Why Was A Man With A 10-Year Doping Ban Enjoying The 2012 US Olympic Track & Field Trials From The Nike Sky Box?

Just heard from a party that was in "Caps corner" that they were taking pics and in the background face to face Cap talking with Block. OUCH

Why isn't the access to the practice track a greater issue ( direct access to athletes ) than the sky box filled with nike fat cats and USATF officials ?

Having access to athletes is a far greater issue than eating the free buffet and drinking micro brews in the sky box.

Dig deep and see if Block was credentialed officially. If he was then you have a problem.

I am not interested in this article as it's kind of a rumor mill. So could you stop the picture from popping up whenever I go to Let's run site. It's just like many of those unnecessary worthless pop ups that I would like to block.

Sorry about that.

just wanna say how damn proud I am of the investigative journalism heroes here. Standing up to Nike = standing up to those tanks in Tianamen (sp?)Square. (except those cats were communism, not for it...WTF?)

Where would we be without these LRC dudes risking their....well, nothing really...to tell the ugly story about a big shoe company.....conspiring to.....sell more shoes! Noooooooooooooo.....! Pretty soon, we'll all be forced to wear Nikes & pledge allegiance to the Swoosh! Stand up to the evil shoe barons! Yeah!

wow no way!!! a researched, balanced article? lrc = national enquirer

A Duck - Nice try. You attempt to discredit anyone who raises legitimate questions by suggesting that they are conspiracy nuts. I never said there was a massive conspiracy. I simply wanted to know why Nike was entertaining a convicted drug cheat who is currently serving a 10 year ban.

You immediately jump to the conclusion, without any evidence, that someone probably "slipped him a pass to come in and get a free lunch or something." Why would you assume this? Something other than your claim that you know everything because you were once a big time runner would be helpful.

Your position appears to be that we should never even ask questions about something unusual or suspicious because someone might come up with an innocent answer.

4th in the GSL wrote:

If Jeter can't see how she looks bad by continuing her relationship with a guy who was found guilty by USADA of, among other things, supplying drugs to athletes, she is being willfully stupid.

So because this dude was allowed in the Nike area, Jeter is stupid.

Surprised no one has mentioned Block sat in the lobby of the Hilton for over a week with Jeter and Smith and many others including Chris Layne all week. Not illegal but at the official meet hotel he was "doing business" right out in the open.

Funny the posts about Nike having virtually all the guilty athletes over the past 12 years from LaShawn to Marion to Tim Montgomery to Justin Gatlin are removed even though they are factually correct.

Have Nike lawyers visited the BroJos???

You're wrong wrote:

A Duck wrote:

Well a good portion of the comments on this thread have been about how poorly this site is run. And about what a non-story this is.

No. It's called selection bias. Many people in the Oregon track scene (where Nike employs and supports thousands of people) don't want to hear anything negative about them.

That writer was willing to take a stand even though he knew some Oregonian readers might not like it.

No, it's both.

Yes there is some selection bias by the Oregonian online readers (I really doubt any of those posters read the print edition.)

AND some regulars here have called this site out for teh cesspool it often is.

Take a look through your memory at the increase in complaints about this place in the period covering the NCAA's and the Trials.

Juris Luzens Prudence wrote:

http://www.oregonlive.com/playbooks-profits/index.ssf/2012/07/sports_agent_banned_from_track.html

BTW, Excellent response, illustrative of impeccable speech and debate credentials!!

Do you feel just a little bit chagrined???

Let me make it clearer for you, since you seem to need something for Luddites.

1. I think all drug cheats should be banned for life. And this includes any of their convicted enablers. (Since we don't have that, the current rules should apply.)

2. I came into this thread relatively late, and was happy to note what appears to be some of the same voices that have been asking the Blojo's to clean this place up during the NCAA and OT's periods, were taking the Blojo's to task for being low class and yet expecting to be taken seriously as a journalistic source -- were speaking up.

3. As several others pointed out, either there was a simple story to why said banned person/friend was admitted into the Nike area, or their was a loophole allowing the guy to attend meets. I took no dog in this fight, because I didn't know the facts. Once the story came to light, I figured legitimate news sources...like the Oregonian would get an official response...and that the story, whatever legs it might have...would evolve from legitimate news sources like that, or TFN (way down the line).

--Note from their first report Blojo's showed that they couldn't get responses from people. They also showed no journalistic integrity. Describing the guy as walking away guilty looking - well that is projection, not reportage.

Nonplussed would be a better word than chagrined.

I really have no horse in this hunt (Block), I do have an opinion in agreement with those that first called the Blojo's to task for the behavior on this site tainting their reputation.

Get a grip, any one who has any adult life in the adult world on this board knows that the most common behavior and attitude on this site by the Brojo's would not be accepted or tolerated in a real professional environment.

It's the Internet, Frank.

Kenyano wrote:

I am not interested in this article as it's kind of a rumor mill. So could you stop the picture from popping up whenever I go to Let's run site. It's just like many of those unnecessary worthless pop ups that I would like to block.

Sorry about that.

I am kinda with you there, man, one day is enough.

No blackout for Asthon, and yet this shite?

