News/Elites

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

For those of you who can’t watch the Boston Marathon live, I’ll be watching the live stream and posting updates along the way. Check in on the comments of this post Monday morning and don’t forget to refresh frequently to see the latest updates.

Elite women start at 9:32 Boston time (estimated finish around 11:55 Boston time)

Elite men start at 10:00 Boston time (estimated finish around 12:05 Boston time)

I will be home with my daughter so I’m not sure how frequently I’ll be able to post updates but I’ll do my best. If anyone else wants to chip in with updates, I always appreciate the help. Also, as always, live analysis and commentary/questions are very welcome.

I may offer a post-race analysis on another post later but it won’t be right away.

As for my usual weekly blog post, it will probably be a day late. I don’t want it to get lost in the shuffle of Boston Marathon coverage.

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

I’ve been wondering for over a week what happened in the meeting between USATF and TFAA to discuss the disqualifications at the USATF Indoor Nationals meet. After an initial announcement that there was going to be a meeting between USATF and the TFAA to discuss procedures and possibly push for some form of athlete representative overview/review of the process, there became nothing but a lot of silence.

It turns out I wasn’t the only one wondering what happened. Lucky for me, Nobby Hashizume did the digging to find out what happened as you can see at his post. It turns out the meeting was cancelled. As for who decided to cancel it and why, that doesn’t seem to be coming out.

In the meantime, fortunately, Gabe Grunewald got her national championship and her chance to run at Worlds. So all is good, right? Well, no. We still don’t know how all that happened was allowed to happen. There is no evidence that this will be prevented from happening in the future.

Plus, Andrew Bumbalough is still disqualified. His disqualification, if possible, is even more egregious than Grunewald’s. First, much like Grunewald, the "incident" that resulted in the disqualification doesn’t seem worthy of such treatment. It was another instance of incidental contact that is normal when racing indoors. Second, Bumbalough wasn’t even part of the "incident". It was another runner!

Some might say it doesn’t matter. He didn’t win the race. He wasn’t in a Worlds qualifying position. Still, it matters. If for no other reason than he was disqualified when he did nothing wrong and there was conclusive evidence of this, the disqualification should have been overturned. Even if 8th place doesn’t seem like a big deal, we don’t know how his sponsor contract(s) is/are structured. Sometimes runners get bonuses for officially competing at national championship meets. Sometimes they get bonuses for things like top 10 finishes. Heck, if nothing else, he should have the personal satisfaction of having the officially recognized 8th place finish.

Most importantly, though, the fact that even this modest meeting didn’t happen suggests USATF is going to just sweep this incident under the rug. Nobody cares, it didn’t happen, nothing is going to change. Is this what we want to come of this ugly incident?

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

I just got done listening to this story (MP3 link, another podcast and can’t find a page for it) of Kayla Montgomery and had to share immediately. Kayla was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis but continued running, even though she finishes races with no feeling in her legs. Not only did she keep running but she kept running fast! Just listen to the story if you want to hear an amazing story about an incredibly inspiring runner.

Never give up.

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

For anyone who hasn’t heard yet, there was an absolute mess this past weekend at the USATF Indoor Track & Field Championships. In the women’s 3000 meter run, Gabriele (Gabe) Grunewald won the race by a comfortable margin after displaying a stunning finish after a tactical race.

You can see the race here. Skip to about 10 minutes into the video to get to the last lap and the incident in question. As you can see in the screen capture I grabbed above from the video, the race by the end wasn’t even close.

The problems started later. As you can see in the video, there was some slight contact between Gabe and Jordan Hasay shortly after the last lap started. This is the kind of contact you see on a regular basis in indoor track. Close quarters, tight turns and high speeds lead to things like this on a regular basis. However, Hasay’s coach (Alberto Salazar) protested the decision to not call the contact a foul on Gabe.

The Head Referee ruled that there was no interference. Salazar appealed the ruling to the Jury of Appeal and, in what has been reported to be a 3-0 decision, Salazar’s appeal was denied. No interference. Next, according to all reports I’ve heard, Salazar appealed a second time. Some reports suggest he even appealed a third time. Finally, Gabe was disqualified, Shannon Rowbury was elevated to champion and Hasay given a spot on the team for the World Championships.

What’s the problem here? Well, according to the USATF Competition Rules (see Rules 119 a and 119 c) the ruling of the Referee should be upheld unless it is shown to be clearly erroneous. Also, the decision of the Jury of Appeal is final. There is no further right of appeal. The Jury may reconsider only if new conclusive evidence is presented.

So, according to all reports I’ve seen, Salazar was allowed at least one more appeal than rules state is allowed. Further, USATF claims the Jury of Appeal was presented new video evidence of the incident in question but the video production company says they gave USATF no new video and USATF has yet to offer any evidence that this new video evidence exists.

The good news is today, two days after all this happened, Hasay dropped the protest that was made on her behalf by Salazar. Gabe gets the championship and spot on the team for the World Championships she deserves. However, this does not abdicate USATF of its responsibility in all of this.

