USATF NAMES P DIDDY ATHLETE OF THE WEEK - WHAT A JOKE!

Anyone who uses running to raise $2 million for worthy causes deserves the award. Even if he doesn't technically qualify, I would think that most should be able to approve of the moral reasoning behind the choice.

I guess I am realistic and expect that running will always take a back seat to all other sports. Just take a look around you in the general population; most people are grossly out of shape. I pretty much like the sport the way it is. It sort of makes a person a little unique to go out and run a ten-mile run every day like it is no big deal. I take an exception to you using Lebow et al., they are in the hall of fame for their contributions, but I don't think anyone would go so far as to call them athlete of the week or year etc. This was the wrong award for Diddy. They need to give him something else rather than disrespect real athletes doing amazing things. Again, I don't really care because I am pretty much in my own little running world and it does not matter to me what the organizations are doing.

One thing people forget is that the slower runners suffer almost twice as long as the elites. I would say he P Diddy did great in his own way. I am sure George Sheenan would agree if he was alive today

Someone at USATF please tell me that whoever might be voting for the USATF Athlete of the Week is using THG, because at the very least they are under the influence of something in order to come to such a blatantly stupid conclusion in naming P. Diddy as USATF Athlete of the week. Was this about bringing attention to track & field at any cost, even if it means giving the award to someone who has trained for less than 3 months?

Here is a so-called artist who uses other hit songs to create new songs to bring attention to himself. Now this so-called runner uses an already established race to bring attention to himself. Let me get my pliers, so that I can remove the fishing hook lodged in your cheek, because you bit harder than a starving pit-bull.

The money he raised is only going to go back into his pocket as he siphons every penny out of the inner city and suburban kids who purchase his overpriced garments and compact discs.

This marathon/publicity stunt was clearly done to help bolster his struggling image. He even changed his name from Puff Daddy to P. Diddy to help people forget that under the former name he was caught with a loaded gun while fleeing the police.

Perhaps if Colin Ferguson (Long Island Railroad gunman) changed his name and used running to raise money for kids, you would vote him USATF Athlete of the Week. Heck, I'm sure you would.

So, I expect not to see anyone questioning why track & field is going into the "crapper." With awards going to publicity whores like Puff Daddy, Sean Puffy Combs, P. Diddy or whatever he is calling himself this week, folks like Gail Devers and Natasha Hastings, who are recipients of this award as well, can just toss it out because the USATF Athlete of the Week has become meaningless.

I am die hard about running just like all of you but ever think that maybe he got the honor not because he is fast but for his reasons of running it for the children and stuff?

Rookie Runner wrote:

One thing people forget is that the slower runners suffer almost twice as long as the elites. I would say he P Diddy did great in his own way. I am sure George Sheenan would agree if he was alive today

Awards are not handed out to those who suffer the most. Also, slower runners suffer longer during the race but faster runners suffer longer the other 364 days of the year while training much harder. I think the faster runners are probably running at a higher intensity, so they are probably suffering more anyway. Who can hold 85-87% max HR for 4 1/2 hours?

USATF Master Champ is right. This clown Diddy doesn't care about T & F. The closeset thing he cares about is T & A! Changing his image will help him maintain his bevy of "bitches and hoes."

I hope he proves me wrong. I can only hope that in 5 years, Diddy has run 3 more marathons, along with a slew of road races, bring attention to the entire sport of running. I am also hoping Santa brings me a shiny new bike this year!

People, a true philanthropist doesn't seek publicity. They just donate! Diddy was on more newscasts and had more wardrobe changes than Justin Timberlake. He even shaved his head in the last 10 days to keep the media asking questions. This is clearly someone who is and was looking to elevate his image from the "gangsta" rapper he is and was known as.

The people finding sympathy for him are exactly what his publicist and manager are looking for. Consider that the average career span of a "gangsta" rapper is 1 album or 2 to 3 years, Diddy desperately needed a change. Thus, the several name changes and this running stunt.

He has made a joke out of the sport. Most people are not going to head out and buy running shoes because Diddy has motivated them to do it. On the contrary, they will save there money, so that they can buy his new cd, becasuse he is such a wonderful "thug."

Will Farrel has run several marathons. His times are faster than Diddy. He weighs more than Diddy. He speaks about running in a positive manner. Why not give it to Mr. Farrel? Because it just goesn't make sense!! And it doesn't make sense to give it to Diddy.

Maybe if we just ignore Diddy, he will go away. It seems to have worked for track & field.

I know, I know..mucho spelling errors....it's early people.

who got passed up for the award? matt downin f***ing sucked, marla runyan sucked all the elites f***ing blew at new york. i don't know if p. diddy deserved it but he sure brought more positive attention to the sport than anyone else last week. performance wasn't too bad off of 8 weeks training and a bum knee either.

a great gesture should have been made in another way. there is no denying how much money he raised, that is great, but it had nothing to doo with his abilities and everything to do with his popularity as a rapper (with nothing but the best messages for our youth in his lyrics - "f*** those bitches....etc")

leave The Source Awards to give him some recognition

Diddy didn't simply run a 4:14 marathon...he brought attention to his cause, spoke repeatedly of how running a marathon has been a life changing experience for him, talked about how good it feels to be just running outside, etc.

In short, he's done more for the sport this week than any American has done in the last several months...he's brought positive attention to it.

