I think this is bad...why can't they help U.S. runners get better instead of putting up road blocks!
I think this is bad...why can't they help U.S. runners get better instead of putting up road blocks!
I am still pi55ed off when they changed the rules about indoor competition in 1982. When I was a junior, I went to 3 meets on my own, 3 meets with my high school team (the only 3 meets they went to) and another meet with a running club from a nearby town. Those runners in the running club were basically the high school team and they won the state championship that year with a few sprinters so it was pretty neat being their distance guy one meet.
Over the summer the rules were changed that every athlete had to be accompanied by the coach. Of course my coach isn't going to go to all the indoor meets I would have wanted to run. I was second in a pretty competitive meet my junior year and didn't get to go back and run that meet my senior year. I was right on the line of getting any scholarship money and thought that really hurt my chances. Ended up getting bronchitis during the spring so I didn't have a good senior track season. I have always been for MORE opportunities for the kids as I was never able to run the bigger national meets either that I might have been competitive in. These state athletic organizations are still living in the 50s and don't understand the harm they may be causing the exceptional athletes with their antiquated concept of fairness.
Of course some of this is left over from when Lebron was in high school and ASVSM was on a cross country tour the last two years. What they don't understand is how big a joke it would have been to make them play and beat all the local teams by 50 or 60 points every game.
When exceptional athletes come along, those athletes should not only be free, but encouraged to challenge themselves against other athletes of their ability.
This is so sad...
What is the purpose...other than trying to kill dreams?
I still don't get it. Do teams at Nike Cross Nationals compete for extra rewards?
When I ran in Ohio you were not allowed to travel and compete out of state during the season. No Arcadia or Penn Relays. I have seen that change with Ohio runners running those meets in track now when they weren't allowed before. Then they would have been disqualified for competing for in the Ohio State meet and tournament.
If there is a rule in Ohio that you can't compete in an out of season meet where you can be rewarded prizes and the Nike meet awards gifts to the top placers then the Ohio officials are right to go by the guidelines. And hopefully they wise up and change that rule just like they changed the rule about traveling out of state for better competitions years ago.
Nike should be banned by Ohio for Child Exploitation
On the face of it, and speaking generally with all sports in mind, I would disagree that this ruling is a bad thing. I think we all would agree that having the opportunity to compete at NXN or Footlockers can't be seen as a negative in any way. We're also talking about a sport without a lot of money involved (for the racers). The issue that comes into play is what about sports with a bigger potential monetary outcome...football, basketball, baseball. Whatever rule a state-wide governing body such as this makes has got to cover all sports, or else you're going to have the situation arise where some high school stud basketball player is getting excessive benefits from someone (or a group) who wants a piece of him when he's older.
Clearly those in Ohio see what we already know. That Nike's thing is a sales convention for HS coaches and is not recognized as a competition. Footlocker is the title sponsor of a volunteer set of high school cross country races.
What happens when it affects Football and Basketball, escpecially the AAU colossus? How about little league? Babe Ruth, American Legion. I smell lawsuit going all the way to Supreme Court. One person shouldn't be allowed the dash the dreams of thousands. She's a doctor? Not of common sense she's not!