It is partly because she is white that some are so happy for her. This is an example of unconscious bias. They want her to win because they think she is more like them. I am answering my own question because most of you people are not aware of this. You will downvote me because you don’t like hearing the truth.
Please, tell us more how we should feel. (I mean, as long as it satisfies your preconceptions and all.) Being that I’m only half white, does that mean I can be only half as happy to see one of the nicest athletes in UK sport come home with a hard fought crown? Or are you just another crazed American putting your nose where it doesn’t belong?
It is partly because she is white that some are so happy for her. This is an example of unconscious bias. They want her to win because they think she is more like them. I am answering my own question because most of you people are not aware of this. You will downvote me because you don’t like hearing the truth.
Please, tell us more how we should feel. (I mean, as long as it satisfies your preconceptions and all.) Being that I’m only half white, does that mean I can be only half as happy to see one of the nicest athletes in UK sport come home with a hard fought crown? Or are you just another crazed American putting your nose where it doesn’t belong?
Your reaction PROVES my point. I NEVER told you how to feel. You are really taking this personally. You do have low self esteem.
It is partly because she is white that some are so happy for her. This is an example of unconscious bias. They want her to win because they think she is more like them. I am answering my own question because most of you people are not aware of this. You will downvote me because you don’t like hearing the truth.
EVERYONE knew what you meant. The fact that you don't realize this says a lot about you.
I'm just saying it was clear you were implying unconscious racial bias in your initial post. You didn't need to later explain it like it's a complicated concept.
I'm just saying it was clear you were implying unconscious racial bias in your initial post. You didn't need to later explain it like it's a complicated concept.
OK fair enough. I am leaving this thread as I have made my point. Others can disagree and they can focus on the race. I would just say that it was a good race and McColgan’s father was also a pretty good runner. Eilish has an interesting running style and I don’t expect it to translate well to the marathon. She has had a nice career though and if she were an American she would be an icon here, even more than she is.
Obama is half Kenyan and half Irish. So he is not black. He is mixed. He self-identifies with the black community. All this is fine and dandy, but in Africa, you are not black unless you are black, if you are mixed, you are referred to as mixed and there is nothing wrong with that.
I do agree that people tend to cheer for or support people who are similar to them. It is natural.
Black people for sure refer to black cultural things like art, music, and sports and they refer mostly to black people — totally understandable. But to call out a white person for cheering for a white person and calling it bias in a negative way is jealousy.
Jealousy comes from weakness or an inferiority complex.
If you are going to call out bias negatively, then start recognizing the millions of white people who cheer for and support mixed and black people.
The beauty of attributing something to unconscious bias is that even if the person you accuse of it says you're wrong you can continue claiming you're really correct. You're claiming to know more about another person than they know about themselves. Freud did that with his patients and lead to some devastating mistakes.
Yes of course that is true but then the beauty of your point is that unconscious bias can always be denied and then it as if it never exists. Well we know it does. It doesn’t make people evil at all. We all have some share of it. It is perfectly understandable BUT if the Kenyan had won there wouldn’t be much of a thread. We do know that.
There would have been a thread if the result was the other way round, it was a fantastic couple of last laps. It’s just most on here are from the USA and if not an American it does not get notice, look at some of the post about college runners they would be on page 8 by now if they had the same race.
sure their is unconscious bias, everyone and I do mean every thinks about a person like them all over the world. Just go travel and you see this, , whether it’s race, religion, hair style, accent, career, car, diet, sport prowess or just pick something.
It’s strange that in the western world that there is a trend to demonise to make everyone feel bad instead of take virtue and celebrate we are all different and all what the same thing and being diverse help all of society group. Instead of trying to limit groups or develop at a foundation level
What gets me invested in sport is caring about the athletes. I've followed McColgan's career since she came onto the pro scene and it's been a slog. She seemed to actively rebel against her mum's legacy in trying to stick to mid-d and then steeple. She's been to found CWGs in four different events and never finished higher than 6th before. These last three years have seen her turn the corner. She leaned into the longer distances and found her place in the sport. She's been taking down Paula Radcliffe's British records on the roads (10k, 10 miles, HM) and the 5000 on the track. Then there was that 30:19 from the front in Hengelo. For all that, there was no gold. She kept finishing second in big road races, often to Hellen Obiri, and both the Olympics and World's didn't show her at her best. This felt like a reward for that work. The field wasn't deep but she ran a games record on home soil and with 30,000 people screaming her home. She will never get that feeling or level of support again. I'm not deluded, I don't think this is a precursor to medals at the World's or Olympics but it was a great event and very good race that is meaningful for the countries that are involved. There'll be athletes watching that last night, hearing the crowd support who would do anything to experience it, and some who withdrew from the games who will now be regretting it.
