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Tommie Smith 1968 Suedes 2008-03-13 13:59:46 It’s about time that John Carlos and Tommie Smith
finally got some love. Puma is paying a small tribute to the two former track stars with “Tommie Smith" Suede Pack. During the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City when newly crowned 200-meter champion and record holder Tommie Smith raised his fist on the podium, along with bronze medal winner John Carlos, the controversy jumped off. The barefoot athletes’ salute was meant to represent the civil rights movement and the struggle of African Americans. Tommie Smith and John Carlos were kicked out of the Olympic village, suspended from the U.S. Olympic team, and summarily sent home from the games.To commemorate these brave men, a two sneaker collection of Suedes will release later this month with a repeating fist monogram along the upper and incl
Haile Gebrselassie Not Running in Beijing Marathon 2008-03-12 14:50:45 Officials in Beijing
are probably seething by news that distance runner Haile Gebrselassie just announced that he will not be competing in the Olympic marathon in Beijing. Haile is perhaps the sport’s biggest name and a fan favorite.The city’s pollution levels and his exercise induced asthma are the reasons cited by the marathon world record holder’s agent about why he decided not to run the marathon. Rather, he will try to qualify for Ethopia in the 10,000-meters.“The pollution in China is a threat to my health, and it would be difficult for me to run 42 kilometers in my current condition,” Gebrselassie said in an interview.Britain is leaning towards giving Olympic athletes pollution masks to deal with the rancid air. Maybe this is a job to call on NASA for help?By Jay Hicks, a. Read more:Marathon
Allyson Felix Voted L.A. Sportswoman of the Year! 2008-03-11 23:31:37 Allyson Felix
is in a class all her own. Felix was recently honored by peers at the 3rd annual L.A. Sports Award for a break-through season in 2007. The award marked a move from being a 200-meter runner to an all-around force that can compete from the 100 to 400. “Sportswoman of the Year” was awarded to track star Allyson Felix by the Los Angeles Sports Council.The L.A. native ran circles around opponents in an talent-rich 200-meters at the 2007 World Track and Field Championship in Osaka. There, Felix also helped the U.S. team win gold medals in the 4x100 and 4x400 relays.David Beckham was not on hand at the Beverly Hills Hotel to accept the “Sportsman of the Year” award. Felix said, “My only disappointment was not getting to meet David Beckham, who was named Sportsman of the Y Read more:Voted
Richards, Wariner, and Greene Spotted in Valencia! 2008-03-10 16:23:17 Jonathan Edwards, Maurice Greene
, Janeth Jeposgei, IAAF President Lamine Diack, Sanya Richards, Jeremy Wariner, Jonas Wistrom CEO of AF and Susanna Kallur.Americans Sanya Richards, Jeremy Wariner, and Maurice Greene were in Valencia
, Spain to promote the upcoming ÅF Golden League Tour. Europe’s lucrative outdoor track circuit kicks off in three months.Athletes will compete for a part of the $1 million jackpot. A share of which is on offer to any athlete who can win at all six ÅF Golden League events. The six events in this year’s ÅF Golden League take place in Berlin (June 1), Oslo (6 June), Paris (July 11), Rome (July 18), Zürich (August 29) and Brussels (September 5). Appearance fees up to $100,000 per race are also paid by meet directors to entice top athletes to run in their m
Records Are Meant to Be Broken: World Indoor Championships, Day 3 Blogging 2008-03-10 03:58:14 Yelena Soboleva of Russia celebrates after setting the first world record of the Valencia event. Team USA ended the third and final day with a strong finish in Valencia, Spain. All told, the United States led all countries in the final medal count with five gold, five silver, and three bronze medals.The international meet, while absent some of the sport’s biggest names, was marked with quite a few memorable performances. There were break through moments for athletes who had been waiting for validation of their years of work and sacrifice.Nine women towed the starting line in the 1500-meters and one ended by breaking her own world record: Yelena Soboleva of Russia. This race will be remembered in the halls of track for many years to come.The first 1,200 meters passed at a brisk pace. Yel Read more:Blogging
