OT: Link to World Track/Field Championship in Oregon....July 15-24

[EricLA]

Aluminny: I do not believe that Vitale ever made the USA Olympic team at any distance.
Uhh...don't bet on that.

Are you sure he is Dick Vitale's younger brother? Never heard that factoid. Uhhh...is that bettable?

Another topic above: I do not agree with adding a few hundredths of a second to a finisher's time to account for a start
infraction. If we wish to make the reaction time allowed a little less with no penalty for all runners...great.
But whatever allowance you permit there will always be some dude unhappy he violates the NEW minimum.

e.g. going from 64 teams in the NCAA to 68 does in no way make those who don't get in happy about that rule change.
65-68 are fine with it. 69 and above just as mad.

That whole "reaction time" is a complete joke. If the announcers are correct, the .1 second reaction time threshold was based on a study that was done over 60 years ago. You don't think athletes are bigger, stronger, faster, etc. than they were 60 years ago?

Heck, just compare all time greats in their day of Lobo, Wolters, Rizotti etc. to players today. Players today are bigger, stronger, faster, fitter, etc. than they were even 25-30 years ago. I can't imagine comparing anything like that with 60 years ago. The whole thing really pissed me off.

 

[oldude]

That whole "reaction time" is a complete joke. If the announcers are correct, the .1 second reaction time threshold was based on a study that was done over 60 years ago. You don't think athletes are bigger, stronger, faster, etc. than they were 60 years ago?

Heck, just compare all time greats in their day of Lobo, Wolters, Rizotti etc. to players today. Players today are bigger, stronger, faster, fitter, etc. than they were even 25-30 years ago. I can't imagine comparing anything like that with 60 years ago. The whole thing really pissed me off.

Agree that today’s athletes are bigger, stronger, faster and fitter. But reaction time is not really about size, strength, speed or fitness. It’s about how quickly your brain reacts to stimulus. On average, the human brain reacts to visual stimulus in .25 seconds, audio (sound) stimulus in .18 and physical stimulus (touch) in .15.

Certainly, world class sprinters could be expected to have quicker reaction times then a typical human being. Some studies suggest that top sprinters can react to a starting gun in .07 - .08 seconds, which is certainly faster than international track’s standard of .1 seconds.

In addition to Allen, 2 other sprinters were disqualified from the meet in the 100 meters. Their reaction times were .099, .095 & .093 respectively. It is highly likely that the governing body for track & field will change the standards for future meets. But that won’t help the 3 athletes who were disqualified.

 

[Blakeon18]

Thursday night at 8:00 our time on USA Channel. Finals include men's and women's 200 meters.

USA leads in total medal count by wide margin over Ethiopia and Kenya. Reminder that no Russians are allowed to compete here. Eithiopia and Kenya picking up steam in distance events....zero surprise there.

 

[nickp91]

The new Hayward Field is spectacular

 

[ShmiCO]

Agree that today’s athletes are bigger, stronger, faster and fitter. But reaction time is not really about size, strength, speed or fitness. It’s about how quickly your brain reacts to stimulus. On average, the human brain reacts to visual stimulus in .25 seconds, audio (sound) stimulus in .18 and physical stimulus (touch) in .15.

Certainly, world class sprinters could be expected to have quicker reaction times then a typical human being. Some studies suggest that top sprinters can react to a starting gun in .07 - .08 seconds, which is certainly faster than international track’s standard of .1 seconds.

In addition to Allen, 2 other sprinters were disqualified from the meet in the 100 meters. Their reaction times were .099, .095 & .093 respectively. It is highly likely that the governing body for track & field will change the standards for future meets. But that won’t help the 3 athletes who were disqualified.

The only reason the reaction time matters is the technology being used to spot whether an athlete starts before the gun. The optics of punishing athletes with great reaction times are pretty terrible, and the frequent "ref reviews" explaining the complicated timing aren't fun. IMO the most ideal solution is to tweak the technology so it's never the star of the show. False starts are never missed, and official reviews happen very rarely.

In this case it matters less what's humanly possible than what's technologically possible. If they can reliably detect false starts with a value of 0.05, great. Maybe we'll never see this issue again!

