The question is, do we have reason to believe the USATF will actually let in Ben Bruce and Fleshman by going against their own (although perhaps silly) rules--of needing to be in the top 4? I think if you do only top 4, a waiver system to get around anything weird might be good.
It's done. Fleshman is in and BB is in. The only question now is Goucher in the 10,000. Apparently Huddle is going even though PF has kept her from running much of anything since USA's. The only reason I can see Davilla passing on the 5,000 would be if she was fairly certain Goucher was bowing out of the 10,000.
...then again there might be the conspiracy theory that Bruce & Fleshman are Nike athletes and what Phil & Cap says trumps the rules.
Nah, they wouldn't do that...Nike is above that!
coach d wrote:
Remember, you're talking about USATF here. I wouldn't put ANY crap done to athletes beyond them. I mean, we have to show those athletes who's boss, don't we?
If they left Fleshman home just to protect the sanctity of their silly rules, it would not surprise me in the least.
Of course, I want her to go, but what part of John Chaplin and cronies do you not understand?
Chaplin and Lananna are both cronies. Fleshman was Lananna's athlete and is part of the OTC thing = she will go.
Why did USATF have Top 4 in their eligibility language?
Here is the deal. If you only let the Nike athletes know that you can chase the A standard, you have a greater chance of flooding the team with Nike athletes.
Ask Neely Spence if she knew that she had a chance to be on the Daegu team. She beat Fleshman at Nationals but thought by not finishing in the top 4 it didn't matter.
Does Nike have too much influence? Probably, but it's not something to stress over. Fleshman is a different athlete today than she was in June. She just ran 15 flat and on the upswing. Neely Spence has a great future, but Fleshman is the better runner today. No way Neely gets close to 15 flat this year.
But shouldn't she be afforded the same opportunities as a Nike athlete?
Absolutely she should. I'm not sure that this is a Nike issue or a USATF issue. The USATF is protecting the USA Championships (which many elites would not run)as trials for the Worlds. They need to be better about letting all athletes know that if you don't have the A standard...you need to be going for it. Bizzarri went for it once I think and ran 16 something. She relied on Hastings all summer to get the A. The USATF should have made it clear that that spot was open to the runner with the best time this summer if Angela didn't get the A or Hastings didn't get the A.
psycho wrote:
Why would Desi give up her position?
It would not surprise me if Desi was planning to do Philadelphia Half Marathon, or perhaps another road race in the near future. Half Marathon might fit better into her long term plan and perhaps there is good start money for the Boston runner up.
Well then she should have gotten her ass over to Europe and raced. At the very least to get the Olympic A out of the way. I'm sure she knew that opportunities existed, but given that she's still in college (right?), the gamble probably wasn't worth it for the upcoming season. A lot of factors had to come into play for her to make the team (Hastings, Bizzari not hitting the standard, Desi, and Culley not hitting/declining).
Whatever the language was, the intent was apparently that the top-4 who declared their intent to chase got to chase. When Lagat declined his spot, Will Leer actually had the opportunity to chase, but the 3 in front of him beat him to it.
In order for Fleshman to be named to the team, all the athletes in front of her had to give up their option to chase. and they did.
Next year there is no chasing, so none of this will matter.
tsquaredcali wrote:
The USATF should have made it clear that that spot was open to the runner with the best time this summer if Angela didn't get the A or Hastings didn't get the A.
It was NOT offered to the person with the best time. It was offered to the next finisher at Nationals that achieved the A standard.
Opportune wrote:
Well then she should have gotten her ass over to Europe and raced.
Not if she was told by our governing body that she was NOT allowed to chase. The rules were changed afterward.
Congrats to Lauren "Perfect Storm" Fleshman! She is a deserving addition to the team.
There are other reasons to race. Like I said, she should have gotten the Olympic A out of the way for next year, anyway.
Also, anyone with any historical knowledge of our sport would know that USATF, at the end of the day, can do whatever the f*** they want. There were other more experienced athletes in other events that finished as low as 8th, who never for a moment doubted that USATF wouldn't name them to the team, based on A standards.
I am not going to try to predict what was going through her head, but I can imagine that the cost-benefit analysis of trying to hit the A standard in Europe did not propel her into doing so.
Fleshman did not have some kind of special insider knowledge. Almost all of the athletes in front of her were racing in Europe. Some hit the standard and declined. Some raced like crap. It was a perfect storm that got her named to the team, not a secret conspiracy theory. And we are lucky that we have an athlete whose fitness is on the upswing representing us in Daegu.
Fleshman's facebook has a huge picture of Desi with "Thanks" written all over it. I'm pretty sure this indicates that Desi gave the 5k spot to Fleshman.
Neely Spence is not an idiot. Her dad, Steve, does a great job grooming and preparing her and understanding the process (he himself made the US World Team).
Please don't insult the Spences in rationalizing them playing it safe and not going for faster PRs if you are better shape than you times indicate. According to Spence at USAs, he was pleased with Neely's run.
