'nuff said wrote:
'nuff said.
'I am "the woman" who was shoved by Blair Cullen. I am also the woman who remembers a great race with my friends Charles and Dan. I am also the woman that asked for nothing to happen to this man when both Toughman and USAT race organizers asked me for a statement this week not just based on these photos, but also based on several spectators that told them about the story (none of whom I knew).
After several emails and phone calls this week by both Toughman and USAT, I decided to take the high road and asked them to please let this go and not do anything. That doesn't mean I don't think he was wrong -- a bruise and scratch on the left side of my back were there to prove he was. I just see him exactly the way I see most egocentric individuals who view life through their singular lens of narcissism. Despite that, it doesn't mean I wanted him to suffer. I teach my kids that two wrongs don't make a right, and that forgiveness and compassion are much better choices than vindication and retribution. That is how I truly feel and I don't even drive a prius with an Obama sticker on it! I was simply aiming for maturity, empathy (even for ), and a desire to remember what, for me, was an incredibly fun and enjoyable race.
I intentionally asked both the Toughman committee and the USAT committee NOT to penalize him too severely. I told them that I was indeed in the wrong backing into the finishing lane having crossed the line to kiss my family and friends who drove up to see me, as well as get my watch from my husband who then took a photo. However we were nowhere near the finishing chute and indeed there were several feet around us with not a single other person in either lane. According to the Commissioner of the USAT and most of the normal people who compete in these races, stopping to high five a friend, kiss a family member or take a photo are par for the course. The normal people are what keep these races alive. It's also standard to use your voice (not your body) to someone in your way and say "get out of my way." Apparently this is the 3rd time in 27 years that a man has touched a woman's body in order to complete a triathlon race. Not surprisingly, the first two times (both of which were over 10 years ago) garnered sincere apologies from the runner admitting a poor decision "in the moment."
I told the committees this past week that I forgave his actions, choosing to believe that sometimes people make decisions in a harried moment. I believed that since a rewind button is not possible he must have, in his narcissistic goal to achieve some piece of hardware, simply made a mistake.
His unapologetic letter back to Toughman after learning he was disqualified only showed the USAT that his ego is more important that being human. I wasn't even looking for an apology but it would have been nice to receive one, Here is my apology: Blair (or "anonymous"), I am sorry I backpeddled into your lane as I kissed my family and got back into the race. I do these races for very different reasons than you do, and according the USAT, I am with the majority. I asked the USAT not to mandate what they will - and then they actually asked me why I had to be "so nice" and "so forgiving". I clearly moved on but this sadly won't go away. At the end of the day, one little word would have solved this problem. '
