I’m here right now And it’s amazing. Not sure what you’re trying to prove or say but this is exactly how you grow the sport. It’s not about people in the stands it’s about participation and NON just broke all participation records.
Correct! If you go to a track meet just to watch, you're missing the whole point.
I see what you are saying and I gave you an up-vote. In an ideal world, you are onto something.
But the notion that we have to "educate" the fans is like the opera, ballet, and theater communities saying, "if the audience was smarter (better educated), they would love to watch opera, ballet, and plays.
Sorry, but if your product requires the customers/audience to "be better" then you are fighting a losing game. The audience knows what it likes. They want story-lines, plots, characters, conflict, and meaningful outcomes. Just like in all their entertainment.
We sound like the International soccer aficionados who say that if Americans would just take the time to learn about the subtleties of the game, we'd love soccer too. Sorry, no thanks.
Track and field isn't that interesting. I would not drive for an hour to watch no-name, random athletes running 27:30 for 10km. That is fast as hell, but sorry, it is not "entertaining." They are literally running in a circle.
But I would drive for an hour to watch Abdi vs. Meb vs. Solinsky vs. Rupp run 27:30 in the US Olympic Trials because I know the athletes, I know why they are running it, I care about the outcome (Olympic team!). That is called plot, character, motive, and context. That is what makes something meaningful.
I downvoted that MFer because he generated that response with ChatGPT
I was about to make a comment about how track and field is the only sport with no pro teams. Then I started researching and I had no freaking idea that there is a pro league:
We could try not charging $33 per day for parents and siblings to watch their high school kids (or college freshman). It’s not a pro meet. Imagine dropping $300 just for tickets to have your family (two parents + 2 siblings & a grandma) watch your high schooler run a 10s race one day and 21s race the next day.
A-FREAKING-MEN! The ticket pricing is beyond ridiculous.
I had athletes in the meet and each day I saw two things:
1. Parents dropping off their athlete kids and asking when they need picked up?
2. Confused grandparents trying to figure out how to get their ticket to work on a phone and trying to download the U of O Go Ducks app. Just open the ticket booth so elderly people can purchase a ticket to watch their grandchild! That isn't going to kill the environment.
Guess what athletes and their families won't be coming back to Eugene and spending money in the future?
Do the other nationals price gouge like this? I know that Brooks PR is FREE admission for anyone that shows up. What do Hoka and New Balance charge?
Can I just go on record and say we will never "grow the sport" as long as the following five factors are missing. It doesn't matter what you are selling, nobody will buy your "sport entertainment product" unless it has the following:
Well-known athletes that the fans care about. That is why Nordas' comment about some "random African" was kind of accurate. It was rude to say out loud, but if a bunch of new Kenyans and Ethiopians come and go each year, then it is hard to care. That is why Kipchoge and Bekele are so popular, they have been in the game for years!
Distances that people can related to. The 100m and the mile are the only events on the track that anyone can mentally envision. If you tell people at my work that you are running a 5km, they would not really know how far that is. They can't estimate what a good result would be. It is just "running laps" to casual fans.
Some kind of sustained conflict. Just running laps fast is not enough for non-track people. Sha'Carri is the fastest but she is also the most interesting. You have to have lots of people like her who are "embattled." It can be on or off the track, but you have to bring some kind of drama into the game.
A sense of ownership in the outcome. If it is the Olympics, the sport is imbued with a National identity. When Bolt wins, Jamaica wins! When Peter Snell won his golds, he was winning them for New Zealand. Just running laps for yourself? Why should other people care about that? People in Boston love the Celtics because they are from Boston. It is like family, you love your team. Track doesn't have that...
Historical context tells us if something has a meaningful place in our culture. The Olympics has it. The Kentucky Derby has it. Wimbledon has it. The Indy 500 and the Masters and the Boston Marathon have it. You can put on a better horse race, but I am still watching the Kentucky Derby, sorry.
I think we have to respect the fact that people know what they like and they don't like to watch people sponsored by shoe companies running random distances (6.25 miles?) around a track for no apparent reason.