, Broken
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, Records
, World
Stars Shine Bright in Valencia:World Indoor Championships, Day 2 Blogging 2008-03-10 01:10:58 United States' LoLo Jones celebrates as she wins the gold medal in 60m hurdles.Team USA wins 5 medals.Excellent athletes stood up tall delivering sizzling performances on Day 2 of the 2008 World
Indoor Championships
in Valencia
, Spain.Track and field is in a phase of worldwide growth that includes Saudi Arabia and British Virginia Islands winning their first ever world indoor championships medals.American Lolo Jones gets PreraceJitters.com "most ecstatic" award for celeberatory mood after winning the 60-meter hurdles in 7.80, ahead of American Candice Davis. This is her first world title. The hurdler had sound technique and explosive speed to run away from the field as the Americans went 1-2.Red hot favorite, Ethiopia's Meseret Defar, sat behind leaders during the early laps, then hit the Read more:Blogging
, Bright
, Shine
Marion Jones Enters Federal Prison! 2008-03-08 17:16:27 On Friday, Marion
Jones surrendered to authorities shortly before noon in Ft. Worth, Texas to begin serving her six-month sentence. The former Olympic stand-out will also serve 400 hours of community service in each of the two years following her release while on probation.The judge sentenced her to the maximum sentence under her plea deal to set an example to other athletes who might have messed up in the same fashion. Marion has admitted that she juiced up for the 2000 Olympics in Sydney and has returned every single one of the five medals that she won there. Three of them were gold medals.Marion Jones is the first professional athlete to serve jail time in this doping scandal. She got drugs from the same place, Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO), as Barry Bonds and Jason Giambi. Read more:Federal
, Prison
Fast & Furious: World Indoors Championships, Day 1 Blogging 2008-03-07 21:59:50 Angela Williams triumphs over obstacles to win first 60-meters title. The medal count for Team USA is off to a good start on the first day of the 2008 World
Indoor Championships
in Valencia, Spain. The U.S. has two athletes competing in each event. Participating athletes won roster spots at the U.S. indoor nationals two weeks ago in Boston.It was an exciting first day for Team USA in Valencia, beginning a weekend of what is expected to be high level performances. The first day was filled mostly with preliminary races and three final events.Angela Williams won her first elusive 60-meter title and prepared to shake up the female sprint world come this summer. The 28-year-old American sprinter won gold and collected a $40,000 winner’s prize for a superb effort and a confidence booster for Read more:Blogging
WCSN.com to Provide Free Live Webcast of World Indoor Champs 2008-03-07 19:14:30 There’s no excuse to miss the action!PreraceJitters.com is excited to announce: WCSN.com, in partnership with USA Track & Field, will provide free LIVE coverage for the 12th IAAF World
Indoor Championships being held in Valencia, Spain on March 7-9. The free live webcast starts at 10:00 a.m. ET on Friday, March 7th with continued coverage on Saturday, March 8 (10:50 a.m. ET) and Sunday, March 9 (10:50 a.m. ET).Woo hoo!—who doesn’t love free stuff? Free-as in no money. No dinero. Leave your Visa in your wallet kind of free, because there are no hidden fees. If you find yourself doing the “I scored something free dance”, it’s quite alright because track fans never, ever get anything for free.Track fans are normally treated like second-class citizens in the world of U.S. athle Read more:Champs
, Webcast
Mozambique Great Maria Mutola on Farewell Tour 2008-03-06 21:30:33 Maria
Mutola celebrates as she crosses the finish line to win the Olympic women's 800m gold medal in Sydney.Living up to great expectations.The upcoming World Indoor Track meet in Valencia, Spain will be Maria Mutola’s last indoor meet. She formally announced last month that she is retiring at the outdoor season’s end and will focus on her foundation. The retirement announcement early in the year allows fans an opportunity to enjoy this living legend’s last season.Maria is a great person, and not because she’s the fastest or strongest. The fact she made it this far in life is a victory in itself. Her resolve was tested long before the fame began. In the 1970’s, she faced life in an impoverished suburb in the Mozambique capital Maputo during a 17-year stretch of war and poverty.T Read more:Farewell
