder in the 120y hurdles at the time)

Michael Johnson in 200m in 2000

Carl Lewis in the 100m in 1992

esprit de corps wrote:

This complaint gets old. The Olympics are about nations first, not individual merits.

Brazil only gets one football team. India only gets one field hockey team. Jamaica only gets three 100m sprinters.

How many Jamaican sprinters have the Olympic A standard compared to Kenyan Marathoners?

Broken Knees wrote:

esprit de corps wrote:

This complaint gets old. The Olympics are about nations first, not individual merits.

Brazil only gets one football team. India only gets one field hockey team. Jamaica only gets three 100m sprinters.

How many Jamaican sprinters have the Olympic A standard compared to Kenyan Marathoners?

An amazing 15 Jamaican sprinters beat the IAAF A Standard (10.18) in 2011. So have 16 Americans (less amazing given the population difference, but still impressive).

Top list:

A Standards:

On the other hand, I got well past 15 Kenyans on the 2011 marathon performances before I got tired of counting. I don't know how many it is but it's way more than 15:

Suffice to say, as dominant as the Jamaicans are over the 100m, the Kenyans are even more dominant over the marathon - 20 Kenyans ran faster times in 2011 than anyone from any other country.

agip wrote:

This points up the absurdity of the 3-per-nation rule. I mean really. A recent world record holder doesn't get to go. absurd. absurd. absurd.

Or it points to the absurdity of having professionals in the Olympics.

"The Olympics are about nations first, not individual merits."

Good point. It just gives the announcers more water to throw on the fire to smoke up the idea the world record holder is missing. Or is Kenya trying to make a statement for Nationalism versus the gold diggers who go after the money?

Interesting either way.

Not a WR, but Webb's 3:46.91 AR was the year before he didn't make the 2008 Olympic team.

The subject of the thread says that they weren't "chosen"; not that they didn't qualify. Most people mentioned on here merely didn't qualify.

Not a runner but Tom Petronoff after setting the world record in the javelin didn't make the Olympics