U.S. MARATHON MEN STRUGGLE FOR MEDIA SPOTLIGHT
By David Monti
(c) 2004 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved. Used with Permission.
BIRMINGHAM, ALA. (04-Feb) -- With about 230,000 collective training miles in
their legs over the last six months, the 91 American men who will contest
Saturday's U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Men's Marathon here have to feel
something like a well-rehearsed theatre company who will perform only for a
half-empty house.
Saturday's race will provisionally determine the first three athletes selected by the United States for their Olympic athletics squad, but the
national media has hardly noticed. Even discounting for the absence of
former world record holder Khalid Khannouchi of Ossining, N.Y., who was
forced to miss the Trials due to injury, media interest is so low that the
NBC affiliate here --the local television rightsholder for Olympic sports
properties-- decided not to spring for live gun to tape coverage, even
locally.
"Honestly, I would have really liked to see some television coverage of this
race," said Dan Browne of Portland, Ore., one of the top contenders who
hopes to make his first Olympic team. "This is the Olympic Trials, not some
small-time event."
According to Tom Surber, a spokesman for USA Track & Field, the sport's
governing body in the United States, highlights of the race will be shown
Saturday afternoon during the taped broadcast of the Verizon Millrose Games,
which will be held in New York City on Friday night. In Birmingham, the
local NBC affiliate will show the start live, cut-in midway through the race
for an update, and show the finish live. Also, WJOX 690 am, a local radio
station, will provide live coverage.
But almost uniformly absent will be the big national daily newspapers. John
Crumpacker, one of the top athletics writers in country who is with the San
Francisco Chronicle, is one of those not attending. "I will not be covering
the men's marathon trials," said Crumpacker in an e-mail message to RRW.
"Most newspapers have limited budgets these days and the Chronicle is no
different."
Budgetary constraints are also keeping Dick Patrick of USA Today from covering the race. Patrick, based in Virginia, has covered every Trials
since 1984. "I was told it was due to travel budget reasons," said Patrick,
adding that the newspaper does plan some coverage. "The plan is to do some
sort of follow-up for Monday."
Jere Longman of the New York Times was still hoping to attend, but his travel request had yet to be approved. "It's my understanding that we will
cover the marathon trials, either with a stringer or myself," said Longman
who writes extensively on athletics, soccer and other sports. "I've asked
to go, and am waiting to hear."
Phil Hersh of the Chicago Tribune decided to go to New York City to cover
the Millrose Games, instead, where sprint superstar Marion Jones will
appear. His decision was based more on the quality of the Trials race
itself. "I'm going to Millrose," said Hersh, specifically citing the
Khannouchi withdrawal as a key reason. "I have vowed not to write a word
about other U.S. distance runners until they at least make top-5 in a major
international event." His paper plans to provide "minimal" coverage from
wire services, he said.
Other key running reporters that RRW contacted, like Sharon Robb of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Bruce Brothers of the Pioneer Press
(Minneapolis/St. Paul), and Jim Castor of the Rochester Democrat &
Chronicle, also reported that money was holding them back from coming, even
though they had local athletes in the race they would like to cover. They
all planned to cover the event from home, getting results from the
organizers, using wire reports and making telephone contact with athletes in
Birmingham.
"Budget problems, my paper, as big as it is, is just not traveling to Trials," said Robb last Sunday, who added, "although we do have six people
at the Super Bowl."