And unless they are setting the WR, we runners don't even consider them to be very good... Just ask the US women's 10km team. Letrun doesn't even think they are any good. If we don't, why should anyone else care?
Imagine watching a mediocre movie, with no plot, and characters you don't know, doing something you don't really understand. That is the way most people feel about our sport.
Excellent assessment of the issue.
However, I think also we have to add the fact that the major sports have swallowed up all the air time and exposure and relegated track and field to the back of the bus in the USA. It wasn't always that way. Particularly during the cold war. Average sports fans new who the top US track athletes were just like they did the top athletes of any other sport. Now they don't. Unless a dude is Olympic champion or world record holder they are relatively unknown among sports fans in the USA.
This post was edited 39 seconds after it was posted.
I see what you are saying and I gave you an up-vote. In an ideal world, you are onto something.
But the notion that we have to "educate" the fans is like the opera, ballet, and theater communities saying, "if the audience was smarter (better educated), they would love to watch opera, ballet, and plays.
Sorry, but if your product requires the customers/audience to "be better" then you are fighting a losing game. The audience knows what it likes. They want story-lines, plots, characters, conflict, and meaningful outcomes. Just like in all their entertainment.
We sound like the International soccer aficionados who say that if Americans would just take the time to learn about the subtleties of the game, we'd love soccer too. Sorry, no thanks.
Track and field isn't that interesting. I would not drive for an hour to watch no-name, random athletes running 27:30 for 10km. That is fast as hell, but sorry, it is not "entertaining." They are literally running in a circle.
But I would drive for an hour to watch Abdi vs. Meb vs. Solinsky vs. Rupp run 27:30 in the US Olympic Trials because I know the athletes, I know why they are running it, I care about the outcome (Olympic team!). That is called plot, character, motive, and context. That is what makes something meaningful.
Go touch grass boomer. Your posts so far are so full of old and tired cliches. Not one original thought whatsoever. How does one go around like that, spouting rehashed, tired cliches? Subtitles of soccer?! 🥱
Can I just go on record and say we will never "grow the sport" as long as the following five factors are missing. It doesn't matter what you are selling, nobody will buy your "sport entertainment product" unless it has the following:
Well-known athletes that the fans care about. That is why Nordas' comment about some "random African" was kind of accurate. It was rude to say out loud, but if a bunch of new Kenyans and Ethiopians come and go each year, then it is hard to care. That is why Kipchoge and Bekele are so popular, they have been in the game for years!
Distances that people can related to. The 100m and the mile are the only events on the track that anyone can mentally envision. If you tell people at my work that you are running a 5km, they would not really know how far that is. They can't estimate what a good result would be. It is just "running laps" to casual fans.
Some kind of sustained conflict. Just running laps fast is not enough for non-track people. Sha'Carri is the fastest but she is also the most interesting. You have to have lots of people like her who are "embattled." It can be on or off the track, but you have to bring some kind of drama into the game.
A sense of ownership in the outcome. If it is the Olympics, the sport is imbued with a National identity. When Bolt wins, Jamaica wins! When Peter Snell won his golds, he was winning them for New Zealand. Just running laps for yourself? Why should other people care about that? People in Boston love the Celtics because they are from Boston. It is like family, you love your team. Track doesn't have that...
Historical context tells us if something has a meaningful place in our culture. The Olympics has it. The Kentucky Derby has it. Wimbledon has it. The Indy 500 and the Masters and the Boston Marathon have it. You can put on a better horse race, but I am still watching the Kentucky Derby, sorry.
I think we have to respect the fact that people know what they like and they don't like to watch people sponsored by shoe companies running random distances (6.25 miles?) around a track for no apparent reason.
And unless they are setting the WR, we runners don't even consider them to be very good... Just ask the US women's 10km team. Letrun doesn't even think they are any good. If we don't, why should anyone else care?
Imagine watching a mediocre movie, with no plot, and characters you don't know, doing something you don't really understand. That is the way most people feel about our sport.
