Kara Goucher’s announcing

Agreed. Those two guys were really good. It's unfortunate that the vast majority of American runners they were commentating on were not good at all.

Many times in recent years I've bemoaned that guys like that aren't handling the roles now. But Kara is markedly superior to many who came before her.

It's true that she has a race scenario in mind beforehand and sometimes doesn't adjust quick enough. But that aspect has improved also. Early years she wouldn't adapt at all.

Don't waste time with guys in the back like Beamish. That would be my advice. He received far too much spotlight on Sunday. I have no idea why Americans are so mesmerized by that style. There is absolutely zero need to focus on them or pan back there. Either they'll do absolutely nothing or you have plenty of time to catch them once they finall start trying.

She's not there to be the color commentator. She's there as the resident distance expert and she does little to convey any expertise about the competitors or what is happening in the event she's supposedly an expert on.

I am not a fan of Kara. Way to stereotypically woke, but I admit she does a decent job doing the commentaries. I just laugh when she chooses to us They/Them when Nikki is racing.

I just watched the Flocast video of the recent mens mile race at BU. I don't know the name of the announcer, but he's so much better than the NBC people. He's knowledgeable but he doesn't feel the urge to talk constantly throughout the race.

this. there are far worse for sure. i get that she has to appeal to the masses, but i wish she--or other track commentators--wouldn't shy away from also calling it like it is. troy aikman does this well for football. don't be afraid to criticize a move or tactic, no matter who it is, and definitely don't praise EVERY tactic (this may be her biggest failing), especially when it's really too early to call anyway. she seems to point out a mid-race "great move, he/she looks relaxed," only to see it completely fail. an example at millrose was her praise of sinclaire johnson, whom i thought did NOT look calm while leading (and generally never does). i was surprised kara couldn't see that either...

She's not as bad as some of the commentators I've seen over the years who really sucked, but that's not saying much.

I've seen multiple occasions when she was blabbing about something irrelevant and then there was a breakaway in a race and she just goes on blabbing as though she isn't even watching the race.

I haven’t seen Leigh Diffey commentate a race for a very long time now, does anyone know what happened? Did NBC finally give him the boot??

Oof

I don't mind anyone wanting their own pronoun. Go for it. Lets make one up. But stop using a plural for one human, it's distracting and i think she is referring to something about the filed then I realize she is talking about Hiltz. The whole non binary community should realize this makes them look silly and draws negative attention.

I had a (non-runner) friend visiting and we watched Millrose - when Kara got going he said “she’s talking faster than they’re running!” It was not a compliment.

Wrong. Announcers with emotion are what make announcing great. That’s why Tom Hamilton is the best in baseball. Without emotion, they are just duds and boring

From the BYU website...

Pronounced: "Head-in-grin"

For some reason that's too difficult for professional commentators.

100%. If it's the very end of the olympic final and it's an exceptional race: by all means, yell. That type of situation warrants it. When the commentator is yelling for every single race it is tiresome. And it's only exacerbated by the fact that the words being yelled are so repetitive and meaningless - for example "oh my he is running so hard right now look at that stride he is really trying to run hard now!"

Dwight Stones and Larry Rawson have entered the chat. They all get the dunce hats for worst and most annoying commentator - I'm okay making it a three-way tie with Leigh Diffy.

Bring back RG3!

I actually have worked on a production team for NBC (different sport, but also one considered 'niche') and the brief for the announcers is absolutely to dumb it down. They're constantly told about how 'someone's grandma who knows nothing about the sport' could be running in at any time. The announcers find it incredibly frustrating too! Obviously they want to get into the details (that us fact finders are providing!) But they really are stifled

Read my post again!

I never implied that announcers shouldn't have emotion. My post said that commentating (it's not announcing), is a skill/talent. Good commentators provide an informational verbal picture of what is being shown, while at the same time expressing the appropriate emotion. Screaming, yelling, and being out of breath is over the top and annoying when not properly inserted into the commentary. For example, when commentating on an event which involves a "build up", such as a race which takes X amount of minutes to complete depending on the race, the tone needs to be even and calm in the early stages. As the race progresses, then a slow build of emotion is appropriate. As the race nears it's conclusion, again there needs to be an uptick emotion within reason, and depending on the finish of the race the appropriate emotion is shown. If it's a meet and or world record, then yes, a loud emotional announcement can be made...A NEW WORLD RECORD!!! AMAZING RACE!!!..etc.... Again, commentating is a skill/talent, and Kara is mediocre at best.

I am the opposite. I think Des comes off as your friend who happens to be a world class runner, who you could be sitting around having a beer talking running. Kara, often times, acts like a middle school girl, giggly, overeotional about everything. I have turned off many an episode when she takes over.

1/10 not today troll