If you aren't going to race, don't bother training
What if I can "not race" and still set world records and win multiple Olympic gold medals?
Individuals have to worry about themselves. But, for the sport in general it's not good for them to not be in the public eye.
Now, track athletes make money because the public watches and they like to watch stars.
If a pro football team could play fewer games, they would.
OK, we can't MAKE athletes race. There are legitimate reasons not to but for the good of the sport they should be out there.
Imagine if top marathoners could run 8 in a year? They would be out there for people to see and read about and get to know. Not just people here on letsrun but people everywhere.
Imagine if the 20K or 1/2 marathon were the most popular event. The World half marathon majors would be more popular- they can race more often.
Max is trying to make T&F a successful business outside of the Olys. Others have tried and failed. Over and over again. $B wasted in the US. Good luck.
Look up the 1971 Dream Mile in Philadelphia. Then look up other older meets and races form the 1970's to the 80's.
Track and Field was popular here in the US and was one of the most popular sports in the world.
I remember when one night at the 1987 world championships was the most viewed event in broadcast history.
It WAS popular and can be again. We don't need teams- golf, tennis don't have them.
We DO need the major athletes to get out there and compete more often with less of an emphasis on time and more on competition.
lots of good info and ideas in this thread...now i'm curious about many times we might expect to see sydney and athing compete each year going forward...
Drake is a great venue. Problem is lack of local interest and unpredictable weather. They made a big push to be the “Hayward of the Midwest” in the 2010’s but it fell flat. Severely struggled to fill the stadium for USATF Champs the few times they hosted.
Zero of the podunk college town meets or venues have amounted to anything short of a public nuisance. They wasted untold amounts of tax payers monies. I blame "Build It and They Will Come" line from the Kevin Costner movie Field of Dreams.
In L.A. the TV crews get paid the Hollywood Union Rate which is very high when compared to stadiums in college villages and truck stops.
Something easy they can do in a few minutes is to setup an ETHEREUM account, with contract terms, and and deposit prize money months before the meeting then announce the prize monies have been secured in Ethereum. The CFO would deposit the funds to a specific Race and Place. After the race has completed three people must assign the funds: Head Official, Chief Timekeeper, and Meetimg Director. Without all three the funds are locked forever. If assigned then only the winner can be PAID by transfer to a personal Ethereum Wallet.
Bobby says in the article that Sydney and Athing, who each only ran about 4ish times in 2022, will compete in 2023 in more and additional events. He suggests Athing may try move both up and down (400/1500) and he seems confident both women can be successful in the new events.