T-minus two days: La Mesa Patch ready for Wednesday launch
My baby is ready to fly. For the past eight weeks, I’ve been getting La Mesa Patch set to launch. It’s the online newspaper I mentioned as my new job. If you’d be so kind, would you please go to this info page and sign up for an email alert? The alert will tell you when the site is live. Then you can see what’s been occupying my time since late July. It’s gonna blow you away!
Brant Tolsma raises own world record in M60 double decathlon
So if the winner of the Olympic decathlon is the world’s greatest athlete, what do you call victors in the double decathlon? The world’s greatest superstars? Whatever you call them (including crazy beyond belief), you got to give double-decars credit for courage for hanging in there this past weekend at Lynchburg University, where they held the World Championships for Ultra Multi Events. See results here. M60 Brant Tolsma, the legendary double-decist and coach at Liberty, scored 12,793 points over two days. That’s a WR for his age group by 3,000 points. “Tolsma broke 13 different age group (60-64) world records during the competition,” we learn.
Brant appears to be third from left, next to M55 winner Rob Duncanson of Southern California (in the middle).
September 27, 2010
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Canadian TV featuring 3 Southern California masters track stars
Doug Smith reports that a Canadian TV station has started showcasing three California masters tracksters. Doug writes, and quotes director Genevieve Brault: “Our ‘109’ episode on Masters Athletes will air next week on RDI (Réseau de l’information) in Canada. The episode is called “Médaillés d’âge d’or” (Golden Age Medalist) and will air according to the following schedule: Saturday, Sept. 25th at 7:30 pm. Sunday, Sept. 26th at 11:30 am. Re-run on Christmas day! December 25th at 7:30 pm. The story will air this weekend (see details below) on a RDI (French language CBC) TV series “109” in Canada.”
Johnnie, Sumi and Tom get the French treatment on Canadian show.
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Watch masters men and women run Fifth Avenue Mile right here
Weldon Johnson, or WEJO of letsrun.com fame, sent me a note that Sunday morning’s Fifth Avenue Mile will be live-streamed on the Web, and you can see it via the screen below. Races start at 9 a.m. Eastern time. And M35 never-to-run-masters Bernard Lagat is in the elite field along with Alan Webb.
September 25, 2010
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Race of the Sexes uses WMA age-graded tables to declare winner
Lucy Proctor and David Lewis
Ex-USATF CEO Doug Logan says Willie Banks fired him at bedside
Doug Logan
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2010 world records by Americans listed; any legit marks missing?
To help the USATF Masters T&F Awards Committee decide who should get top honors, a list is prepared showing which Americans set world indoor and outdoor records in 2010. The list posted here is unofficial, of course. Records aren’t gold-plated until approval comes at the USATF annual meeting. But this list deserves close scrutiny. Does it miss any marks? Are any U.S. athletes left off who set world age-group records? Happily, Bernard Lagat is noted. (Yeah, yeah, I know. He doesn’t do masters track. He’s 35 — masters age — but is good enough to set American open records.) Too bad he’s not in the running for masters age-group awards at the Dec. 1-5 annual meeting in Virginia.
September 22, 2010
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USATF Masters T&F Awards Committee issues call for nominees
Mary Trotto took over from Dave Clingan as chairman of the USATF Masters T&F Awards Committee (of which I’m a member). Here’s part of what Mary sent her members: “Anyone can nominate any athlete including nominating themselves. Below are those on the committee who volunteered to specifically look at one age group to make sure that we do not overlook any worthy candidates. This is an additional safeguard. Mainly they will wait for the nominations to come in and just before the close of nominations they will check through the list of nominations in their specific age group to make sure all of the worthy candidates have been nominated. At that time, they may nominate additional athletes if appropriate. I am hoping this safeguard will make sure we have not overlooked any worthy athlete.” Have someone to suggest? Write Mary Trotto.
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Italian masters marathoner slapped with 2-year ban for doping
WMA President Stan Perkins reports that “World Masters Athletics acknowledges the information recently received from the IAAF that Mr. Nour Eddine Chakour, (but maybe should be called Noureddine) a master athlete from Italy, was found guilty of a doping offence. He was sanctioned by FIDAL with a two (2) years period of ineligibility (from April 20, 2010 until April 19, 2012). The analysis of the Italian athlete’s urine sample, collected on March 3, 2010, at the Italian Marathon Championship in Piacenza, revealed the presence of the prohibited substances Norandrosterone, Furosemide, Betamethasone and Dexamethasone. His results achieved at the Italian Championship will be disqualified accordingly.” Anyone know this dude?
I found this photo of a runner named Chakour Nour-Eddine with Google.
Weia Reinboud notches 10th world record as masters flopper
Weia Reinboud should clone herself. (Actually, she already has — as the photo below shows.) Yesterday she closed her season at a small town in her native Holland by clearing 1.47 meters (4-9 3/4) on her first try — bettering her own W60 world record of 1.45. That’s her 10th world age-group record in three age groups (seven outdoor and three indoor). But she called the finale “a quite bizarre closing of the summer season.”
Weia manages to clear bars despite competition from her clones.