, Great
2008 World Indoor Championships TV & Webcast Coverage 2008-03-05 14:25:06 Track fans typically scour the TV guide to find track & field broadcasts and often miss portions of the meets, or an entire meet, because the information is not readily available.Look no further. PreraceJitters.com has a complete broadcast list of when and where the 2008 World
Indoor Championships
from Valencia, Spain can be viewed March 7 - 9.There is another avenue to see the worlds. WCSN (World Championship Sports Network) a cable tv network and website is broadcasting every hour of the 2008 World Indoor Championships. WCSN will provide live coverage and make the content available with a $4.95 monthly membership through their website WCSN.com. Fans can log onto WCSN.com or watch on WCSN TV.WCSN also will make the content available to viewers on WCSN.com as a video-on-demand product Read more:Coverage
, Webcast
World Indoor Champions in Valencia, Spain 2008-03-03 22:36:13 It's all about the benjamins! The World
Indoor Champions
hips are mad popular in Europe. This year a record 159 countries have entered athletes in the track meet held in Valencia
, Spain
from March 7 – 9. With the Olympics taking place in Beijing later this year, athletes have an extra incentive to perform well at the meet. The event is sure to be a spectacular affair.This is the final indoor meet of the year before runners across the globe begin the outdoor season focusing on Beijing. The World Indoors is sold out which is a big boost to a meet that is already wildly popular.Valencia, Spain certainly is a great host city with plenty to offer sports fans - it provided the home port for last year’s America’s Cup sailing competition and is set to do so again in 2009. The first Formula On
Q & A: Dr. Ralph Mann--Track Expert on Being A Blur! 2008-02-29 11:10:46 PreraceJitters.com speaks with one of the nation’s leading experts in the biomechanics of sports performance.Many think that running fast is simply a matter of picking up your feet quickly. Ummm…better think again. PreraceJitters.com had the pleasure to catch up with Dr. Ralph
Mann—one of the world’s top authorities on biomechanics—to set the record straight.Dr. Mann is the man, behind the man—teaching college and elite coaches the finer points of sprinting that helps the U.S. stay on top of the game. He is a doctor of mechanics, assisting runners with becoming human bullets. The results of his work can be seen in the mountains of U.S. won medals at world championships and Olympic Games.Currently he serves as head of the Sprint / Hurdle division for Elite Athlete Program of USA Read more:Expert
, Track
AT&T U.S. Indoor Track & Field Championships Highlights 2008-02-29 01:36:37 Lolo Jones Visa Championship winnerKhadevis Robinson, Lolo Jones, and Christian Cantwell win big!Besides national indoor titles, roster spots were also at stake this past weekend. The top two finishers in each event go on to compete at the 2008 IAAF World Indoor Track
& FieldChampionships
for Team USA on March 7-9 in Valencia, Spain.Many of U.S.A.’s biggest names did not participate in the indoor season because it is an Olympic year. Their absence means the typically much smaller appearance fees paid at indoor meets was not worth the time needed to prepare for the outdoor season.The indoor national championship meet was marked by low attendance, a shame considering the fabulous facility in Boston. Even with the smaller crowds, there were some impressive performances. And here's why Read more:Highlights
When Athletes Blog: Olympic Hopeful Brianna Glenn 2008-02-29 01:17:58 BriannaGlenn
and Jamie Nieto on the red carpet.Brianna Glenn isn’t exactly a serious actress. In fact, she’s an elite long jumper, sprinter, and a model.The Olympic
hopeful, and track’s most hilarious persona, wasn’t invited to the Oscars in Los Angeles. However she, Olympian high jumper Jamie Nieto, and agent Paul Doyle did manage to make an Oscar soiree in Boston while in town for indoor nationals.Track fans need more athletes to represent the sport in an exciting fashion. Has she ever thought of cloning herself? Brianna describes the adventurous evening on her official blog:“While I was in Boston this past weekend I had the opportunity to attend this fancy gala that was part Oscar party and part fundraiser for Breast Cancer. I guess Boston does their best imitation of Hollyw Read more:Hopeful
