First of all I think Grunewald may deserve to be DQed. But that is not the point. Nike has to learn that when they get involved in manipulating decisions made by officials at track meets, there will be a public backlash. It will never be beneficial to them.
They needed to it back and take the decision. I also don't understand Salazar not liking that the other Nike group was using team tactics to try to beat Rupp. That spat certainly can't help Nike's reputation.
Have you watched the race video? She didn't deserved to be DQed. At least as far as her interaction with hasay went. I didn't see the earlier instances.
It could go either way, but that really is a red hering.
800m Coach wrote:
It could go either way, but that really is a red hering.
This board is filled with Red Herrings, and yes, Nike didn't handle the situation particularly well.
However, I do believe that some people on this board blow the "corruption" accusations way out of proportion. If Nike actually had the USATF "in its back pocket", then it should not have taken so many appeals to make the DQ go through in the first place.
I'm not saying that Nike doesn't have a say in some of the USATF's actions, but if the USATF was corrupt on the magnitude that many people here seem to claim, then there would never even have been a situation to begin with. Grunewald would've been DQ'd the moment she made contact with not one, but TWO Nike athletes, because OBVIOUSLY, the USATF officials would always have the interests of Nike at hand.
Another detail I don't understand is why some people are complaining that Nike got Bumbalough DQ'd as well and is oppressing the Schumacher Group. If anybody thought about it for just a second, they'd realize that Bumbalough is a Nike athlete to begin with, and Schumacher is a Nike coach.
Seyta wrote:
800m Coach wrote:It could go either way, but that really is a red hering.
This board is filled with Red Herrings, and yes, Nike didn't handle the situation particularly well.
However, I do believe that some people on this board blow the "corruption" accusations way out of proportion. If Nike actually had the USATF "in its back pocket", then it should not have taken so many appeals to make the DQ go through in the first place.
I'm not saying that Nike doesn't have a say in some of the USATF's actions, but if the USATF was corrupt on the magnitude that many people here seem to claim, then there would never even have been a situation to begin with. Grunewald would've been DQ'd the moment she made contact with not one, but TWO Nike athletes, because OBVIOUSLY, the USATF officials would always have the interests of Nike at hand.
Another detail I don't understand is why some people are complaining that Nike got Bumbalough DQ'd as well and is oppressing the Schumacher Group. If anybody thought about it for just a second, they'd realize that Bumbalough is a Nike athlete to begin with, and Schumacher is a Nike coach.
Just because Nike could have organization in hand does not mean that they have every person in hand.
Referee initially has no issues, is not in Nike pocket. Appeal gets nowhere, still gets nowhere.
THEN Nike steps in with their muscle, and in one manner or another the Jury of Appeals is convinced to rule in Nike favor.
It is possible there wasn't corruption. But the fact is the protest was denied, and then the appeal to the Jury of Appeals denied two times as well. I don't but that they "suddenly found new evidence" (which is what is required for a Jury of Appeals decision to not honor the appeal to be overturned.
That doesn't leave any other real option aside from Nike throwing some weight around.
This is so true. What a bunch of boneheads they are in trying to do this. Hasay needs to go eat and get some more base running / strength in before summer as she is not quite there yet.
Salazar is doing her no favors by trying to get her on the team. What he should do is tell Hasay her season is over and then have a little chat, as a fellow American, with Grunewald, letting her know that she is a great runner but needs to be a little more careful when passing.
That would make Al Salazar and Nike look good.
Instead he makes Nike, Hasay, and himself look terrible.
It is one thing to protect an athlete's position and battle with business competitors. It is another to represent a brand. One does not represent a global sports brand by bullying and not accepting the ruling of meet officials.
The incidents described below were witnessed by another coach. We all have bad days, but, at the end of the day,we have to remember that what how we act is more important than what we say.
Incidents surrounding 3,000 meter races "Ugly for the sport," by Jon Gugala
by Jon Gugala
Lee Troop is the Boulder-based coach of Laura Thweatt, the athlete who led the early stages of the women's 3000-meters at the 2014 USA Indoor Track and Field Championships. Thweatt finished fifth (sixth before the disqualification of Gabe Grunewald), and Troop walked with her from the track to the athletes' warm up area to decompress after her race. On the way, he says, he watched Nike Oregon Project coach Alberto Salazar screaming at one of the USATF officials at the protest table, Salazar saying it was "bullshit."
