Wejo's Post-Race Tantrum

A few points for those of you who did not read the article to closely.

The interview posted with Webb from Flotrack was one hour after his race. It is not the incident we are referring to. There is no video of the tantrum. I believe Tom, Emory and Jess were the only people to see the entire thing but I know other people saw parts of it. A guy from Flotrack was there for at least part of it. Emory later said to him, "did you record that?" and the guy said something along the lines of "No. We don't film stuff like that. If we did he wouldn't talk to us again."

As far as Haile G goes, Emory saw both incidents. He felt they were completely different things. I saw the Haile G incident. Super emotional - yes. Letting the performance affect your behavior like Webb- yes. A tantrum no.

As far as reporting inaccurately what we saw, all I have seen is some guy posted that we got some of the post-race workout wrong. We attempted to email Alberto on whether it was planned or not. The description of the workout is rather dry rereading it. If there is something we need to correct please email me.

Webb got really pissed off after the race and lost his composure. It doesn't make him a bad guy.

Keep digging your hole wejo.

Hellooooo down thereeeee! Need a rope..rope..rope?

The letsrun folks reported what happened. If a basketball player freaked out after a game people would report on it and no one would question the reporter for doing so.

thank you letsrun for reporting things that make track and field a bit more interesting. The coverage you provide, whether it be alan webb craziness, or american records, is advancing the sport

I read the recap and watched the flotrack interview. Webb showed the fire, the work ethic, the perfectionism, and the competitive drive that have made him both injury prone and an American record holder. That's why he either flies high or performs like crap, by his standards, every year. You have to love the fire in this sport. He went out there and threw things and yelled at himself and hammered a bunch of intervals and ran a tempo run after his 4:00 indoor mile and he was still pissed off an hour later. That's the guy right there who gets himself injured by working too hard, especially after disappointing early runs indoors, but sometimes, sometimes, he puts it all together and runs 3:46. I'm thinking right now that it's going to come together for him to the sub 3:50 level this year and be awesome next year, because this was just a hiccup caused by sickness and missing workouts but that might just be wishful thinking.

Nice try, everyone knows this post is from one of the Brojos.

it's interesting! wrote:

The letsrun folks reported what happened. If a basketball player freaked out after a game people would report on it and no one would question the reporter for doing so.

thank you letsrun for reporting things that make track and field a bit more interesting. The coverage you provide, whether it be alan webb craziness, or american records, is advancing the sport

Wejo,

Thank you for the coverage and also for supporting those reporting for you. In any other "pro sport" discussion of Webb's tantrum would not be limited to the Let's Run website, it would be all over ESPN, Fox Sports, etc.

You were right in reporting it. Webb is a pro and should expect the level of scrutiny to which he has been subjected. If your reporters had snuck up and secretly viewed him going ballistic in the confines of some private area, then your critics on this message board would have a point. But that was not the case. Webb simply could not control his emotions adequately enough to vent at a a more appropriate time, in a more appropriate venue. He lost it, and in doing so revealed something noteworthy about himself. Fans always want to see into the souls of those they follow and we have been given a glimpse.

Thanks.

"Mike,

It's you who aren't getting it.

He is reporting the truth. Webb's behavior is embarrassing, and that sort of self-absorption should not be promoted. Moreover, it was an editorial on a track website. It's like Wejo is the Press Secretary, and he just released a scathing editorial insulting the French. If you have a serious problem with the sort of maniacal behavior which Webb displayed being commented on in an editorial format, then go someplace where the truth isn't reported. The issue of credibility is not at hand. There are videos documenting what the editorial addressed.

Webb's behavior was a distraction. Why aren't you more critical of him, for drawing more attention from his tantrum than Russell Brown did for his win?"

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I'm to think a journalist has a responsibility to report in a fair minded and respectful manor. No mater how embarrassing Webb was, I should hope the writer remains sensitive to manage the material in a way that does not demean or mock the subject. I believe the fact this wasn't demonstrated is why people are upset.

Umm no. I for one do not want to "see into the soul". What workouts he ran, travel glitches that happened, maybe his pre race ritual, yes. Basically what can he share that will make a better runner.

I do not want to "see into the soul" of Steve Scott for example and hear about his extra-marital affairs (in his bio). I do not want to "see into the soul" of Gerry Lindgren and hear about his abusive childhood. If the individual decides to share the info, that's fine because the intention there is to help others in similar situations.

But to report a "blow by blow" account only serves to try to humiliate Webb. Why not just sum it up and say he was upset with himself and went on expletive filled tirade on the side of the track and took an hour(?) to regain his composure but then ran a workout of intervals and a tempo run.

BTW if it was on ESPN, they would just show the "highlights" of the tirade not a "blow by blow" account. If anything, if they showed him working out after his tirade, it would show what a hard worker Webb was, that he has a "last one to leave the gym" mentality despite having a bad day.

To me, the most annoying part of the LetsRun writeup was the implication that because Webb had a bad race and was visibly upset with himself, his post-race workout was some sort of psychological episode, when in reality it was probably prescribed by Salazar whether he ran 3:56 or 4:06.

"At this point the facility was basically empty. Volunteers had taken down the signs."

So what? Webb's race was the last one on the program.

Meanwhile, Nick Willis is doing a jog cooldown and chatting with Lukas Verzbicas: "At one point this group of athletes was taking fake starts out of starting blocks as they continued to joke around and have a good time."

Well, that's nice, but it doesn't make Webb selfish or mentally disturbed for running a workout instead of joking around. He did fly halfway across the country the week before to present Lukas an award in person.

Finally, as Webb begins "Post Race Workout #3: Jogging" - why is this considered a separate workout, exactly? - "we headed for the door as there was virtually nobody else still in the Reggie Lewis Track Center."

Yes, it's truly shocking that an American record-holder would be working out after other competitors had called it a day. I'm sure Webb has never been the last one to leave the track before.

Weldon,

I'd prefer to acknowledge the appreciation I have for your efforts and ability to pull off "Let's Run". To make this issue contentious or even to assume we might convince each other is perhaps futile, given our individual schema and worldview.

The event itself apparently shocked the senses of those who witnessed it. If I were in the shoes of the witnesses, perhaps I'd have had similar motive and a different point of view.

. It is not a productive question of who is right, but rather should be a question why many members might hold this point of view. I should add that being witness to this story shocked my senses enough to motivate me to spend this time debating it. I hope you take the time as well to reflect on what this episode means and what future good it offers your own vision for the future of " Let's Run".

Being willing to understand mine and others perspective seems a much more acceptable and productive message than believing you should make some sort of ridiculous apology. I do believe you have benign intentions, and I hope good comes of it.

Mike

Perhaps

wejo wrote:

As far as reporting inaccurately what we saw

Can you tell everyone again what you saw?

wejo wrote:

As far as reporting inaccurately what we saw

Still waiting...

Still waiting...

For what exactly?

Waiting for wejo to tell is what he "saw".