So awesome to see what he said tonight.
As an old-timer, I find it more than a little ironic that I now view Leer, well at least when he had the mustache and not the beard, to represent the new Pre. Pre was known for fighting the corruption and farce that was the AAU.
It's pretty stange that the corrupt entity now is now known as Nike I mean USATF (aren't they won and the same?).
I also commend Leer for speaking up while still a Nike athlete. He didn't name Nike but so many others like Fleshman/Symmonds stay quiet until off the Swoosh's payroll.
-Old timer
Will Leer is officially the new Pre: "I think it (the DQ) is a disgrace. USTATF needs to get their act together"
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All hail Leer!
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Indeed, all hail William Leer. I love him. He's like Pre combined with Jesus
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Playing devil's advocate here but could it not be argued that it was Pre and the rest of the "paid athlete" movement started the ball down this hill? I mean for many of these runners, you're talking livelihood with bonuses for making major championships, winning major championships and getting records. It's a great thing that athletes get paid nowadays because meet promoters would make a killing off them, but now it seems like the pendulum has swung to the other extreme where athletes don't just get paid for winning, but merely showing up. Sportsmanship goes out the window when bonuses are paid up. Ask Brett Farve, he went to his rivals for nothing but a paycheck. Selling out is easy to do when faced with unemployment. If Hasay's contract says she gets an extra $10,000 for running the World Championships, she's probably going to run. Or if Nike threatens to cut her...she's probably going to run. Yeah Pre fought the man, and in the process, helped create "the Man" in Nike...
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Interesting idea. I know Leer a little, and he's definitely the kind of stand up guy that would speak up about this injustice on a most public forum! And yes, it was very courageous because he is a Nike athlete.
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so superior wrote:
Indeed, all hail William Leer. I love him. He's like Pre combined with Jesus
This is the best thing ever. -
Pre lives!! wrote:
Playing devil's advocate here but could it not be argued that it was Pre and the rest of the "paid athlete" movement started the ball down this hill? I mean for many of these runners, you're talking livelihood with bonuses for making major championships, winning major championships and getting records. It's a great thing that athletes get paid nowadays because meet promoters would make a killing off them, but now it seems like the pendulum has swung to the other extreme where athletes don't just get paid for winning, but merely showing up. Sportsmanship goes out the window when bonuses are paid up. Ask Brett Farve, he went to his rivals for nothing but a paycheck. Selling out is easy to do when faced with unemployment. If Hasay's contract says she gets an extra $10,000 for running the World Championships, she's probably going to run. Or if Nike threatens to cut her...she's probably going to run. Yeah Pre fought the man, and in the process, helped create "the Man" in Nike...
Pre would have detested what Nike turned into. He had a fairly deep appreciation of humanity. Nike likes to exploit people and throw their power around. Salazar is the anti-Pre.
Bowerman probably had some serious issues with Nike as well. Although I'm sure he loved the paychecks -
is Will the same guy who wouldnt man up last year after not qualifing in 1500 and run the 5000 like Shannon Rowbury. No Shannon is more like PRE!
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buddy puddy wrote:
Pre would have detested what Nike turned into...Bowerman probably had some serious issues with Nike as well.
Everyone should read the late Geoff Hollister's book 'Out of Nowhere". In the beginning Nike was fighting a corrupt system. Everyone was on the adidas payroll, the AUU wouldn't let them have logos on warmups, etc... Now 40 years later Nike has become the monster it was fighting against. -
Leer just likes to complain after races. Usually its: 'oh, these guys were pushing, and this guy didn't take it out fast enough for me, and they were all ganging up on me, etc.', but he got bad press for that, so he decided to complain on someone else's behalf this time. But at least he still got to complain!
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Ironic how Nike basically got it's start fighting the hypocrisy on the AAU. But like the Soviets in Russia they fought the corrupt dictator just to become the next corrupt dictator. Meet the new boss. Same as the old boss.
Honestly Pre and Bowerman must be rolling in their graves at what Nike as become. -
buddy puddy wrote:
Nike likes to exploit people and throw their power around. Salazar is the anti-Pre.
Please prove this. Nothing this past weekend involved Nike. It was all Salazar. -
Sounds like will leer needs to watch the video.
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Leer isn't fit to carry Pre's jock. He's a joke.
The fact that he had no problem taking Nike's $$ makes him a hypocrite. If he really believe what he's shoveling he'd terminate his contract and run Worlds unsponsored. But something tells me he will cash his check. -
Thanks, "a dork." How long have you posted here?
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dkoom wrote:
buddy puddy wrote:
Nike likes to exploit people and throw their power around. Salazar is the anti-Pre.
Please prove this. Nothing this past weekend involved Nike. It was all Salazar.
And Salazar is paid by...? C'mon, you can work this out. -
A dork. wrote:
Leer isn't fit to carry Pre's jock. He's a joke.
The fact that he had no problem taking Nike's $$ makes him a hypocrite. If he really believe what he's shoveling he'd terminate his contract and run Worlds unsponsored. But something tells me he will cash his check.
Interesting. So I'm curious, who, or what company, do you work for? Who pays your salary? And do you agree with everything they say and do? That would make you a puppet. Or do you remain silent when they say or do things that you disagree with? That would make you a hypocrite. Or do you argue and fight when they say things you disagree with? That would make you unemployed.
By the way, great call on the screen name! -
Pre died before Nike got big. The image of Pre is just a gimmick Nike employs to make us believe they are still running under the same ideals that Pre was pioneering to save track and field. Nobody could stop Pre, but somebody has t stop Nike.
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uraturd wrote:
Pre died before Nike got big. The image of Pre is just a gimmick Nike employs to make us believe they are still running under the same ideals that Pre was pioneering to save track and field. Nobody could stop Pre, but somebody has t stop Nike.
You're completely correct, don't know why anyone didn't recognize this. Prefontaine did not have any outspoken stance on the AAU or any of that. Total fabrication.
Even Flotrack bought into it, with their latest article. -
HardLoper wrote:
You're completely correct, don't know why anyone didn't recognize this. Prefontaine did not have any outspoken stance on the AAU or any of that. Total fabrication.
Even Flotrack bought into it, with their latest article.
You do understand that that wasn't what he said right? His point was that Nike is no longer the ideal that Prefontaine supported to fight the AAU. But they use Pre's image to make them seem like the 70s Nike