You guys are always complaining about the state of American distance running, and then when a person (who is unquestionably more looked up to by youth than anyone in our sport) tells people how great it is to run a marathon, all you guys can do is bitch about him. What a bunch of f***ing losers you the negative posters are.

But, then again, all of you must have put forth some truly incredible performance this week that were simply overlooked.

Some people here demonstrate an uncanny inability to distinguish between athletic accomplishment and a fundamentally positive contribution to the sport and to society. The f***er ran 4:14. That's all you need to know.

What a double standard. I bet many of the same people avidly defending P. Diddy's willing the AOTW award are among the first to rip into penguins, charity runners, etc. What's the difference, besides the dollar amount P. Diddy raised, between what he did and what TNT types do? Pure hype and that's it. It sure as hell isn't fleetness of foot. And some of you swallow it hook, line and sinker.

I think it's cool what he did. But he's no accomplished athlete.

chuck d wrote:

matt downin f***ing sucked...

Really?? I suppose you have your A qualifier?

chuck d wrote:

i don't know if p. diddy deserved it but he sure brought more positive attention to the sport than anyone else last week.

Really?? Anything you want to say about all the negative attention he's brought about?

He COMPLETED a marathon! So did many, many other people. Yeah he "raised" money but only because people need a stupid stunt like this to make them DONATE money. He could have easily put up 5 mil of his own but I guess then he wouldn't have gotten as much publicity and a tv show. Now I still think it was a good thing to do on his part, but that doesn't make him a damn saint.

But back to the orginal point. He trained for 8 weeks with a huge entourage and NIKE tending to his every need. He completed the race in a slowish time. ATHLETE of the week, you gotta be f***ing kiddin me.

what does his f***in weight have to do with him being nominated athlete of the week. The point is that it is bullshit that he was nominated athlete of the week. Give it to someone who actally trains for the marathon not some god damn f***in rapper who suddenly decided to run it.

'the truth':

Are you Ernsberger? Or Tim Ross from Caledonia?

There are only two people who went 14:18.4 last year. Neither of them have run 1:49 either. So you're lying about some of it, or all of it. Go ahead and prove that you are not.

I chose to take the high road and stop replying to your illiterate rants, especially after I saw how riled up you got from what I said. I also ignored your stupid threats. Give me a chance to keep ignoring it, and quit calling me a peice of shit.

If you want to keep this up and make it personal, go ahead, but email me and NOT THE MESSAGE BOARD. I'm tough enough to give you my home address and my email address. Something you won't do. If you need to keep calling me names send it right to me, because nobody else is interested.

Something to think about:

Look over your posts, you refer to ?you? or ?yours? (meaning Brian Mcewen) 38 times in just this stuff ? you use the words: ?prejudice asshole? (SIC), ?you racist piece of shit?, ?you are a f***ing moron?, ?you f***er?, ?you are racist pigs?, ?Assholes?, ?You still suck?, ?bring it there bitch?, ?Look asswipe?, ?dickheads??

We both have more important things to do than read this anymore. It boils down to only that you admire the man and I do not. Don?t assume that you KNOW WHY I don?t admire him. I didn?t speculate as to why you admire him. And I haven't specualted about you, your intelligence or your character.

And I am not going to threaten you, but I won't take that garbage you keep me giving lightly. Be careful what you wish for ... you don't know me at all ... and you just might get it.

Brian McEwen wrote:

There are only two people who went 14:18.4 last year...

...I chose to take the high road and stop replying to your illiterate rants...

Something to think about:

Look over your posts, you refer to ?you? or ?yours? (meaning Brian Mcewen) 38 times in just this stuff ? you use the words: ?prejudice asshole? (SIC), ?you racist piece of shit?, ?you are a f***ing moron?, ?you f***er?, ?you are racist pigs?, ?Assholes?, ?You still suck?, ?bring it there bitch?, ?Look asswipe?, ?dickheads??

Once again you make yourself look stupid. What makes you think I ran 14:18 last year??

I love the fact that you reply to my "illiterate rant" by relying to my illiterate rant.

And you look really stupid for going back and finding all those things in my post.

You don't scare me and you are a f***ing racist idiot.

kohlberg wrote:

Diddy didn't simply run a 4:14 marathon...he brought attention to his cause, spoke repeatedly of how running a marathon has been a life changing experience for him, talked about how good it feels to be just running outside, etc.

In short, he's done more for the sport this week than any American has done in the last several months...he's brought positive attention to it.

You guys are always complaining about the state of American distance running, and then when a person (who is unquestionably more looked up to by youth than anyone in our sport) tells people how great it is to run a marathon, all you guys can do is bitch about him. What a bunch of f***ing losers you the negative posters are.

But, then again, all of you must have put forth some truly incredible performance this week that were simply overlooked.

Great post, finally something positive on here. You are the worst bunch of kids (CHILDREN) I've ever seen. I hope all of you wimpering boys are in middle school because it will make more since. You guys are a bunch of crying, opininated idiots. Sorry, that was uncalled for you are entitled to your opinion no matter how stupid it may be! It was a great gesture by USATF for someone doing a great community service using our sport as a vehicle.....live with it!!!!! Stop crying, train harder, and win some races!

Thank you

Hilarious to see this 21 years later.