TL; DR - sport is about storytelling. You don't get invested in times on a sheet, you get invested in the athletes
It is partly because she is white that some are so happy for her. This is an example of unconscious bias. They want her to win because they think she is more like them. I am answering my own question because most of you people are not aware of this. You will downvote me because you don’t like hearing the truth.
You're obviously right and got my upvote. Don't let the racists bring you down.
Just watched the race, brilliant championship battle. Nice to see someone do most of the work, get passed and then fight back. The poster on about the time is clearly trolling, it was clearly tactical for many parts of the race and the time would have won world championships in the last decade (2015, 2013, 2011 at least).
Commentary was excellent if heavily biased as she or her mum is likely a buddy of Crammy. He is so sharp and well informed but his commentary may have had people rooting for Eilis.
Who can say if unconscious racial bias did or didn't play a part (who can say, it's unconscious), but the conscious part of my brain enjoyed the good battle and the familiar face known for gutsy front running finally nabbing a W after seeing her lose so often. She is clearly a lovely person so good for her!
Nobody is claiming that this championships measures up to Olympics, Worlds or even Euros, but as a stand alone race that was a good one!
The beauty of attributing something to unconscious bias is that even if the person you accuse of it says you're wrong you can continue claiming you're really correct. You're claiming to know more about another person than they know about themselves. Freud did that with his patients and lead to some devastating mistakes.
Yes of course that is true but then the beauty of your point is that unconscious bias can always be denied and then it as if it never exists. Well we know it does. It doesn’t make people evil at all. We all have some share of it. It is perfectly understandable BUT if the Kenyan had won there wouldn’t be much of a thread. We do know that.
Let's set aside the ignorance that assumes that every poster on let's run is American for one moment, along with the facts that Eilish McColgan has been racing for so many years at the top level that she is extremely well known all over the world, and has a famous athlete mother, I'm shocked but sadly not surprised to read yet another racist post on let's run and the success of an athlete being attacked for the colour of her skin. A white female athlete cannot do well without attracting these sort of posts of late. What are we meant to do? Stay silent whenever a white athlete wins or does well? To be Frank, the BBC does that already. You would honestly have thought yesterday in the heptathlon that there were no other British athletes challenging for the win...
In Europe, where I'm from, racism is defined to include nationality as well as race or ethnic origin. There's also a difference between direct and indirect racism. The anti-white posts on here fall into the latter category and are considered just as culpable as direct racism.
We all know that this is the way the US is going now - so many of you seem to want a race war as payback for your past but do certain posters really have to keep demonstrating your racism to the entire world? Every time a white British athlete does well, there are comments on here about their skin colour, appearance, etc - last week there was a comment asking whether "to be a British female 800m runner, do you have to be blond?" Obviously never heard of Kelly Holmes...imagine there being blond people in a northern European country...yet the same question is never asked eg for British 100m runners, who are predominately black.
Some of the worst racism I've ever seen in print related to Lynsey Sharp and her "white tears".
Pointing out the obvious again, in Europe we have many different countries and languages and racism is defined to include other features than skin colour. There is a criminal offence of aggravated racism and I think some of the posts on here, if they were made outwith the US, would probably reach that standard.
She ran 30:48 for the win and the Kenyan Irine Cheptai ran 30:49. Cheptai did win the World Cross Country Championship in 2017 but she is certainly not the cream of the crop in Kenya now so this win for Eilish, while nice, is not really that surprising. The field overall was just OK.
Well Kiprotich in 3rd has run 29:46 on the road and 64:xx half. That is way ahead of McColgan
I'm pretty sure most people were expecting the 2 Kenyans to outsprint her as well.
The winning time was actually pretty good when you take into account the slow first few laps
Can anyone tell me/us which ranked Kenyan athletes were contesting this 10k? 🤔 I assumed, with 4 laps to go and those 2 Kenyans loping along with the also ran McColgan of Eugene & othrr major races, that they were far from Kenya's finest. With a home crowd, it may rank as exciting...but amazing?! CONTEXT.