 

[oldude]

The only reason the reaction time matters is the technology being used to spot whether an athlete starts before the gun. The optics of punishing athletes with great reaction times are pretty terrible, and the frequent "ref reviews" explaining the complicated timing aren't fun. IMO the most ideal solution is to tweak the technology so it's never the star of the show. False starts are never missed, and official reviews happen very rarely.

In this case it matters less what's humanly possible than what's technologically possible. If they can reliably detect false starts with a value of 0.05, great. Maybe we'll never see this issue again!

Not exactly. Nobody is starting before the gun. The .1 second standard is reaction time after the gun sounds. The starter’s gun is tied in electronically to the starting blocks. There is a pressure sensor on each block where a runner places their feet. If a sensor detects pressure on a block that comes less than .1 second after the starter’s gun sounds, that has been deemed to be faster than humanly possible to respond to the gun, resulting in a false start.

I agree, particularly in the 3 cases during this championship, that the technology punished runners with exceptional reaction times. But for many years it was entirely up to the starter’s eyeballs to determine a false start. That was terrible. I’m OK with technology to solve the problem. But it’s pretty clear that the .1 second standard should be reduced to .7 or less, which does appear to be the human reaction limit for a world class sprinter.

 

[enigmatic]

Looking forward to another McLaughlin/Muhammad duel in the 400m hurdles. McLaughlin has set herself apart from the world in the last year but yet at the same time I do worry that Femke Bol may actually pull off what Dos Santos did to Benjamin and Warholm on the mens side. She is literally right there behind Sydney.

 

[eebmg]

Looking forward to another McLaughlin/Muhammad duel in the 400m hurdles. McLaughlin has set herself apart from the world in the last year but yet at the same time I do worry that Femke Bol may actually pull off what Dos Santos did to Benjamin and Warholm on the mens side. She is literally right there behind Sydney.

McLaughlin looked significantly better to me in the semifinal. I don't think it will be close.

 

[Zinethar]

Disclaimer: I am a certified track official.
What bothers me the most is that very often false starts are caused by poor officials. You can see meets go an entire weekend with none or sometimes several on the same day. I haven't seen the events talked about in the post so I can't judge what occurred. What ticks me off the most is when an official keeps them in the blocks way too long. The rule is 1 to 2 seconds NOT 5 seconds. An athlete can't stay focused, motionless, and tense for that length of time and is bounds to put pressure somewhere. If someone isn't set within the two seconds stand them up and start over with a warning to that athlete. Fairest method.

 

[PoppaBear]

Anybody else getting worn out by this announcer? He's grating on my nerves.

 

[eebmg]

Anybody else getting worn out by this announcer? He's grating on my nerves.

I like their energy (and accents)

Great 200 meter races (winner times)

 

[triaddukefan]

Noah Lyles is fast

 

[eebmg]

Noah Lyles is fast

American Record fast. And Love those rip away shirts.

 

[Blakeon18]

Great job by the American sprinters...sweep the 100...sweep the 200.
Noah Lyles with a 19.31 in the 200...closing in on the world record by Usain Bolt back in 2009 with 19.19.

Jamaican women swept the 100 and almost the 200...got gold and silver.
Sherika Jackson won the 200 in 21.45...closing in on the world record by Griffith-Joyner back in
1988 [!] with 21.34.

USA and Jamaica in the relays....should be tremendous.
Great weekend of track coming up...the setting is beautiful.

 

[Blakeon18]

Friday night TV coverage:

Channel USA....8:30 our time.

 

[oldude]

Disclaimer: I am a certified track official.
What bothers me the most is that very often false starts are caused by poor officials. You can see meets go an entire weekend with none or sometimes several on the same day. I haven't seen the events talked about in the post so I can't judge what occurred. What ticks me off the most is when an official keeps them in the blocks way too long. The rule is 1 to 2 seconds NOT 5 seconds. An athlete can't stay focused, motionless, and tense for that length of time and is bounds to put pressure somewhere. If someone isn't set within the two seconds stand them up and start over with a warning to that athlete. Fairest method.

