Jearl Miles-Clark Left Off 4 x 400 Relay

Kudos Stanford grad! There is a certain thing called doing your "time" and earning the right to be placed in a leadership position, but not only because of the experince on the track but also the talent that backs up that experience. I would guess that anyone of those who critisize the support for Jearl would feel different if it were they in this position. I am also not a member of the clark family. Congratulations to the girls who did represent the USA on that team, their talent is not in question nor do i feel that they had a hand in all of this, they did what they were asked to do, run and that they did.

Jearl needs to keep her head held up very high, she is a woman of great strength within, a commitment to excellence not only for herself but for those around her. She has set a wonderful example for those who will come behind her and a standard of which few will achieve. She is a woman of whom I embrace with great respect. We live in a time of society when commitment means very little, respect means very little as most people do not even respect themselves. Jearl carries more wisdom, experience and knowledge about track and field than most coaches, athletes, and so called sports writers. Only when those who are quick to judge her for her "age" have traveled the foots steps of a five time Olympian, been there for all the 2 a day work outs, injuries, the ice baths, endless therapy & stretching, the triumph of victory and the disappointment of defeat and still have the passion and love of her sport when so many others have quit along the way, can they even attempt to speak about something they truly know nothing about. To have Honor is not to have something you wear around your neck on display. Honor is something you earn thru perseverance, weathering the storms of challenges, injuries, and let downs. It is an honor to be chosen to be part of a relay "team." Jearl has shown up on every occasion that such honor has been given to her. She is a woman of conviction and love of her sport, if for some reason she in any way felt she could not have run that race she would have had the grace to respectfully decline, but she never had that chance to speak for herself. So we who stand beside her and support her have a voice to support and encourage. We live in a time when we give more rights to cheaters, criminals, liars, and those who will stab a brother in the back without a second thought. We don't live by morals and standards of the highest esteem because we have allowed the bar to lowered a little more each and every year. Lastly, those who have chosen to use this little message board to view their "personal" opinions of the Clark Family need to be very cautious of their judgement. It amazes me that we are so quick to add criticism to a family who has provided several elite athletes to USA track and field. They have dedicated their lives to careers in this industry both in collegic and professional track and field and did it thru hard work and a dedication to have a standard that will stand the test of time.

Another poster who won't address the points being made.

HealingHands, very well said. I'm not related to the Clark family, but I'd be proud to be a member of a clan that has produced three Olympians and one of the finest NCAA coaches in the land. And regardless of all that, they are honorable and good people who have always maintained high moral standards at a time when the standards in the sport are quite low. Anyone who uses this forum to cut them down must have very low self-esteem themselves.

Jearl is a woman of honor and would have declined the spot if she felt she was not able to give her all or perform up to her very own high expectations to help ensure the U.S. a gold. However she was not given that chance. And I also suspect she was not given the respect she deserves from her coaches and teammates -- hence all the "Youth Movement" stuff they were all spouting, both to Jearl and to the interviewers on broadcast TV.

In a way, with all the support she has received from this board, Jearl has won the equivalent of a third Olympic gold medal. For anyone to denigrate the opinions of the people here who support Jearl, or to cut down the Clark family, is reprehensible. I just think over the past decade and a half, watching Olympic relays when that baton would go to Jearl Miles-Clark, and I'd feel confident knowing that she'd always deliver. It's athletes like that who remain in the memories of sports fans. These dependable, outstanding individuals write their legacy with their hard work and sweat--not with the names of their political connections or EPO suppliers.

Ms. Miles-Clark, thank you for all your contributions to track and field, and hope we haven't seen the last of you. You've never been a showy sort--you let your running speak for you, and it spoke VOLUMES.

Richard Neer wrote:

If they weren't crying for a medal what exactly were they doing?

They (the Clarks) were expressing their gratitude for the overwhelming support that most people here are giving. You don't have to feel the same way, but you should be a little suspicious that JMC was probably left off for the wrong reason ... namely to push the whole "youth movement" theme. (Kind of like Bush who keeps saying the economy is getting better even though it's not really.) Anyway, just because the team won doesn't mean it wouldn't have been an even better team with Jearl ... just like we'll never know if the economy would have done better if the Supreme court hadn't ruled for Bush ;)

The clark family is the worst. They are rich, rude and they think they own track and field. I hope I dont see any more Clarks with their hollywood dad on the team.

You are the type of person who will cause this discussion to turn ugly. You obviously do not know the Clarks when you make a comment like this.[quote

The clark family is the worst. They are rich, rude and they think they own track and field. I hope I dont see any more Clarks with their hollywood dad on the team.[/quote]

the Clarks are now and have always been a class act and JMC may be the classiest female I have ever meet. If you have personal issues with someone, don't come on here and air it within this forum.

Barabas wrote:

You are the type of person who will cause this discussion to turn ugly. You obviously do not know the Clarks when you make a comment like this.[quote

The clark family is the worst. They are rich, rude and they think they own track and field. I hope I dont see any more Clarks with their hollywood dad on the team.

the Clarks are now and have always been a class act and JMC may be the classiest female I have ever meet. If you have personal issues with someone, don't come on here and air it within this forum.[/quote]

Why not? There were plenty of other posters who voiced opinions about the Clarks and other people involved in the supposed scandal.

Richard Neer = Stephen Shea

trolls on runnersworld.com forums, too.

peanut butter.... yum wrote:

Richard Neer = Stephen Shea

trolls on runnersworld.com forums, too.

Figures

Thanks for the support. No one knows all the background which went into making this decision. I am glad the ladies chosen still carried the baton proudly for the USA. It is too bad the public can't support the team who ran for them.

Though I believe Jearl Miles-Clark is an excellent 400M runner and could have been an excellent replacement had she been needed, I don't believe she deserved to be on the 4x400M for this final. I think each and everyone of the women on the final team deserved to be there, and I am immensely proud of the way they ran and won the gold -it was truly one of the most memorable moments of this Olympics for me, and it was probably one of the better stories of the Olympics. Just over two months before, three of these young runners were competing against each other in another memorable final during the NCAA championships. That race showed how special each of these ladies are, and the story of how each one made team and won should become well known because none of them was given anything -they earned it.

It seems that Jearl's feelings got hurt somehow in this selection process. That's unfortunate, but I think she needs to realize that it wasn't really an attempt to slight her: it was just these ladies' time to shine.

We know the background that went into the decision. "Push the youth movement. We want 'younger and fresher legs.'" Nice, really nice.

And the team did not run for America -- they ran to line Brooks Johnson's pockets with more money. He got a cut of what his runner made in the relay which is he put her in there.

You're right.

This is well worth a bump given the relays debacle.

bump