Stacy Dragila Is Engaged! 2008-02-26 13:07:38 Olympian Stacy
Dragila 2000 Gold Medal Women's Pole VaultIt’s all about taking love to new heights. Olympian Stacy Dragila, is engaged to former Washington State discus thrower Ian Waltz.Ian Waltz is the top ranked U.S. discus thrower, and Dragila is the American outdoor record holder and a pole vault pioneer.Congrats to the happy couple!Click here to see the NBC cameras follow as the Olympic hopeful gets creative and proposes to Stacy.Love sparked on the track and is taking them to the wedding chapel!By Jay Hicks, a.k.a. Track Evangelist Read more:Engaged
The Final Lap: Around the Globe in 60 seconds 2008-02-25 02:09:48 With all of the excitement and preparation for this week’s upcoming U.S. indoor national championship meet. Let’s not forget about the great week that was had in track & field.Athletes will compete at the AT&T USA Indoor Track & Field Championships on Sunday to win a national title and a roster spots for Team USA roster spots for the 2008 IAAF World Indoor Track & Field Championships on March 7-9 in Valencia, Spain.You can tell it’s an Olympic year because no one wants to get left at home. This last week in track & field has produced a lot of impressive performances.Steven Spielberg rolled out! The Chinese are looking to save face after the maker of Schindler’s List resigned his Olympic duties in protest of the China's support of the human rights abuses in Darf Read more:Final
, Globe
Wariner & Powell Impressive! 2008-02-25 01:09:57 10.04 meeting record for Asafa Powell
in MelbourneOn Thursday, powerful messages were conveyed without a word being said at the Melbourne Track Classic in Australia. Jeremy ran a super fast time for February, and Powell came out and let competitors know that he has mental and physical toughness.The one-lap champ set an intense pace from the start and won handily in 44.82 seconds. The second place runner was nearly a full second behind Jeremy Wariner.Jeremy ran below 45 seconds in the 400-meters as he predicted for the season opener and in the process probably squelched media talk that his season and career were doomed.When asked he said, “I had a great race today. I got to see where I was in my training, and now I go back and rest for a couple of days and then get back on the grind.”In Read more:Impressive
My First Guest Blog! 2008-02-21 10:26:35 Michael Johnson looks on as Heisman Trophy runner-up and possible No. 1 overall pick Darren McFadden at the Michael Johnson Performance Center at Craig Ranch.Guest
blog leads to a deeper question.From: SpeedEndurance.com and guest writer, Jay Hicks.I wrote my first guest blog with byline at SpeedEndurance.com, "The NFL’s top candidates are hoping track legend, Michael Johnson’s sprinting wisdom brushes off on them. Two of the draft’s top running backs, Darren McFadden and Felix Jones, are in a six-week training program for the scouting combine at the Michael Johnson Performance Center (MJPC) in McKinney, Texas, just north of Dallas." The post is a must-read about the five-time Olympic sprint champ’s $20 million training facility for youth athletes, elite athletes, and professional Read more:First
My Big Announcement 2008-02-21 10:25:56 It is with great pleasure that I can announce…SpeedEndurance.com has asked Jay Hicks editor of Prerace Jitters to guest write a weekly post with byline – the first one being delivered on Wednesday(yesterday).Woo hoo!!!The posts will be a fun and refreshing way of looking at the wacky world of track & field, in addition to covering news within the sport.I have already written the first post for SpeedEndurance.com. They are a great partner for Prerace Jitters, encouraging me to think outside the box and providing increased exposure to the PRJ blog.SpeedEndurance.com is one of the biggest track names on the internet and averages over 1,000 daily readers. This site is a fun, useful, and interesting approach to Track & Field, lifestyle, health, and fitness. Prerace Jitters has come Read more:Announcement
