my buddy and i were both soccer-track guys. we grew up in a mediocre part of a nice suburb. i liked that track was a lot less political than soccer was. the bs that went on when the "money on the table" part of recruitment hit in soccer. i always liked that track was no bs, let's race. a coach could jerk you around -- my hurdles coach did -- but, ok, i'm a full time sprinter now, so what.
i always thought it was a great balance on the politics of team sports like soccer. sometimes you're doing well within that, sometimes you have an off day, sometimes you think you're getting screwed.
i do think she's right but only in the most extreme cases. the actual hood is no place to run and rarely produces good runners. some kid dying of famine isn't going running. most people can get some food for fuel and aren't scared to run where they live.

