I’m a little confused on the broadness of the rules for this. Would running/leading the race on the outside of lane one not be impeding other runners and making them run extra distance? Does the rule only come into play going into the finish straight? Many points throughout the race you position yourself strategically to prevent others from simply passing by.
In case you missed it, Navasky Anderson of Miss State had a huge lead at the bell in the men's 800 at NCAAs but rigged up the last 100m and the final 50 was trying to hold off Yusuf Bizimana of Texas. Anderson veered out into lane 3 pretty suddenly to force Bizima wider.
Yelow flag is up.
Pretty sure this is going to be a DQ, but seriously why not allow that? I guess someone could get hurt but if Anderson had just stayed in his lane I think he still would have won. (If you veer wide that cost you distance just like it cost the guy behind you distance.)
I don’t think Anderson’s finish was an example of “great racing”. You even make an argument against this being a good race tactic in your own post by saying that veering as wide as he did made him run additional unneeded distance…
I think the ratio is trying to tell you something, Wejo. Somewhere in your post is a hint of a poignant observation, but you did not communicate it well.
Real men (and women) win by running faster than their competition, not impeding it. Confuses me why he decided to try and block 2nd place when he could’ve just won it fairly and honorably. Must’ve been that anaerobic head fog.
Well i think you hit on something. There is a thread every few weeks now on somebody running diagonally to block a runner. Once it starts, these new cultural norms start taking root until you nip it in the bud. Start DQ ing often during the regular seaon so everyone is warned come championship week. And so to, the 4x 4 folks seem to have zero coaching for the incoming runner all of the sudden. Get off the dam track stage left in 1, stay in your lane if in 2 or above. Why all these people handing off in an open exchange then turning 90 degrees across the track. Must have been 2 or 3 blocks in every heat. Get serious in regular season. Get coaches on board. Its not a new event.
This tactic has been going on for a long time but dramatically accelerated once video screens were placed at either end. It's an unintended consequence of the way tracks are shaped, where the majority of the audience sits, and therefore where the big screens are located. I wouldn't mind seeing those screens turned off during the final lap. Make them think and react on the fly.
Biathlon finishes are so awesome because the competitors have no idea where their competitors are. No screens. They get some gap reports from coaches along the way, otherwise it's instincts and all out sprint. Dorothea Wierer was so desperate to hold off the two French yesterday she was skiing well beyond her typical level.
Another unintended consequence of track placement is that sprinters often angle left while approaching the finish line, especially in the 100. They are so desperate to immediately see their finishing time on the little infield board they voluntarily run extra inches while veering left. Turning the head that way takes the body that way. Elaine Thompson-Herah in particular does this all the time during her peak races. I'm not sure if it costs her a full hundredth but it's definitely not maximizing.
53 years ago my first track coach sat us down on the infield and explained to us that, in the home stretch at the end of the race, we were to focus on the finish line and run straight there. He said that, for those of us who had a hard time running in a straight line, he would use white lime powder to paint straight lines on the home stretch before each meet. (This was of course an old-fashioned cinder track.
I’m a little confused on the broadness of the rules for this. Would running/leading the race on the outside of lane one not be impeding other runners and making them run extra distance?
Mu did exactly this at world champs and it almost came back to bite her when Keely started to kick on the inside. Mu drifted inwards, stifling Keely's kick but not blocking her entirely. Not a DQ on that occasion but I could see how DQs could apply even when drifting inwards. In short, at the finishing straight, run straight to the damn line.
I’m a little confused on the broadness of the rules for this. Would running/leading the race on the outside of lane one not be impeding other runners and making them run extra distance?
Mu did exactly this at world champs and it almost came back to bite her when Keely started to kick on the inside. Mu drifted inwards, stifling Keely's kick but not blocking her entirely. Not a DQ on that occasion but I could see how DQs could apply even when drifting inwards. In short, at the finishing straight, run straight to the damn line.
I am not sure I have ever seen anyone get DQed for like a quarter lane of drift. That is what makes the inside pass so risky. Plenty of people go a step wide off the curve. Lots of them then take a step towards the inside in the straight away..