I appreciate your thoughtful response, but I have to disagree on several points:
1. Well-known athletes: While star power can certainly help, it's not the only way to engage fans. Track and field has a diverse pool of talented athletes from all over the world, and focusing too much on a few stars can overshadow the sport's inherent excitement and diversity. Building a sport's popularity should not rely solely on a handful of recognizable faces.
2. Relatable distances: The beauty of track and field lies in its variety. Simplifying or standardizing distances to cater to a less-informed audience risks diminishing the sport's richness. Instead of changing the sport to fit a casual viewer's understanding, we should educate and engage fans about the unique challenges and strategies involved in different events.
3. Sustained conflict and drama: While drama can attract attention, it shouldn't be manufactured or forced. The integrity of the sport is paramount, and creating artificial rivalries can undermine it. Real stories of perseverance and competition are compelling enough without needing additional dramatization.
4. Sense of ownership: Track and field is already a deeply international sport, and athletes often carry their nation's pride. Forcing regional or national leagues could dilute the sport's global appeal and the spirit of international competition that defines events like the Olympics and World Championships.
5. Historical context: Track and field has a rich history and significant cultural impact. Rather than creating new prestigious events, we should focus on promoting and celebrating existing ones. The legacy of events like the Boston Marathon, the Olympics, and the World Championships provides plenty of historical context.
Your analogy of a mediocre movie with no plot or familiar characters doesn't hold for track and field. The sport is filled with extraordinary athletes, incredible stories, and a global following. Instead of changing its core to fit a casual viewer's expectations, we should focus on better storytelling, education, and showcasing the sport's true essence. Track and field has intrinsic value that, when highlighted effectively, can captivate and inspire audiences worldwide.
“The integrity of the sport is paramount, and creating artificial rivalries can undermine”
This is where track and field loses 99% of its potential audience.
do the millions of gamers watching YouTube gamers think about “integrity of the sport”?
or the millions watching UFC?
or the billions watching the NFL?
not really.
they want to be entertained, not observe a boring sport with “integrity”.
its like listening to those old time baseball fans who can’t stand the rule changes. change with the times or prepare to be irrelevant.
So you want 100 times more Tuohy Valby and Wiley fans to come to LetsRun? There is enough debate on who is the biggest cheater in the world.
Running is a participation sport, and it has no entertainment value unless it is part of World Cup or Olympics. We don’t need more fans; we need more people participating running no matter how fast or slow they can manage
Running fast doesn’t justify being paid a lot of money unless running has some purpose. Maybe runner can help deliver mails during daily training routine?
My dad grew up in the 60s and to this day has a pretty decent knowledge of the modern sport and a great knowledge of the Cold War era sport despite never participating in it himself or being a serious runner. He tunes into the Millrose Games every year and watches the Olympic Trials, sometimes even a few marathons a year. He grew up in a time period where Jim Ryun and Abebe Bikila were in the news, where Frank Shorter was regularly pulling out heroics. And he’s still a football, soccer, and baseball fan. I don’t believe that track and field fandom is mutually incompatible with the observance of other sports. But it does fall to the wayside over time when superior entertainment products better ingrain themselves in the cultural consciousness.
So you want 100 times more Tuohy Valby and Wiley fans to come to LetsRun? There is enough debate on who is the biggest cheater in the world.
Running is a participation sport, and it has no entertainment value unless it is part of World Cup or Olympics. We don’t need more fans; we need more people participating running no matter how fast or slow they can manage
Running fast doesn’t justify being paid a lot of money unless running has some purpose. Maybe runner can help deliver mails during daily training routine?
Amen to that! One thing our world does not need is yet another entertainment option. We're already entertaining ourselves to death.
We do need more people getting involved in something, not just watching something. Running is perfect for that.
I don't care how many spectators a track meet has. I will celebrate a track meet having more participants.
Track is about doing, not watching. Stop trying to change that.
I'd like to add on here. I went to a meet in Eugene once. I live in Ohio. It's just too damn far away from the rest of the country and flights/travel take way too long. I'd love to watch some more of these meets but I'm not flying to Eugene again. It's not worth it. I have heard other track fans say the same thing.
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