Canada641 wrote:

A Duck - Nice try. You attempt to discredit anyone who raises legitimate questions by suggesting that they are conspiracy nuts. I never said there was a massive conspiracy. I simply wanted to know why Nike was entertaining a convicted drug cheat who is currently serving a 10 year ban.

You immediately jump to the conclusion, without any evidence, that someone probably "slipped him a pass to come in and get a free lunch or something." Why would you assume this? Something other than your claim that you know everything because you were once a big time runner would be helpful.

Your position appears to be that we should never even ask questions about something unusual or suspicious because someone might come up with an innocent answer.

It's all about you, isn't it canucklehead?

The conspiracy attitude refers to much of the discussion on this thread.

Until we know for sure happened, what we know is the guy went up and down the stairs.

I just don't think it means anything until more details come out. For all we know the guy has learned his lesson, does a ton of charity work, is on the up and up, and it is completely legal for him to be there as a spectator.

The Blojo's ran with this story without fully researching it.

xxxxxxx wrote:

Surprised no one has mentioned Block sat in the lobby of the Hilton for over a week with Jeter and Smith and many others including Chris Layne all week. Not illegal but at the official meet hotel he was "doing business" right out in the open.

Funny the posts about Nike having virtually all the guilty athletes over the past 12 years from LaShawn to Marion to Tim Montgomery to Justin Gatlin are removed even though they are factually correct.

Have Nike lawyers visited the BroJos???

Gee, when you have 90% of the athletes, that's likely to happen. Not really a smoking gun.

A duck - Once again, your starting position is why should we even ask questions because, "for all we know the guy has learned his lesson"?

Please don't apply for a job with the US Anti-Doping Agency. Asking appropriate questions, collecting evidence and drawing reasonable inferences might not be your thing.

You aren't a critical thinker, are you? You would have made a terrible journalist, lawyer, doctor or scientist. No worries, who needs the ability to think critically when you are spending most of your time (as you claim - without a scintilla of proof) with world-class runners?

oh man, you had to bring the scintilla into it, huh? The sh&t always hits the fan once scintillas are invoked!

Speaking of, other than one photo of Dr. Evil descending (or was he moonwalking up the stairs?) the Nike VIP box steps, whatcha got?.............crickets......

What if Dr. Evil bought a coke or pepsi product from the concession stand while lurking at the OT? How could Coca-Cola endorse drug cheats by letting this ba&tard drink their stuff?

Did you see all the security monitoring the entrance/exit to the Nike VIP box? SWAT, SEALs, Canadian Mounted Mounties, Paris's Hilton being mounted, invisible black helos circling overhead....and drones everywhere!

Do you know that even as you stare blankly at the screen, Nike is sending out subliminal messages? That's why you keep having to suppress the urge to buy 14 pairs of waffle zoom racing flats!

We can fight these guys though. I say.......Occupy Nike!

Cheaters hate it when a light is on them. They need the dark in order to operate. Kinda like cockroaches in that respect.

I've done a few shameful things that I had to do in the dark, so I am speaking from experience a bit.

Another tactic the cheaters use - they obstruct their true natures by draping themselves in flags or hiding behind religious trappings.

They also keep telling themselves and others, "Everybody does it."

You can tell a bird by its feathers, if you know what I mean.

A Duck wrote:

3. As several others pointed out, either there was a simple story to why said banned person/friend was admitted into the Nike area, or their was a loophole allowing the guy to attend meets. I took no dog in this fight, because I didn't know the facts. Once the story came to light, I figured legitimate news sources...like the Oregonian would get an official response...and that the story, whatever legs it might have...would evolve from legitimate news sources like that, or TFN (way down the line).

So out of all the possible scenarios explaining how a guy who is disgraced in the T&F world ends up in the VIP box at the Olympic trials, you've managed to narrow it down to 2. Either a simple story, or a loophole in his ban. I can think of another 20 off the top of my head, some innocent, some not, but regardless, it's worth looking into. If it turns out that an old buddy smuggled him in with a borrowed pass, great. End of story. But since he's been photographed out for celebratory dinners with 2 sprinters with medal aspirations in London, perhaps we shouldn't be so quick to dismiss this. The world press will certainly ask the hard questions, even if the US press isn't up to it.

smoking gun wrote:

Just heard from a party that was in "Caps corner" that they were taking pics and in the background face to face Cap talking with Block. OUCH

Why isn't the access to the practice track a greater issue ( direct access to athletes ) than the sky box filled with nike fat cats and USATF officials ?

Having access to athletes is a far greater issue than eating the free buffet and drinking micro brews in the sky box.

Dig deep and see if Block was credentialed officially. If he was then you have a problem.

Please shoot me an email at

or give me a call 607-330-4786.

I want this photo if it actually exists. If need be, we will block out whoever is actually in the picture to protect their identity (although I wish they'd go public and start being a solution to the problem instead of an enabler)

could you rephrase with even more tired cliches? No? I don't see how you could either..

Can you be less obvious in your attempt to obfuscate the situation? The thin veil of humor you seek to hide this drug debacle under is as transparent as your desire to keep the truth from coming out.