Sacramento organizers of worlds next July have put the best spin on 2010 nationals, writing: “Sacramento’s test run is complete, and the results bode well for the 2011 World Masters Athletics Outdoor Championships.” (The whole report is here.) Meet entry
M55 supermiler Keith Bateman of Australia says he probably won’t enter Sacramento worlds next year. Not because of potential 1500 rival Rich Burns. “(I) would love to meet and race Rich,” Keith says. But the 2011 meet poses a problem:
M85 multi-eventer Charles Ross of the Atlanta TC competed in 16 events at Sacramento. Yes, 16 (winning seven golds, six silvers and two bronze.) Perhaps the most decorated athlete at nationals, he’s in the Hall of Fame. But not ours.
Rich Burns is a runner who comes around once in a generation. Or maybe not. When Rich ran his 4:36.94 mile in June, he crushed a 33-year-old world record for M55. Good for another 33 years? Try six months. On
Al Oerter, the famed masters thrower, famously said of another meet: “These are the Olympics. You die for them.” A brief story in an Oregon paper reminds me of the sacrifices we make as well: “Former Western Oregon athlete Alison
Personal trainer and author David O’Meara of Sarasota, the mega-mile guy, is back again this summer with another challenge to himself. He’s running around the world — one mile at a time. His site reports: “David has now begun his
Rita Hanscom went to Monte Carlo to collect her IAAF Masters Athlete of the Year Award, but she wasn’t yet done. Saturday night at masters nationals, she formally (and finally) received her USATF Masters Athlete of the Year plaque from
The only woman on Earth who can do this, of course. In a hilarious chat with a British reporter, Merlene Ottey is quoted as saying: “There’s no point in me running in masters events unless it’s against the men. And
Sharp-eyed visitors may notice changes in my message board, called the Forums. Folks who need corrective lenses (like me) also may note the requirement that users re-set their passwords. Instructions are posted here. It’s a nuisance, I know, but the
On the first day of masters nationals, I learned something funny and sad: Some (or many?) of the 27-inch hurdles in Sacramento were a half-inch short. Running referee Murray Sanford of Georgia reportedly made the discovery. They were fixed the
Kathy Bergen’s W70 world record (below) was a highlight of masters nationals (and with her AR in the 200 should have made her USATF Athlete of the Week). But she was far from being the only jumping star at Sacramento.
According to Italian news reports, masters long jump champion Roberto La Barbera, born in February 1967, failed a drug test at a recent meet. But he’s not your typical M40 jumper. He’s a blade jumper, a la Oscar Pistorius, the