WHY HASN'T THE TRACK & FIELD ATHLETES ASSOCIATION ISSUED A STATEMENT ABOUT THE LONDON DL MEET BARRING US ATHLETES?

Great points.

If the organization had any balls , they would have staged a non compete protest and not run in the meet in support of Nick. Athletes need to take control of the sport , how will they be manipulated next by meet directors in Europe.

Hopefully they call more attention to this than they have. I have a little sympathy for the media, though, as it is the weekend and I understand if they'd rather spend time with their families.

ehum wrote:

Does using the "caps lock" button give you an orgasm?

+1

Odd, I'm pretty sure I saw plenty of US athletes there, including one winning the women's 800m and another winning the men's shot put. Perhaps we were watching a different meeting?

People ask me why I was such a fierce supporter of Carl Lewis because he did threaten to pull out of meets if an athlete were being kept out. In 1981, Svein Arne was keeping an athlete out of the mile and Carl threatened to pull out, he was allowed to compete and ran 3:50.34 the 6th fastest ever at the time. (Granted it was for a Santa Monica runner and yes, SMTC did over play that hand many times and like any union, they go to far, BUT without them athletes/workers are guaranteed no chance.)Michael Johnson on the other hand was all about Michael and that's the problem with this sport. As long as it stays an individual sport, it's divide and conquer, plus the USATF knows that careers are short and that platform to complain will leave in 5-6 years.Nick Symmonds should be applauded for his efforts to bring a little attention to the sport and himself. You think Michael Jordan did all those Nike commercials simply for the money? He was branding himself.The word amateur is not a compliment on any level.

Tissue paper wipe wrote:

Great points.

If the organization had any balls , they would have staged a non compete protest and not run in the meet in support of Nick. Athletes need to take control of the sport , how will they be manipulated next by meet directors in Europe.

Another view wrote:

To the posters who commented on the caps, f*ck you this is our sport we are talking about.

And you are obviously a very articulate role model for our sport. Congratulations!

I'm sorry, but using an all-caps subject line does not give us the impression that the OP is passionate about the sport. It actually appears to be the actions of a person who is starved for attention, immature, and has an exceedingly limited vocabulary. If they had any common sense, they would realize that most people will dismiss the opinion of someone who is ranting in that manner rather than admire it.

This is letsrun.com. half the posts on this board are troll posts, and you're complaining about caps?Get real. This isnt a congressional forum, its a running board where most people talk trash about elites.

I noticed the same thing wrote:

Another view wrote:

To the posters who commented on the caps, f*ck you this is our sport we are talking about.

And you are obviously a very articulate role model for our sport. Congratulations!

I'm sorry, but using an all-caps subject line does not give us the impression that the OP is passionate about the sport. It actually appears to be the actions of a person who is starved for attention, immature, and has an exceedingly limited vocabulary. If they had any common sense, they would realize that most people will dismiss the opinion of someone who is ranting in that manner rather than admire it.

superman wrote:

This is letsrun.com. half the posts on this board are troll posts, and you're complaining about caps?

So now we are "grading on the curve?" If you are comparing the OP to the typical racist, homophobic, misogynistic, anonymous trolls and emphasizing that his post is better, that really isn't saying too much.

Moe -- I don't think you reaaly understand what's happening here. First, like MJ, Nick Symmonds is free to do Nike commercials ... if they wanted him too. Also, just like MJ, Nick is free to wear his sponsored products WITHIN THE RULES OF HIS SPORT. Just like MJ wore Nike shoes, Nick wears Nike spikes. But just like Nick, MJ was prohibited from wearing a Gatorade billboard on his back by NBA rules.

Also, I can guarantee you that the London meet has sponsors who want their sponsorhip to take center stage, and its probably in their contracts with the meet. Symmonds and Jones are liabilities because they've shown in the past they are willing to ignore the rules of the meet for their own gain, and as such, the meet directors are well within their rights to prohibit them.

If this Nick -- Stop being a baby.

If they want to maximize profits for their sponsors and ban high-level athletes just because there's a possibility they could represent their own sponsors too well, than they shouldn't call out the diamond league. Call it what it is, a money grab. Mediocre performances, slower athletes, and less competition brings less attention to their meet, and in turn, less attention to their sponsors.

RE: WHY HASN'T THE TRACK & FIELD ATHLETES ASSOCIATION ISSUED A STATEMENT ABOUT THE LONDON DL MEET BARRING US ATHLETES?

Have you heard the expression "pillow talk"?

Which is why NO sane person believes or listens to much of the crap spewed on this board. One minor thing (LaCaze) gets "airplay" and people naively think that LR actually has an effect on the sport.

Get a clue, the Europeans don't give a damn about Americans, why should they? Americans should put on more of their own meets, rather than leaching off of European meets. That the US can only put on two DL meets (Pre and New York) doesn't say much for the value of spectator support for "Athletics" in the US. There should be a whole series of meets across the country that fill the football stadiums if T&F was a "player" in the world of Pro sports. Obviously it is not, so who cares what happens to some no-name from the US (i.e. Symmonds) in the sport - the mainstream media certainly doesn't care. The only 800m races that matter are ones that Rudisha is in, and only because of him, not Symmonds.

Im more enraged lolo Jones wasn't admitted than Symmonds. She's a 2 time world champion!

I bet London was pretty happy with the athletes they got, like a US runner with a world championship medal. I don't think Nick adds much to the European scene -- 1:44 runners are a dime a dozen, they just arent in the US.

I don't think YOU understand what's happening here. Yes, there are rules in every sport, but Nick's contention seems to be that ours are prohibiting track's reentry into mainstream media and public life. The fact that Michael Jordan couldn't wear a "Gatorade billboard" on his back had nothing to do with his popularity. In the 1990s, you could've thrown a rock and hit someone who knew who Michael Jordan was. If you did that now, and asked them if they knew who Nick Symmonds is, they probably wouldn't know, and would be pretty angry that you threw a rock at them.

I don't always agree with everything Symmonds does and says to promote the sport, or the ways he goes about trying to change how little exposure our athletes get, but I am glad at least one of our athletes is at least trying to get our sport out there. The fact that the response is to ban him from meets and prevent him from running is, well... suffice it to say, very disappointing.

Nick is a top 10 athlete this year by time and ran a 1:43. I think he certainly would have added to the meet.That is just my opinion of course.

Superman's amoron wrote:

I bet London was pretty happy with the athletes they got, like a US runner with a world championship medal. I don't think Nick adds much to the European scene -- 1:44 runners are a dime a dozen, they just arent in the US.

aadkfjdjf wrote:

The fact that Michael Jordan couldn't wear a "Gatorade billboard" on his back had nothing to do with his popularity.

But Nick's desire to do so is what got him banned from the meet.

The main problem is that the president of USATF used her connections with the London meet director (her husband) to exact personal vendettas against athletes she does not like. This is a direct abuse of her position and contrary to her duties. It would be like a game warden poaching wildlife from a reserve he was hired to protect.

Until USATF is decommissioned as a federation and none of the current officers and board members can be on its replacement, we are going to have problems.