This thread was initially titled, "Sydney McLaughlin Brussels 400/200". Update on 9/4. The Diamond League will NOT let Sydney run as explained here: https://www.letsrun.com/news/2...
"A global wild card athlete must have competed in at least one Diamond League meeting in the course of the season, and must fulfil at least one of the following criteria in their chosen discipline:"
That's copy pasted from the DL website.
I guess I'd care more if she was bumping out an athlete who really deserved to be there, but if I'm looking at it correctly it will be Talitha Diggs (400) and Jenna Prandini (200) who will maybe be out. The 200 notably won't have Alfred (if she's running DL Final, it's probably 100m only) and Thomas (all attention to Athlos), and the 400 won't have Kaczmarek (said Silesia was it for her). The 200 especially could use more star power as it stands.
The rules were changed and updated this year. You are not looking at the right set.
Page 9: Section 4.5 states that someone who is either the WR holder or Olympic Champion or the World Champion can receive a global bye. SML is therefore eminently qualified.
I'm thrilled SML is doing this. The 400 instantly becomes one of the must-watch events of the DL final and it's even better than she's doubling up.
That said, the DL rules specifically say that in order to be awarded a "Global Wild Card" for the final (which is what is happening here), an athlete must have competed in at least one Diamond League competition this year, which SML clearly has not. Best thing for the sport here is for SML to run in the meet, but the entire point of having a rule like that is to prevent what SML is doing -- skipping the entire season and then showing up to the final on a whim. What is the point of having a rule like that if you're not going to enforce it?
You are looking at the wrong rule. The rules were updated this year.
Page 9: Section 4.5 states that someone who is either the WR holder or Olympic Champion or the World Champion can receive a global bye. SML is therefore eminently qualified.
I'm kind of stunned by this. This is TOTALLY against DL rules which state to be eligible for a wild-card, you have to run a DL regular season meet. So you make an exception for someone who is going to be the face of a rival track league?
It makes me wonder if Brussels is going to be part of Grand Slam Track in 2025. Thoughts?
Well, the rule says: To be eligible and considered for a Global Wild Card athletes must: "be placed...in the top 20 of the overall World Rankings." Is it possible the two times she has run this year (200: 22.07; 400: 48.75), as times go, are within the top 20 times run this season?
I could see the Diamond League looking for a way to let these times count.
There is no need. SML qualifies being the WR holder or the Olympic champion.
The interesting thing in the 200m Standings is it looks like Gabby Thomas doesn't have a spot but I would expect Richardson and Jackson to not run it. For the 400m standings it seems fair to give Sydney the entry though you could argue Amber Anning for the Wildcard. It does look like she would get the bye to Worlds if she wins. I don't know if she can beat Paulino though. If Gabby isn't in the 200 then I think only Brown could beat her(assuming Jackson is still hurt/season over). Personally I'd like Gabby to get the 200m bye so she can worry about only peaking at Worlds which she isn't the best at.
Sydney can beat Paulino and probably will. That's the entire point of this trip. Paulino won't be at her best. You can already see that in her most recent race. Still very good but the trend line is down. It will almost certainly be down again in the Diamond League final. She won't be motivated or fresh enough to take it very fast, which is what enabled the 48.17.
This is extremely strategic. Sydney and her camp know they will get credit for resuming racing instead of packing it in like always. That's fair. She has enough star power to deflect any rule. That's not fair but nobody should be surprised.
The gross injustice of this race will be all the wrongful backfitting. If Sydney wins, as I suspect, then one fan after another -- along with media members -- will use the result to insist Sydney could have successfully doubled in Paris if she wanted to. That is crap. Nobody was running 6 consecutive days at 400 and 400 hurdles, let alone finishing it off with sub 48.17. But the public is remarkably stupid and gullible, especially when given fresh material.
Prior to Paris I posted on several sites that Sydney could use the anchor leg of the mixed relay to deflect from the Paris 400 flat result and lead fans to insist she could have doubled. Instead she found another way to do it.
