They care about it, every person in the world has tried out for the sport, from the playgrounds to gym class to other sport fields. Every human knows where they are on the speed graph, and what their best track event would be.
Most of those who don't ever join a team know that they could never compete, so they are jealous and ignore the sport out of spite. That has become the default attitude of TV and media executives, who haven't found a way to package the sport. Those executives are still the main arbiters of what the nation pays attention to.
No executives tell me what sports to follow and it’s the same for all sports fans. There is no way distance running could be successfully marketed to the masses.
From the time you were a baby, the media executives have told you what to watch and what to think. Amazingly, you arrived at the exact same conclusions as what they have been telling you all these years. What a great independent thinker you are, not a product of the establishment at all.
Just to reiterate OPs point. Most pro athletes I've met have been annoyed to have been recognized. The pro runners seem super excited to have been recognized
Hahaha. Judging by the men on this site, you have it exactly correct. Personally, I have never encountered a bigger collection of self entitled whiners. Snippy, catty, and bitter at the success of others.
No sport that doesn't run a real championship deserves to be a sport. If your biggest competition is the Olympics you're not a real sport. You don't see the NFL allowing the Olympics every 4 years to be there biggest platform do you?
No sport that doesn't run a real championship deserves to be a sport. If your biggest competition is the Olympics you're not a real sport. You don't see the NFL allowing the Olympics every 4 years to be their biggest platform do you?
That’s most individual sports. Golf and Tennis don’t have 1 Championship event, and the top players are very famous and very wealthy.
Running sadly isn’t very popular. I think some high speed drone footage and real background stories could make cross country type events somewhat interesting to watch. The marathon is simply not that exciting, even for distance running fans.
No sport that doesn't run a real championship deserves to be a sport. If your biggest competition is the Olympics you're not a real sport. You don't see the NFL allowing the Olympics every 4 years to be their biggest platform do you?
That’s most individual sports. Golf and Tennis don’t have 1 Championship event, and the top players are very famous and very wealthy.
Running sadly isn’t very popular. I think some high speed drone footage and real background stories could make cross country type events somewhat interesting to watch. The marathon is simply not that exciting, even for distance running fans.
But both of those sports have their own marquee events. Neither gold nor tennis allow their biggest event to be only every 4 years and farmed out to a third party like the Olympics. These athletes make way more money doing a less interesting sport, at least as far as golf goes.
Neither sport allows a single sponsor to have too much power either like track does to the shoe sponsors.
No sport that doesn't run a real championship deserves to be a sport. If your biggest competition is the Olympics you're not a real sport. You don't see the NFL allowing the Olympics every 4 years to be their biggest platform do you?
That’s most individual sports. Golf and Tennis don’t have 1 Championship event, and the top players are very famous and very wealthy.
Running sadly isn’t very popular. I think some high speed drone footage and real background stories could make cross country type events somewhat interesting to watch. The marathon is simply not that exciting, even for distance running fans.
Middle distance and distance events are boring. I'm not talking about those. Concentrate on the 100 m, 200 m, and 400 m events only and make it a league where the tap athletes competed most of the events.
That’s most individual sports. Golf and Tennis don’t have 1 Championship event, and the top players are very famous and very wealthy.
Running sadly isn’t very popular. I think some high speed drone footage and real background stories could make cross country type events somewhat interesting to watch. The marathon is simply not that exciting, even for distance running fans.
Middle distance and distance events are boring. I'm not talking about those. Concentrate on the 100 m, 200 m, and 400 m events only and make it a league where the tap athletes competed most of the events.
This exactly. Stop trying to make the marathon or 1500 popular. Make a league of the sprints and it will be exciting.
Middle distance and distance events are boring. I'm not talking about those. Concentrate on the 100 m, 200 m, and 400 m events only and make it a league where the tap athletes competed most of the events.
This exactly. Stop trying to make the marathon or 1500 popular. Make a league of the sprints and it will be exciting.
Speak for yourself. I would have zero interest in a league of sprints.