The USATF press release makes it clear they are not admitting any wrongdoing in all of this. If Hasay did not drop the protest, I get no sense that Gabe would have been reinstated. In fact, in this press release itself, USATF is getting caught in a lie. They claim they followed the process laid out in the competition rules but all indications are that they did not.

USATF can not be let off this easily. They have to be held accountable for what happened. We need to keep the pressure on them until they prove real, substantial changes have been made.

I know it doesn’t seem like much but please consider starting by signing this petition. It is asking to show this "new conclusive evidence" that USATF claims was used to overturn the appeal. This would be a first step in holding USATF accountable. Secondly, let’s keep our eyes open for ways to hold Max Siegel to his word when he states "We are all looking forward and will address our processes to try to minimize the potential for controversy or misunderstanding in the future." Suggestion for Siegel: a good place to start would be a transparent process.

Don’t let this go away quietly. Let’s use this ugly affair to spur on some real change.

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

USATF press release below. I’ll add comments later today on this.

LOS ANGELES -The City of Los Angeles will host the Women’s and Men’s 2016 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Marathon, USA Track & Field, the U.S. Olympic Committee, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, and LA MARATHON LLC announced Wednesday.

The 2016 Olympic Trials will be held Feb. 13, 2016. With separate starts, the men’s and women’s races both will be carried in their entirety on NBC.

"We are thrilled with what Los Angeles will provide to our athletes, the Olympic movement and the sport of long distance running by hosting this event," USATF CEO Max Siegel said. "With television coverage on NBC and incredible public and private support for the race in one of the world’s biggest media markets, everything is in place to continue to elevate the Olympic Trials and give our athletes a platform on which they can truly shine."

"I’m happy and honored USA Track & Field and the U.S. Olympic Committee have chosen Los Angeles as host city for the 2016 Olympic marathon trials," said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. "With its iconic landmarks and decades of experience hosting world class sporting events, Los Angeles is the ideal location for America’s elite marathoners to prepare for the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil."

"The U.S. Olympic Committee is pleased to be returning to Los Angeles with this amazing event," USOC CEO Scott Blackmun said. "As the host of the 1932 and 1984 Olympic Games, Los Angeles has a tremendous Olympic legacy and L.A.’s status as a global center of sport and culture make it an exceptional host for the Olympic Trials."

Making history

In winning the bid, LA MARATHON LLC proposed a February race date that accommodates an NBC broadcast and ensures athletes optimal time to recover should they choose to run in the 2016 Olympic Trials for Track & Field in June. The LA Marathon will follow a day later, on Feb. 14, 2016, providing a weekend festival that celebrates road racing on all levels.

"Securing the privilege of hosting the Olympic Trials Marathon could not have been accomplished without the tireless partnership and commitment from business and civic leaders across Los Angeles, including the LA Sports Council," said Tracey Russell, CEO of LA MARATHON LLC. "It truly seems appropriate that today, some 30 years after Joan Benoit Samuelson’s 1984 triumph in the first Olympic women’s marathon here in this city, we’re announcing once again that America’s Olympic marathoners will create history and find glory on the streets of Los Angeles. By securing the Olympic Trials, Los Angeles is now set to deliver this city’s biggest running weekend since that iconic victory, providing our LA Marathon participants and fans with a rare opportunity to be part of an Olympic Trials celebration."

"Congratulations to Mayor Garcetti, to our team at LA MARATHON LLC, and to all of our partners involved in the 2016 Olympic Trials bid," said Frank McCourt, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of McCourt Global, who in 2008 acquired the operating rights to the LA Marathon. "Today’s announcement clearly illustrates the positive impact that smart people and effective public-private partnerships can deliver for the community and for the sports we’re passionate about. We hope that today marks the start of a very long and productive relationship between LA MARATHON LLC and USA Track & Field."

National tour

Hosting the 2016 Olympic Trials Marathon in Los Angeles continues a national tour for the event: In 2004, the women’s Olympic Trials were in St. Louis and men’s in Birmingham, Ala.; the 2008 Olympic Trials were held in Boston (women) and New York (men); and 2012 saw both races together for the first time in Houston. USATF entertained bids for the 2016 Olympic Trials from three cities: Cincinnati, Houston and Los Angeles.

"Houston did a phenomenal job hosting the first combined men’s and women’s marathon Olympic Trials in 2012," Siegel said. "In Los Angeles, we will continue to grow that model and help elevate the excitement for the Olympic Trials throughout the country."

Start times and specifics on the criterium courses for both the men’s and women’s races will be determined in coming months.

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USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world’s oldest organized sports, some of the most-watched events of Olympic broadcasts, the country’s #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States. For more information on USATF, visit www.usatf.org.

LA MARATHON LLC is a leading U.S. running organization dedicated to inspiring the athlete in every runner and connecting communities through health and fitness. The LA Marathon is among the largest marathons in the country with more than 25,000 participants, thousands of volunteers and hundreds of thousands of spectators. The "Stadium to the Sea" course, starting at Dodger Stadium and finishing near the Santa Monica Pier, is one of the most scenic in the world, taking runners on a tour of Los Angeles past every major landmark. The race has been named Best Big City Race by Runner’s World.