I competed on the field side of track and field throughout HS and college. I remember several discussions with teammates who competed in the sprints. They all indicated that when a starter issued the “set” command, it might have been only a few seconds, but it sometimes felt like an eternity waiting for the gun. Hard not to get “jumpy” when a starter holds you for an extended period of time.

 

[ShmiCO]

I was speechless when this went down.


Take away the hurdles, and this would still be the 18th fastest flat 400m in the world this year.

 

[oldude]

I was speechless when this went down.


Take away the hurdles, and this would still be the 18th fastest flat 400m in the world this year.

I noted that the US did not even have anyone running in the women’s 400 m final, and yet the US will be the heavy favorite in the 4 x 400 relay with McLaughlin, Mohammed, Mu and ?.

 

[Blakeon18]

Allyson Felix is running in the 4 by 400...coming out of a [very] short retirement. They asked her....she said 'yes'.

 

[ShmiCO]

Felix postpones retirement for women's 4x400 relay at worlds

Allyson Felix hasn’t run her last race after all

abcnews.go.com

 

[Blakeon18]

Last 2 days:

TV schedule...our time

2:00 Saturday NBC
8:00 Saturday CNBC

8:00 Sunday CNBC
9:00 Sunday NBC

Lots of medal events both days...the relays 4 by1 and 4 by 4 should be fabulous...how about a
world record in the men's 4 by 1?

The Felix return: she will be running in the 4 by 4 prelims today.
The finals are Sunday: you would think there is no way she won't be in that one as well...given we make it there and she is healthy. Retiring after the prelims...meh. Retiring after helping to win the gold by running on Sunday...yes...much better.

 

[eebmg]

Last 2 days:

TV schedule...our time

2:00 Saturday NBC
8:00 Saturday CNBC

8:00 Sunday CNBC
9:00 Sunday NBC

Lots of medal events both days...the relays 4 by1 and 4 by 4 should be fabulous...how about a
world record in the men's 4 by 1?

The Felix return: she will be running in the 4 by 4 prelims today.
The finals are Sunday: you would think there is no way she won't be in that one as well...given we make it there and she is healthy. Retiring after the prelims...meh. Retiring after helping to win the gold by running on Sunday...yes...much better.

Do you have a link to the times of the individual events?

 

[baggerbob]

I noted that the US did not even have anyone running in the women’s 400 m final, and yet the US will be the heavy favorite in the 4 x 400 relay with McLaughlin, Mohammed, Mu and ?.

And anyone with those 3 are faster then any other team. Had any of those 3 ran in the mixed final they would have won that.
But they had the 6th fastest us women 400 meter running the anchor leg, and even with a big lead was caught.

 

[Blakeon18]

EEBMG: yes...for the specific times for each event on Saturday and Sunday hit the link in the first post in this
thread. Note: those times are all local Oregon times...I hear that Boneyarders are great at doing the math for
their own time thanks to the UConn women traveling all over.

Both 4 by 100 relay finals will be very late eastern time....tonight...but worth staying up for.

 

[eebmg]

EEBMG: yes...for the specific times for each event on Saturday and Sunday hit the link in the first post in this
thread. Note: those times are all local Oregon times...I hear that Boneyarders are great at doing the math for
their own time thanks to the UConn women traveling all over.

Both 4 by 100 relay finals will be very late eastern time....tonight...but worth staying up for.

Thanks

As a public service. Times are (PT)

Morning session

9:50 a.m.: Men's 100 meter, decathlon
10:40 a.m.: Men's long jump, decathlon
11:20 a.m.: Women's 100 meter hurdles
12:00 p.m.: Women's long jump, qualification

Afternoon session

4:10 p.m.: Men's high jump, decathlon
5:10 p.m.: Women's 4x400 meter relay
5:40 p.m.: Men's 4x400 meter relay
6:00 p.m.: Men's triple jump, final
6:10 p.m.: Men's 800 meter, final
6:25 p.m.: Women's 5000 meter, final
6:35 p.m.: Men's javelin throw, final
6:55 p.m.: Men's 400 meter, decathlon
7:30 p.m.: Women's 4x100 meter relay, final
7:50 p.m.: Men's 4x100 meter relay, final