Webb is PISSED!

I guess no one has ever run a race and gotten upset. Heck I have said way worse.

It seems to me he was regretting running the race, because inside he didn't feel ready.

My question is why on lets run do we treat America's best runners as if they are a hated pro team. Some on here sound like Red Sox fans talking about the Yankees.

micky wrote:

He Webb become just another 3:55 miler. Does the 3:46 webb still exist.

Yawn . . . here we go again. One or two good races from him and you fickle little weenies will be off and wanking again.

Still waiting on the brojos explanation of Webb's tantrum...

Same here....

Im also suprised nobody has brought this up but according to this article Webb had only one workout in which he based his readiness to run Boston.

http://www.oregonlive.com/trackandfield/index.ssf/2011/02/oregon_track_field_rundown_ala.html

Salazar also noted that Webb has been having problems living up to people's expectations.

He was clearly not ready after coming back from the flu.

I'll echo the comments here that Webb could relax a bit more. This could be a root cause of some poor training decisions - impatience, frustration leading to over training, negative thinking, injury and the cycle repeats. It's hardly a new idea. I continue to root for him and hope he finds his legs.

bobby e. wrote:

"As a fan" you're interested in "what's next given where he's at now," but you turn up your nose when he gives a longer, more honest interview than 99% of professional athletes ever do?

Why don't you do yourself a favor and stick to official press-release boilerplate?

Alan was grateful to have been given the chance to compete at the 2011 New Balance Indoor Grand Prix on February 5th at the Reggie Lewis Center on the campus of Roxbury Community College in Boston, Massachusetts. He looks forward to his next competition, the 2011 Flotrack Husky Classic, to be held February 11-12 at the University of Washington's Dempsey Indoor Facility in Seattle.

Does that meet your standards of professionalism? Does it get you excited about Alan again?

(That's not a real press release. He's probably not racing next weekend. But you get the point.)

I'm a fan of the sport, not Webb in particular. His interview was not professional. If you don't get that, compare to the interviews given by Manzano or even Verzbicas after the race.

funny. I half expected Webb to do the t&f version of "PLAYOFFS!?...PLAYOFFS??...ARE YOU KIDDING ME? PLAYOFFS?"

Truthfully, it's great to see someone drop the "professional" act and act like a human being. I think it's great for the sport of track and field. If a football player acted visibly upset after losing a playoff game, no one would think that was weird, or unprofessional. It's not like Alan was in somebody's face or talking smack about someone (although that too would be entertaining). We need to make track more interesting to the general public. Trash talking, emotions, etc. is exactly what we need. No one tunes into sports to watch being behave diplomatically.

ITBS wrote:

Webb will be ok. He'll figure it out. Everyone goes through their tough phase as a runner. Maybe some don't. But I think the many that do find their true potential.

I do think he is overthinking however, and needs to know that he did just have the flu. Running isn't that complicated, keep it simple Webb, you've GOT the fitness just because you won't win it doesn't mean you aren't as fit as the others.

I think by now he should have it figured out. His tough phase is lasting quite a while.

I think he is done.

I think the major problem with Webb's career (and I don't think he has ever reached his tru potential) is that he did not have the kind of coach he needed when he was younger.

I love Webb - I wish he would get back to 3:46 shape and start kicking butt. But, he has never seemed to want to put in the discipline needed to reach his full potential. For quite a while, he was living in an apartment where he grew up in Reston, Va with his high school buddy eating pizzas. He needed discipline more than anything.

Unfortunately, I don't think Salazar will help him any. Webb needs a coach that's 100% focused on the mile. Webb would be better served by a European coach (go ahead flame me I don't care).

Replying to my own post -- I watched that video of Webb and there was nothing wrong with that -- he's clearly disappointed, as anyone would be. Get off his back -- including me!

malmo wrote:

Wow. You freaking inexperienced kids hang on to the results of every race, every written interview, every spoken interview, and either read into things the end of the world, or the greatest runner that ever lived.

I didn't see anything other than a guy voicing his frustrations over losing some sharpness over the last month because of a niggle and sickness. This doesn't even come close to appearing on my radar as a matter of importance. This isn't his first bad day, and it sure as hell won't be his last.

