The Brits love Keely - Keely's 800m gold medal run was most watched event in UK for Olympics - 9.1 million

No.

The rest I can, but can't be bothered.

The love for Keely on this side of the pond rivals that of her country folks. No mystery as to why but not to worry,they’ll sour on her soon enough once they found out who her boyfriend is.

Would 91 million British have watched if it was vs Mu. I think not. There would have been a very good chance of her losing

Eh everyone who is that fit and 25 is attractive by and large. That’s not the reason.

You missed a point out Aussiewrongstatsman 9.1 million

And why bring up a hypothetical? Keely wasn't racing Mu, Mu didn't qualify because she can't run in a pack without falling over..

Last time I looked at the results there wasn't an asterisk saying Mu wasn't there

Reasons : 1) She’s a gold medalist and it wasn’t close. 2) it is a competitive event 3) she’s an indigenous British representing the flag; word of appearance spreads 4) White people, though the minority in London, are still the overwhelming majority in the UK. It makes sense white people kept their tv screens on the longest for a gold medalist in track that looks like them. My 100 cents 💯

only white girl in the world to win a Gold medal on the track.....what do you expect

Fair points to be sure. I agree that if this was "just" about skin color, it would be racist. That is pretty much the definition of racism.

But that isn't really what it comes down to for me. It has to do with the community you are raised in and your body-type.

I don't identify with the Tigray community in Kentucky because "Tigray" and "Kentucky" mean little to my sense of self. The body-type of runners with Tigray heritage also means I will never have their weight, height, or form. You can't diet your way down to 128lbs if you a 6'1 white guy with English grandparents.

Cooper Teare was one of my examples because "not making the team" is something a lot of D3 guys like myself can very well identify with. Teare got no medals? Me too! :)

I don't identify with any sprinters because I can't sprint and am skinny-fat. I basically look like an out-of-shape Bob Kennedy. So guess what, that is who I relate to. This is normal human psychology.

And BTW, I wasn't saying these have to be your "favorite" runners. My favorite runner of all time was Geb. But I don't relate to Geb the way I do to someone like Kennedy. And my favorite miler of this era is Nuguse who I got to meet at Pre. He could not be any nicer!

Well, isn't Mo Farah a knight now? I think that is worth a second look... I don't think "winning gold medals" should be a criteria for the Medal of Honor, right?

I love sports more than 99% of people but athletes are not really "heroes" in any real sense of the word. I love what they do (bring joy) and how the do it (by showing us the limits of human potential) but I think of them more like actors or musicians.

Do you think Hispanic runners are "racist" for the particular pride they had in Leonel Manzano's accomplishments? Are the Tigray people around the world "racist" for being especially proud of Nuguse? Would you call them out for caring more about Nuguse than Kerr? Kerr is better, so by you definition all the Ethiopians living in the U.K. should be fans of Kerr, not Nuguse.

Obviously not. That would be nuts. People love their people. That is not racist or bad. If you are connected to someone, you are closer to them. That is tautologically true.

If you live in Seattle and run on the same track as Kerr, you are "closer to Kerr" than you are to Bernard Lagat. But if you are Kenyan or ran at WSU with him back in the 90s, then you are closer to Lagat. If Cole Hocker and Cooper Teare went to college with your kid, you might feel a connection to those guys even if you don't know them personally. That's how fandom in sports works.

It is about relationships, connections, and sense of community. We are not equally connected to all other humans on Earth. That's okay.

You thought that Mu not qualifying would have made you forever happy. Now you find out you are as bitter as before. Must suck.

I'd be surprised if even 10% of those 9.1 million people had ever heard of Athing Mu.

This.

Most american track athletes are complete unknowns in the UK. Only Noah Lyles and ShaCarri Richardson are close to being "household names".

During the games I saw people complaining that we lost the 1500m and 400m to "complete randoms".