She did the 2022 London marathon commentary and also gives commentary for Euro meets including the current Euro champs. Interviewing elites also. So young, but so poised and prepared. How is she so phenomenally better than Americans even though her career just started?
I also found some parkrun results around the high 21 range.
She did the 2022 London marathon commentary and also gives commentary for Euro meets including the current Euro champs. Interviewing elites also. So young, but so poised and prepared. How is she so phenomenally better than Americans even though her career just started?
I also found some parkrun results around the high 21 range.
British and other Commonwealth country commentators just tend to be better than Americans for any sport that isn’t pure USA (baseball, football, basketball still even that’s getting more international all the time). I’m American and watch most US channels and feeds so it’s not as I want this to be true. I don’t know if it’s in the training/education the announcers get in their countries before going on TV, or a product of the level of intelligence they aim for, or the trust they have in their audience. On the last option, it seems like other countries’ commentators trust that the viewer knows the basics of the sport they’re watching, and never do the Larry Rawson style of “go down to your local high school track…” explaining like the audience is children, nor do the former-athlete color announcers spend an inordinate time talking about their own careers. Kara Goucher is the one American who I think is trying to be like the Brits and give greater and more interesting detail, having assumed everyone watching knows the basics of pacing and strategy and so forth. Compare ant other US announcer to the New Zealand (I think?) duo who call the biggest meets (see for example the YouTube upload of Centro’s gold medal run) and the US ones just seem like nincompoops.
She did the 2022 London marathon commentary and also gives commentary for Euro meets including the current Euro champs. Interviewing elites also. So young, but so poised and prepared. How is she so phenomenally better than Americans even though her career just started?
I also found some parkrun results around the high 21 range.
British and other Commonwealth country commentators just tend to be better than Americans for any sport that isn’t pure USA (baseball, football, basketball still even that’s getting more international all the time). I’m American and watch most US channels and feeds so it’s not as I want this to be true. I don’t know if it’s in the training/education the announcers get in their countries before going on TV, or a product of the level of intelligence they aim for, or the trust they have in their audience. On the last option, it seems like other countries’ commentators trust that the viewer knows the basics of the sport they’re watching, and never do the Larry Rawson style of “go down to your local high school track…” explaining like the audience is children, nor do the former-athlete color announcers spend an inordinate time talking about their own careers. Kara Goucher is the one American who I think is trying to be like the Brits and give greater and more interesting detail, having assumed everyone watching knows the basics of pacing and strategy and so forth. Compare ant other US announcer to the New Zealand (I think?) duo who call the biggest meets (see for example the YouTube upload of Centro’s gold medal run) and the US ones just seem like nincompoops.
T&F is a bigger deal in Europe so the commentators don't pander to people who have never watched before. Its clear that the American announcers are told to simplify it for non fans, so you get the inane Larry Rawson compare everything to the Mile commentary.
She did the 2022 London marathon commentary and also gives commentary for Euro meets including the current Euro champs. Interviewing elites also. So young, but so poised and prepared. How is she so phenomenally better than Americans even though her career just started?
I also found some parkrun results around the high 21 range.
She did the 2022 London marathon commentary and also gives commentary for Euro meets including the current Euro champs. Interviewing elites also. So young, but so poised and prepared. How is she so phenomenally better than Americans even though her career just started?
I also found some parkrun results around the high 21 range.
Why is this thread on the front page?
I started this thread and wondered the same thing. Call me surprised^2 now
She did the 2022 London marathon commentary and also gives commentary for Euro meets including the current Euro champs. Interviewing elites also. So young, but so poised and prepared. How is she so phenomenally better than Americans even though her career just started?
I also found some parkrun results around the high 21 range.