Running isn't respected because the marketing on it sucks, it's rarely on TV and their stars aren't relatable. This wasn't the case in the 60's with Jim Ryun who made multiple covers of sports illustrated, or in the 70's with Prefontaine and Frank Shorter. Plus runners don't get paid sh*t. The people at the end of the bench on an NBA basketball team earn more than the top track athletes. Now in other countries it is different Jacob is a legend in Norway, mobbed by fans everywhere he goes. That reality program Team Ingebrigtsen was a masterstroke. In a winter sports country he is the biggest star. The biggest stars in African countries are treated like gods. Americans don't care much about their running stars. Now Katelyn Tuohy may change all that!
If you are an MLB player or tennis pro and you were to tell someone one the streets they would literally stop in their tracks to ask more. Not to mention you wouldn’t be able to get girls to leave your alone.
if you tell someone you are a pro runner their first response is typically “that’s a thing?”.
Why is the respect from the general public so skewed?
Distance runners aren't athletic. They are the least athletic of track athletes, whom are less athletic than other sports. Besides that, distance running isn't particularly entertaining to watch.
because they bail on competitions if they feel any slight hint of an injury. Distance runners need everything to be perfect.
Oh they got a lil' tweak in their calf muscle? better bail on all race obligations for the next three months.
Oh no, this town only has pavement? gonna get a stressieeeee for surrreeee, gonna have to cut that tempo down becuase im not on soft dirt
Meanwhile, NBA/NFL/NHL etc. players are battling constant pains, getting into the equivalent of car crashes in every game and still fighting to get back on the field/court/rink ASAP.
because they bail on competitions if they feel any slight hint of an injury. Distance runners need everything to be perfect.
Oh they got a lil' tweak in their calf muscle? better bail on all race obligations for the next three months.
Oh no, this town only has pavement? gonna get a stressieeeee for surrreeee, gonna have to cut that tempo down becuase im not on soft dirt
Meanwhile, NBA/NFL/NHL etc. players are battling constant pains, getting into the equivalent of car crashes in every game and still fighting to get back on the field/court/rink ASAP.
On top of this, they're scared to compete unless everything is perfect. The race, the venue, the weather, the build up, the pacing, etc. Literally look at the way Bowerman operates. These guys won't even go near a cross country course. Bunch of babies, all of them.
Because running is a non-contact, non-skilled “sport”. What highlights would you see on SportsCenter? This skinny twig ran a dozen laps around a track a couple seconds faster than the other skinny twigs? Cool, what’s the next highlight? This skinny twig ran 4 laps around a track a few seconds faster than the other skinny twigs!
because they bail on competitions if they feel any slight hint of an injury. Distance runners need everything to be perfect.
Oh they got a lil' tweak in their calf muscle? better bail on all race obligations for the next three months.
Oh no, this town only has pavement? gonna get a stressieeeee for surrreeee, gonna have to cut that tempo down becuase im not on soft dirt
Meanwhile, NBA/NFL/NHL etc. players are battling constant pains, getting into the equivalent of car crashes in every game and still fighting to get back on the field/court/rink ASAP.
Another good point. Mahomes played the second half of the SB barely able to walk. If a marathon dinner has the same injury they drop.
Running isn't respected because the marketing on it sucks, it's rarely on TV and their stars aren't relatable. This wasn't the case in the 60's with Jim Ryun who made multiple covers of sports illustrated, or in the 70's with Prefontaine and Frank Shorter. Plus runners don't get paid sh*t. The people at the end of the bench on an NBA basketball team earn more than the top track athletes. Now in other countries it is different Jacob is a legend in Norway, mobbed by fans everywhere he goes. That reality program Team Ingebrigtsen was a masterstroke. In a winter sports country he is the biggest star. The biggest stars in African countries are treated like gods. Americans don't care much about their running stars. Now Katelyn Tuohy may change all that!
Pro sports in general weren't that big until the 80s. So there was more of an appetite for track and road racing.