Carl Lewis: "Our sport is proving the definition of insanity"

his comment that, "There are too many athletes and we’re not a professional sport,” is difficult to parse. I'm not sure whether he means the sport is not being run professionally, or whether the sport itself is not suited to being a professional business, but either way, I agree with him. I don't think our top administratrors have a clue what they are doing, and I do not think that it is good for the long-term future of the sport that track meets are treated as though they are a commodity to be marketed, like so many loaves of bread or a play in a theatre.

but his comments that mixed-gender relays are a clown show I disagree with. I think they are one of the few innovations the IAAF have come up with that actually make sense. relays are inherently more interesting than straight races, and by mixing the sexes together you increase the narrative quality of the race. I think the 2 x 2 x 400m is going to be a great spectacle at the world relays in Yokohama next month and I would like to see them introduce a mixed DMR as well.

cheers.

Track is screwed up........the problem isnt the racing. Its the promotion. Every time I see drone racing and professional video game leagues on TV I wonder why ESPN cant put track on for an hour a week.

Everyone with the money in this sport seems to not care. Track on TV isnt that hard. No fluff stories, just track with a good commentator and some background on the athletes.

THese high profile coaches and training groups dont want a track circuit or league where they get exposed for being shitty week in and week out.

TrackCEO wrote:

Every few years, Carl Lewis stirs up the molecules with comments on the sport's administration.

At Mt. SAC Saturday, while speaking with Scott Reid of The Orange County Register, he issued some wild opinions. I taped the chat. See it here:

https://timesofsandiego.com/sports/2019/04/21/olympic-icon-carl-lewis-track-field-rulers-proving-the-definition-of-insanity/

Among other things, King Carl said:

— Mixed-gender relays are a "clown show."

— Cutting 5K and 10K races in Diamond League "is a mistake."

— "We have a great system that I teach (at Houston). If I was teaching a bad system, we'd be the U.S. team the last 12 years," apparently referring to relay miscues.

— And: "There are too many athletes and we're not a professional sport." (Not sure what he meant by "too many.")

Any reactions? I might add them to my story.

K . E . N.

Carl Lewis is one of the greatest athletes ever. His opinions of the sport of track and field ,which he understands very well, should be paid attention to. If he makes a comment, during a discussion, that the person asking doesn’t understand or feels the intended audience may not understand then it is up to that person to ask for clarification.

I congratulate Carl for having the courage to speak his mind. Who he is, what he has accomplished and what he is accomplishing at U of H carries weight.

For a purest, a mixed relay may be a clown show. Carl is not disrespecting anyone by making that statement. T&F has to compete with other sports and other sports audiences so a mixed relay may become a crowd pleaser and help in that regard. For the athletes it will be fun but my guess is their seriousness will be focused on their individual events or their gender relay races.

Carl is right, and I share his opinion that cutting the 5 k and 10 k is a mistake.

What Leroy and Carl have done at the University of Houston is remarkable and should be studied and emulated. I don’t see U of H’s relays faltering with their relay exchanges. In fact, they are text book on how to execute. Relays require 4 athletes to take them seriously. If I were running a relay and my coach was one of the best there ever was I sure as heck would listen to him and never want to screw up. The fear of failed when it comes to relays is a good thing. Both of those guys were masters at relay races. Carl is right, the USA sprint relays have far too many times poorly executed. Why is that? If USATF really wanted to know - ask these two guys. Better yet get those two guys involved. They will be respected by the crop of young sprint talent. With that respect perhaps egos will be set aside and the athletes will perform or be kicked off the relay team.

There are a lot of “pro” running athletes. Which ones are at a professional level when compared to the rest of the world is debatable. And yes, the sport is not run very professionally. Look no further then our own USATF.

Just my salty old dog opinion.

100% agree with Carl.

"Relays" in the first place, whether based on HS/college attendance or nation, are dubious to begin.

It's the idea of making everything a "team" sport for some reason, likely money-related (easier to sponsor).

Still, less dumb than the "scoring system" used by track in HS/college to give a "team" winner.

Does he still sing?

TrackCEO wrote:

Every few years, Carl Lewis stirs up the molecules with comments on the sport's administration.

At Mt. SAC Saturday, while speaking with Scott Reid of The Orange County Register, he issued some wild opinions. I taped the chat. See it here:

https://timesofsandiego.com/sports/2019/04/21/olympic-icon-carl-lewis-track-field-rulers-proving-the-definition-of-insanity/

Among other things, King Carl said:

— Mixed-gender relays are a "clown show."

— Cutting 5K and 10K races in Diamond League "is a mistake."

— "We have a great system that I teach (at Houston). If I was teaching a bad system, we'd be the U.S. team the last 12 years," apparently referring to relay miscues.

— And: "There are too many athletes and we're not a professional sport." (Not sure what he meant by "too many.")

Any reactions? I might add them to my story.

K . E . N.

Unfortunately, Carl Lewis is a BIG MORON.

Let's try to make a POSITIVE (+) contribution at LetsRun.com

Can you dig it?????

Yeah baby.

SeriouslyNow wrote:

Does he still sing?

And what have you ever done?

Track just needs to accept the fact that only the Olympics matter to its relevance. Everything outside of the Olympics really is just a clown show. Just accept it and move on....

Carl is making Houston great, Leroy was not getting it done at this level until Carl stepped in, make no mistake about it. Not saying leroy isn't doing a good job, just that Carl has taken them to the next level.

If there's one thing he knows, it's clown shows.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=xHRmx4yV4MY

drop all the batons wrote:

Still, less dumb than the "scoring system" used by track in HS/college to give a "team" winner.

What? How is team scoring in HS and college dumb. It shows who has the better team. Somthing that coaches strive for. All of track isn't just about the athletes, the coaches also have a lot of stake in it.

the king...... wrote:

Carl is making Houston great, Leroy was not getting it done at this level until Carl stepped in, make no mistake about it. Not saying leroy isn't doing a good job, just that Carl has taken them to the next level.

Carl loves Carl. Whatever is best for Carl is what is best for everyone. Just ask him.

A lot of negative statements about Carl Lewis on this thread. We cannot mention Carl Lewis without stating his greatness, especially as a long jumper. Carl Lewis made U.S.A. Olympic team as a long jumper before Lewis was a world class sprinter, 1980. In 1992 & 1996 Olympics when Carl Lewis was no longer a great sprinter, Lewis was still a great long jumper.

I think mixed-gender relays are the same as medley relays.

I like the concept.

The problem is that it doesn't fit into a team competition because you have either men or women teams.

We should also mention that Carl Lewis was a doper and should have been banned. Corrupt days in the sport...

Sarcasm is best used by someone that is mentally fit wrote:

SeriouslyNow wrote:

Does he still sing?

And what have you ever done?

See vid below. I rest my case.

mepahl57 wrote:

drop all the batons wrote:

Still, less dumb than the "scoring system" used by track in HS/college to give a "team" winner.

What? How is team scoring in HS and college dumb. It shows who has the better team. Somthing that coaches strive for. All of track isn't just about the athletes, the coaches also have a lot of stake in it.

Did you really just cite coaching glory as a justification for why a sport should be scored in a certain way? I can’t imagine that argument having traction in any sport, ever.

What has the world come to when a former sprinter (Lewis) advocates for inclusion of 5k and 10k, where a former middle distance runner (Coe) acts to eliminate them?