2011 World Outdoor Championships Team USA
*denotes 2009 World Champion
Men’s 100m: Walter Dix, Justin Gatlin, Michael Rodgers
Men’s 200m: Dix, Darvis Patton, Jeremy Dodson
Men’s 400m: Tony McQuay, Greg Nixon, Jamaal Torrence, LaShawn Merritt*
Men’s 110mH: David Oliver, Aries Merritt, Jason Richardson
Men’s 400mH: Jeshua Anderson, Bershawn Jackson, Angelo Taylor, Kerron Clement*
Men’s 800m: Nicholas Symmonds, Khadevis Robinson, Charles Jock
Men’s 1500m: Matthew Centrowitz, Leonel Manzano, Andrew Wheating
Men’s 3000m SC: William Nelson, Daniel Huling, Benjamin Bruce
Men’s 5000m: Bernard Lagat, Chris Solinsky, Galen Rupp
Men’s 10,000m: Rupp, Matt Tegenkamp, Scott Bauhs
Men’s 20km RW: Trevor Barron
Men’s HT: Kibwe Johnson, Michael Mai
Men’s DT: Jarred Rome, Jason Young, Lance Brooks
Men’s JT: Mike Hazle
Men’s SP: Adam Nelson, Christian Cantwell*, Reese Hoffa, Ryan Whiting
Men’s PV: Derek Miles, Jeremy Scott, Mark Hollis
Men’s HJ: Jesse Williams, Dustin Jonas, Erik Kynard
Men’s TJ: Christian Taylor, William Claye, Walter Davis
Men’s LJ: Marquise Goodwin, Claye, Trevell Quinley, Dwight Phillips*
Men’s Dec: Ashton Eaton, Ryan Harlan, Bryan Clay, Trey Hardee*
Men’s marathon: Nicholas Arciniaga, Michael Morgan, Sergio Reyes, Jeffrey Eggleston, Mike Sayenko
Men’s 4x100m: Dix, Gatlin, Rodgers, Kimmons, Ivory Williams, Travis Padgett
Men’s 4x400m: Merritt, McQuay, Nixon, Torrence, Michael Berry, Miles Smith
Women’s 100m: Carmelita Jeter, Marshavet Myers, Miki Barber
Women’s 200m: Shalonda Solomon, Jeter, Jeneba Tarmoh, Allyson Felix*
Women’s 400m: Felix, Francena McCorory, Debbie Dunn, Sanya Richards-Ross*
Women’s 100mH: Kellie Wells, Danielle Carruthers, Dawn Harper
Women’s 400mH: Lashinda Demus, Queen Harrison, Jasmine Chaney
Women’s 800m: Alysia Montano, Maggie Vessey, Alice Schmidt
Women’s 1500m: Morgan Uceny, Jennifer Simpson, Shannon Rowbury
Women’s 3000m SC: Emma Coburn, Bridget Franek, Delilah DiCrescenzo
Women’s 5000m: Molly Huddle, Amy Hastings, Lauren Fleshman
Women’s 10000m: Shalane Flanagan, Kara Goucher, Jennifer Rhines
Women’s 20km RW: Maria Michta
Women’s HT: Jessica Cosby, Amber Campbell, Jeneva McCall
Women’s DT: Stephanie Brown-Trafton, Aretha Thurmond, Gia Lewis-Smallwood
Women’s JT: Kara Patterson, Rachel Yurkovich
Women’s SP: Michelle Carter, Jillian Camarena-Williams, Sarah Stevens-Walker
Women’s PV: Kylie Hutson, Jenn Suhr, Lacy Janson
Women’s HJ: Brigetta Barrett, Inika McPherson
Women’s TJ: Amanda Smock
Women’s LJ: Brittney Reese*, Janay DeLoach, Funmi Jimoh, Tori Polk
Women’s Hep: Sharon Day, Hyleas Fountain
Women’s Marathon: Katherine Newberry, Alissa McKaig, Colleen DeRuck, Tera Moody, Zoila Gomez
Women’s 4x100m: Jeter, Myers, Barber, LaShaunte’a Moore, Alexandria Anderson, Bianca Knight
Women’s 4x400m: Richards-Ross, Felix, McCorory, Dunn, Beard, Natasha Hastings
tsquaredcali wrote:
Does Nike have too much influence? Probably, but it's not something to stress over. Fleshman is a different athlete today than she was in June. She just ran 15 flat and on the upswing. Neely Spence has a great future, but Fleshman is the better runner today. No way Neely gets close to 15 flat this year.
I'm sure that's what people thougth about Desi until recently...
I vehemently disagree with your opinion. I am also very happy for Lauren Fleshman.
If Neely and others didn't know there was a possibility that they could qualify there is a big problem. There are many other events where we're not sending three. Maybe some competitors said screw it.
Talk about a disservice to fans of the sport as well. It is not very hard to communicate that the top 4 language doesn't mean a thing.
If you don't think that Nike and Vin knew that Lauren and Ben or anyone else had a chance then you're off your rocker. No problem whatsoever with Vin supporting and encouraging OTC athletes, either. That's his job.