Nothing here to see. Move along.

Agreed.

wow. just watched this. The guy scares me, seems a little bit off, almost psychopathic? probably just extremely nerdy

This dude is way too emotional. Kids see him as a role model and he's acting like a baby. Blaming someone else for cutting him off - guess what Webb: that's racing!

So damn tired of watching this Alan Webb soap opera for the past 10 years. Webb: Just hang up the cleats or move up in distance because you have more disappointments coming for you if you think you can just run away from your competition. Especially when German comes onto the Pro scene.

I remember before hurting his back Don Mattingly was a sold .325 hitter. However after the injury he became a mere moral and batted .270. Webb for now has dropped down with the 3:55 - 4:00 crowd. This is not a bad place to be if you are Jason Lunn and Gabe Jenning, but Webb is much better than this. Still, 99% here will never run 3:55 so why criticize Webb.

Webb has certainly had a soap opera-like career.

Laws of averages say Webb should follow Scott and Spivey and at least break 3:50 5 to 8 more times in his career. Spivey ran 3:49 at age 30, and shows Webb still has time. Ok, I know Falcon only broke 3:50 once back in 1991.

I thought Webb's interview was very honest. He let us peer into his psyche.

I am completely confused by all the posts regarding Webb's interview. I saw absolutely nothing wrong with it and I was impressed that he was willing to talk to the guy for as long as he did, especially because the same type of questions kept getting asked over and over.

Webb was frustrated, he knew he shouldn't have raced and he said so. I kept watching the video waiting for this tantrum that the OP and the brojo's were talking about and I never saw it. I had zero problem with his interview and I guess now I understand some of the frustration that Alan must be feeling all these years, to have such a big deal made out of everything he does. Everyone wants to beat him down for nothing and rarely give him any support.

Alan, sorry you have to deal with all this crap. You shouldn't have raced Saturday and now you just need to get back to work, which you already know. Good luck.

he was emotional and upset and did an interview. while he didn't seem professional who gives a crap. if he had been "professional" about it he wouldn't have given an interview when he's very emotional after a bad race just as he wants to begin his comeback after years of injury and setback. so if he was acting professionally we wouldn't have gotten to hear him talk about his race or training or thoughts at all.

think about his career, he comes out of high school with the biggest hype of any runner since Ryun, and having dropped his mile time by 10 seconds in one year to 3:53! if things go according to plan he should be up there with the best in the world by the time he's 20 and should have a full decade of running at the top of the world breaking records, winning medals, etc.

but instead he gets injured during track freshman year of college, turns pro, but the next year for whatever reason is several seconds off his high school PR. Next year he finally gets going and is back on the scene, he just lost two years! the next year 2005 he's doing really well, finally up there with the best in the world. 2006 runs a great 10k and shows his unreal range, then gets hurt and loses that season. Next year he has an allstar year, top middle distance runner in the world all year but then he falls flat in the final 100m at worlds(peaked too early?), but got the Mile AR that year. So its been 6 years since high school and he finally has his first year when he is starting to reach his potential and is just beginning to enter his "prime years" of running. then whatever happened in 2008 screws him up, 2009 he's injured, 2010 he's injured and just barely starts a comeback at the end of the season. does a few months of good base training then comes into his first indoor race ready to start on the second phase of his career after 3 years of setback during what should have been his prime. but he has a hamstring issue, gets the flu, loses a little fitness, and has a bad race.

after all he's been through and having the loftiest expectations on him for the past 10 years, i'd give him a break if he's upset after this last race. if he runs another mile in a few weeks he'll probably run like 3 or 4 seconds faster, so its not a big deal, but give the guy a break.

also i find it funny when people say he isn't committed to being the best he can be. if you knew him you would laugh at yourself. he's the most ridiculously dedicated runner i've ever known.

sorry for the long post.

His intensity is his fire. And we all know what happens (over and over in Webb's case) to those that play with fire.

Maybe Salazar can help him overcome his impulses, but it's getting late....

What is going on in these pictures? Seriously, why would he look like that before a race?

http://www.letsrun.com/photos/2011/nbin

... mage17.php

http://www.letsrun.com/photos/2011/nbindoor/imagepages/image16.php