I'm thrilled SML is doing this. The 400 instantly becomes one of the must-watch events of the DL final and it's even better than she's doubling up.
That said, the DL rules specifically say that in order to be awarded a "Global Wild Card" for the final (which is what is happening here), an athlete must have competed in at least one Diamond League competition this year, which SML clearly has not. Best thing for the sport here is for SML to run in the meet, but the entire point of having a rule like that is to prevent what SML is doing -- skipping the entire season and then showing up to the final on a whim. What is the point of having a rule like that if you're not going to enforce it?
You are looking at the wrong rule. The rules were updated this year.
Page 9: Section 4.5 states that someone who is either the WR holder or Olympic Champion or the World Champion can receive a global bye. SML is therefore eminently qualified.
The exact wording of the rule from section 4.5 is below. There are two different requirements, one being to have competed in a Diamond League meeting. There is not an "and" or an "or" between the two requirements. It seems pretty clear to me that "and" is what is meant there, but it would be clearer if they had just included the word "and."
To be eligible and considered for a Global Wild Card athletes must: o have either competed and achieved a result in at least one Diamond League meeting during the season or competed and got injured at a Diamond League Meeting; o be placed in the top 5 World Rankings of their discipline, or in the top 20 of the overall World Rankings, or be the current World Record Holder, or the current Olympic/ World / Diamond League champion;
I'm thrilled SML is doing this. The 400 instantly becomes one of the must-watch events of the DL final and it's even better than she's doubling up.
That said, the DL rules specifically say that in order to be awarded a "Global Wild Card" for the final (which is what is happening here), an athlete must have competed in at least one Diamond League competition this year, which SML clearly has not. Best thing for the sport here is for SML to run in the meet, but the entire point of having a rule like that is to prevent what SML is doing -- skipping the entire season and then showing up to the final on a whim. What is the point of having a rule like that if you're not going to enforce it?
You are looking at the wrong rule. The rules were updated this year.
Page 9: Section 4.5 states that someone who is either the WR holder or Olympic Champion or the World Champion can receive a global bye. SML is therefore eminently qualified.
Except McLaughlin is neither WR holder, Olympic or World Champion in the 200/400. They are clearly bending the rules to enable McLaughlin to compete without meeting the standards and competing in her non-specialty events.
They need to close that loophole. The whole point of qualifying for the final is to encourage athletes to participate in Diamond League.
In most years, you could really give SML a harder time as she skipped Pre and barely raced in general. The fact is, the Pre Classic this year for whatever reason didn't have any of the events she runs in it. No 200, 400 or 400H. She ran in the big World Athletics Label events (NYC, LA) in the US, and with pretty good frequency. I obviously would like if she would race in Europe before and after the Olympics, but her competition schedule before Paris made a lot of sense and there was no domestic DL opportunity.
You are looking at the wrong rule. The rules were updated this year.
Page 9: Section 4.5 states that someone who is either the WR holder or Olympic Champion or the World Champion can receive a global bye. SML is therefore eminently qualified.
Except McLaughlin is neither WR holder, Olympic or World Champion in the 200/400. They are clearly bending the rules to enable McLaughlin to compete without meeting the standards and competing in her non-specialty events.
In the second clause of the requirement, you need to be (a) top 5 in world rankings of their discipline, (b) top 20 of the overall world rankings, or (c) the current WR holder or current Olympic / World / Diamond League champion.
It looks like Sydney is currently ranked 9th in the overall world rankings, so she does meet that requirement (please correct me if I'm wrong about her position in the world rankings).
Although I don't think it matters since she's top 20 in the overall rankings, it's not clear to me that you need to be the WR holder or Olympic/World champ in the event you are competing in (as opposed to a WR holder / champ in some event). I think it probably is meant that you need to be the WR holder / champ in that specific event and that the words "of their discipline" at the start of that clause also modify the rest of the clause and refer to the event you'll be competing in, but I think this language is even more confusing than the other point we're debating on whether there should be an "and" or an "or" between the two requirements.