British and other Commonwealth country commentators just tend to be better than Americans for any sport that isn’t pure USA (baseball, football, basketball still even that’s getting more international all the time). I’m American and watch most US channels and feeds so it’s not as I want this to be true. I don’t know if it’s in the training/education the announcers get in their countries before going on TV, or a product of the level of intelligence they aim for, or the trust they have in their audience. On the last option, it seems like other countries’ commentators trust that the viewer knows the basics of the sport they’re watching, and never do the Larry Rawson style of “go down to your local high school track…” explaining like the audience is children, nor do the former-athlete color announcers spend an inordinate time talking about their own careers. Kara Goucher is the one American who I think is trying to be like the Brits and give greater and more interesting detail, having assumed everyone watching knows the basics of pacing and strategy and so forth. Compare ant other US announcer to the New Zealand (I think?) duo who call the biggest meets (see for example the YouTube upload of Centro’s gold medal run) and the US ones just seem like nincompoops.
I've been saying that American commentators have to watch some of the British coverage to learn what to do.
It's great when I can find English commentary on those road races in Europe.
I saw the race from Romania where the 10K course ended up being short- great commentary.
a product of the level of intelligence they aim for, or the trust they have in their audience.
Both / and
US bball and fball announcers aim higher on both accounts and it makes for better broadcasts.
I disagree for football. I watch football games and wonder if there's a letsfootball.com with posters complaining about all the stupid things they say.
My favorite is- "that was an athletic move" No kidding, it's football, they're athletes.
She did the 2022 London marathon commentary and also gives commentary for Euro meets including the current Euro champs. Interviewing elites also. So young, but so poised and prepared. How is she so phenomenally better than Americans even though her career just started?
I also found some parkrun results around the high 21 range.
British and other Commonwealth country commentators just tend to be better than Americans for any sport that isn’t pure USA (baseball, football, basketball still even that’s getting more international all the time). I’m American and watch most US channels and feeds so it’s not as I want this to be true. I don’t know if it’s in the training/education the announcers get in their countries before going on TV, or a product of the level of intelligence they aim for, or the trust they have in their audience. On the last option, it seems like other countries’ commentators trust that the viewer knows the basics of the sport they’re watching, and never do the Larry Rawson style of “go down to your local high school track…” explaining like the audience is children, nor do the former-athlete color announcers spend an inordinate time talking about their own careers. Kara Goucher is the one American who I think is trying to be like the Brits and give greater and more interesting detail, having assumed everyone watching knows the basics of pacing and strategy and so forth. Compare ant other US announcer to the New Zealand (I think?) duo who call the biggest meets (see for example the YouTube upload of Centro’s gold medal run) and the US ones just seem like nincompoops.
Agree that Kara is the best of the US commentators--she brings excitement and knowledge to the task, and helps keep even the long races interesting
Football is in the middle. Obviously there are levels of complexity and detail that the commentators can't get into for a tv audience, but they still use plenty of material that would be totally mystifying for a first-time viewer...
picking up the blitz
cover 0/1/2
zone vs man
screen pass
RPO
etc.
Even something as simple as picking up the first down they expect viewers to understand what they are talking about, but a first time viewer wouldn't know it. I feel like Larry Rawson would be saying "the ball advance 10 yards, a team they must, which then gives them 4 more downs, did the team."
American track commentators are unimaginably bad. To the point where the race will finish and they clearly don’t know the name of the winner. Someone could set a world record and they would have no clue.
Football is in the middle. Obviously there are levels of complexity and detail that the commentators can't get into for a tv audience, but they still use plenty of material that would be totally mystifying for a first-time viewer...
picking up the blitz
cover 0/1/2
zone vs man
screen pass
RPO
etc.
Even something as simple as picking up the first down they expect viewers to understand what they are talking about, but a first time viewer wouldn't know it. I feel like Larry Rawson would be saying "the ball advance 10 yards, a team they must, which then gives them 4 more downs, did the team."
I was fascinated by football and baseball from the first time I saw a game on T.V. Baseball is self explanatory is didn’t take long to understand down and yards needed. Understanding the stuff you listed wasn’t necessary to become a fan. As for track, I followed sprints, but was uninterested in distance running until I took up the sport.
I don’t know what a commentator could say to make distance running more interesting to the average person. The are even LRers that find the 10000m to be boring.
American track commentators are unimaginably bad. To the point where the race will finish and they clearly don’t know the name of the winner. Someone could set a world record and they would have no clue.
Race Video and interview of Alan Webb going after the American Mile record that had been held by Steve Scott (3:47.69). Alan Webb breaks the American Record ...