Back in the warm-up area, Troop was feet from Nike coach Jerry Schumacher, who was talking to a few people. That's when, Troop says, Salazar stormed into the area with "his posse"--at the very least three other people--and barely escaped making physical contact when confronting Schumacher.
"It was just like this complete continuation from what was going on earlier," Troop says. "[Salazar] just kind of ran and launched [at Schumacher]."
One of Salazar's "posse" intervened before Salazar made contact, but Troop says that though Salazar didn't have a clenched fist, indicating a punch, there definitely would have been a push.
At this point, Salazar was screaming at Schumacher. "You're against us," Troop remembers Salazar saying.
Schumacher, whom he remembers was composed and unrestrained, asked what Salazar was he talking about.
"You're always after us," Troop remembers Salazar screaming back.
"It was just crazy. It was just ridiculous," he says. "It just went on, the screaming match."
But it wasn't just screaming; Salazar was visibly fighting against the restraint of one of his group, and Troop says it was endangering Thweatt. So he jumped up and pushed Salazar and his restrainer away.
To those that witnessed it, Troop says they were more confused than anything.
"It was just like Alberto was looking for any opportunity on any situation," he says. "To be perfectly honest, it was just bad for the sport, the way the whole thing was conducted. It looked poor; it was bad; I think a lot of people are going to be walking away with a really bad taste in their mouth. It's just not right on so many levels."
I've reached out to both Salazar and Schumacher for comment; at the time of this writing neither has responded.
"It was like a volcano that was just building up to erupt," Troop says, "and we saw the complete eruption and the meltdown."
Salazar was ushered off by his "posse," and Troop says Schumacher remained, but was not visibly shaken by the incident.
Al Salazar is starting to get a little nuts.
If Nike and Salazar had ANY integrity, they wouldn't need better PR.
Where is the evidence of the Jury of Appeals decision? I don't see how it's possible that new evidence was introduced. I'm not arguing for or against any athlete here... I'm asking specifically about the appeal, were they followed? One reason for a lengthy and detailed rule book is TRANSPARENCY. Why hasn't Salazar already provided an interview to clear things up? What a sneaky low life... If I were one of his athletes right now I would be feeling very uncomfortable being associated with this guy. Am I asking for a lot here? Where's the new evidence and what exactly caused them to change their minds?
Where is the evidence of the Jury of Appeals decision? I don't see how it's possible that new evidence was introduced. I'm not arguing for or against any athlete here... I'm asking specifically about the appeal, were they followed? One reason for a lengthy and detailed rule book is TRANSPARENCY. Why hasn't Salazar already provided an interview to clear things up? What a sneaky low life... If I were one of his athletes right now I would be feeling very uncomfortable being associated with this guy. Am I asking for a lot here? Where's the new evidence and what exactly caused them to change their minds?
Was Salazar the second shooter? Why did the Warren Commission cover up his involvement? Did Nike get to Chief Justice Warren? Letsrun is the favorite site of conspiracy nuts. This was a clear DQ.
He's been nutso at least since "The Duel In The Sun", maybe Falmouth. Goes on to win Comrades by taking... Prozac!
marathon woman wrote:
Al Salazar is starting to get a little nuts.
Is this on video? Hard to believe in this world of phones everywhere there is no video of the incident?
A Messi jersey probably generates more revenue than all of Nike's T&F accounts combined. I don't think the title of the thread and the contents are necessarily linked because Nike's PR is doing just fine. You not buying Air Pegasus...probably not going to hurt Nike's bottom-line in a meaningful way. But having more swooshes at a world championship, probably could help.
But also thinking that a PR guy has decision-making authority is also absurd.
I still don't understand why people are griping about Salazar and Nike. What about GG's coach (or lack thereof). Where the hell was he? He should be right there by Salazar's side with the USATF officials fighting for his athlete.
800m Coach wrote:
First of all I think Grunewald may deserve to be DQed. But that is not the point. Nike has to learn that when they get involved in manipulating decisions made by officials at track meets, there will be a public backlash. It will never be beneficial to them.
They needed to it back and take the decision. I also don't understand Salazar not liking that the other Nike group was using team tactics to try to beat Rupp. That spat certainly can't help Nike's reputation.
Do you ppl honestly think Nike gives a sh!t about this.... They sponsor way bigger names and bigger sports than track and field. Honestly track is more of a charity in their eyes than anything. It was the right decision, regardless of how much gab dominated. Gab could have gone around hasay easily at the rate she was going. Instead she ran like a mad woman and clipped a girl going into the bell lap when there was plenty of space to maneuver around.