If she wanted to run and the officials let the rules keep her from doing it, it'd be like how the officials screwed athletes and the sport back in amateur days. She's good for the sport.
The rules were changed and updated this year. You are not looking at the right set.
Page 9: Section 4.5 states that someone who is either the WR holder or Olympic Champion or the World Champion can receive a global bye. SML is therefore eminently qualified.
She's not the WR holder or Olympic champion in the 200 or 400. Or does this rule mean they could stick Ryan Crouser into the 5000?
IF she were breaking the rules and was given a 'pass', I'd be pissed as hell if she was in my event and taking money out of my pocket.
The Diamond League regulations include the language below, so I don't think she's directly taking money from anyone.
• If granted a Global Wild Card, the athlete will not be eligible to receive Prize Money or the Wild Card for World Championships scheduled to be held in the same year but instead may be offered a special promotional fee.
The interesting thing in the 200m Standings is it looks like Gabby Thomas doesn't have a spot but I would expect Richardson and Jackson to not run it. For the 400m standings it seems fair to give Sydney the entry though you could argue Amber Anning for the Wildcard. It does look like she would get the bye to Worlds if she wins. I don't know if she can beat Paulino though. If Gabby isn't in the 200 then I think only Brown could beat her(assuming Jackson is still hurt/season over). Personally I'd like Gabby to get the 200m bye so she can worry about only peaking at Worlds which she isn't the best at.
Sydney can beat Paulino and probably will. That's the entire point of this trip. Paulino won't be at her best. You can already see that in her most recent race. Still very good but the trend line is down. It will almost certainly be down again in the Diamond League final. She won't be motivated or fresh enough to take it very fast, which is what enabled the 48.17.
This is extremely strategic. Sydney and her camp know they will get credit for resuming racing instead of packing it in like always. That's fair. She has enough star power to deflect any rule. That's not fair but nobody should be surprised.
The gross injustice of this race will be all the wrongful backfitting. If Sydney wins, as I suspect, then one fan after another -- along with media members -- will use the result to insist Sydney could have successfully doubled in Paris if she wanted to. That is crap. Nobody was running 6 consecutive days at 400 and 400 hurdles, let alone finishing it off with sub 48.17. But the public is remarkably stupid and gullible, especially when given fresh material.
Prior to Paris I posted on several sites that Sydney could use the anchor leg of the mixed relay to deflect from the Paris 400 flat result and lead fans to insist she could have doubled. Instead she found another way to do it.
Anyone paying attention can see how this works: Sydney doesn't attend many gunfights but when she does, she doesn't come with a knife.
Except McLaughlin is neither WR holder, Olympic or World Champion in the 200/400. They are clearly bending the rules to enable McLaughlin to compete without meeting the standards and competing in her non-specialty events.
This is really just a reflection of the world as a whole. There have always been a different set of rules for the stars of any endeavor. Like it or not, deep down everyone knows this is true. At the end of the day, the DL exists as an entertainment business. They are delivering on that by making a must watch race. A race that I might have otherwise fast forwarded over.
The rules were changed and updated this year. You are not looking at the right set.
Page 9: Section 4.5 states that someone who is either the WR holder or Olympic Champion or the World Champion can receive a global bye. SML is therefore eminently qualified.
She's not the WR holder or Olympic champion in the 200 or 400. Or does this rule mean they could stick Ryan Crouser into the 5000?
I think the better reading of the regulations is that they do require you to be WR holder / Olympic Champ in the event you'll be competing in, but I think they aren't clearly written on that point. But, under that prong you can also be eligible if you're top 20 in the overall world rankings (which if I understand it correctly is not event specific) - so using that criteria they could have Ryan Crouser in the 5000. Of course they never would do that - really this all just making me think it's silly for the Diamond League to have regulations about this kind of thing at all, these regulations aren't a contract that another party can enforce, they only matter as much as the Diamond League wants them to matter.