Not So Fast! 2008-02-20 12:15:07 The world's fastest man, Jamaican Asafa Powell, in Melbourne yesterday.The fastest man ever is 50/50 on getting to the starting line this Thursday at one of Australia’s premier meets, where he is a headlining act.Asafa Powell arrived in Melbourne with four stitches in a deep cut in his knee courtesy of a fall, and the injury forced him to pull out of last Saturday’s grand prix meet in Sydney.Stitches were removed on Saturday, and Powell still has soreness in the knee. And now, Asafa is seriously considering not running Thursday at Melbourne’s Grand Prix."There is still some inflammation inside, so we just have to get rid of that," he told reporters in Melbourne on Tuesday.We doubt that Powell will take any risk in an Olympic year, and we hope he recovers quickly. But the show must g
Wariner Stumbles In Season Opener 2008-02-19 17:05:04 Wariner runs second at 200-meters in Sydney Grand PrixThe season opener didn’t go so hot for Jeremy Wariner. The Aussie, Daniel Batman, beat Wariner in the 200-meters at the Sydney Grand Prix in Australia. Batman led from the start and won in 20.81. Jeremy was second in 20.93.J Dub's time was decent considering the early time of year, and a lost in the 200-meters means nothing. The 400 is his bread and butter."This is really just a tuneup race for me to see where I'm at with my training and what I need to work on," Wariner said.However, the race won't be enough to satisfy the "do nothing" media. They will write that Wariner is off to a bad start since leaving Coach Hart and his career is ruined. That's garbage.But this race sure didn't help him in the court of public opinion.By Jay Hick Read more:Opener
, Season
Brianna Glenn Graces Sports Illustrated and Blogs About It! 2008-02-18 01:14:09 (r)Heather Mitts (soccer), and (c)Lovie Jung (softball), (r)BriannaGlenn
(track)Olympic hopeful Brianna Glenn has a lot to talk about!The world-class long jumper and sprinter recently posed along side Olympic athletes Lovie Jung and Heather Mitts in ads appearing in the new issue of SportsIllustrated
Swimsuit 2008.The casual fan may think track & field is boring. They obviously haven’t come across Brianna.Before jumping a flight to race in England, the University of Arizona alum posted the following message on her official blog:“I will be spending the next couple of days in the Big Apple courtesy of Anheuser-Busch and Sports Illustrated. I did a modeling job over the summer that I will be sharing more about when it debuts in the next week or so, and because of that, I get to pre Read more:Blogs
PRJ Insider: Tyson Invitational Preview 2008-02-15 19:47:34 Spearman has personal best time of 19.65 in outdoor 200-metersThe Tyson Invitational typically draws big crowds. This year is no exception. In a mere seven years, the meet has developed a reputation for exceptional indoor races.The Tyson Invitational is set to run Friday, February 15 at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville. The first event begins at 8 p.m. The meet is to be televised February 17th from 5:00 to 7:oo p.m (ET) on ESPN . Not only is Adam Nelson worth watching, but so is the men’s shot put. Nelson shook up the shot put world in New York heaving 72 feet, 5 inches. Current indoor and outdoor world champion Reese Hoffa, as well as Christian Cantwell and Dan Taylor will want to avenge their losses. The event should be a ruckus.Carmelita Jeter has been coming on strong Read more:Insider
, Preview
False Start On Asafa Powell Trip 2008-02-13 23:41:01 Maybe mum was right about not running in the house.The world’s fastest man recently endured a nightmare trip to Sydney. Along the way, he gashed his knee, missed his flight, and lost his luggage en route to Saturday’s grand prix meet in Australia."I was running up the stairs at my house, and I fell," said Powell
, who suffered the injury while running late for a practice session.Powell has withdrawn from Saturday’s meet due to receiving stitches. The good news is that he hopes to be ready to run February 21 in Melbourne.After his let down in the 100-meter world championship final last year in Osaka, we hope this rather bizarre incident isn’t a sign of things to come for his season.Good luck!By Jay Hicks, a.k.a. Track Evangelist Read more:Start
11 Greatest Olympic Track Performances in the Last 100 years 2008-03-16 23:58:30 Jesse Owens: Non-verbal rebellion, inspired by hatred.The revolution was televised. The black-and-white footage of Jesse Owens defeating Hitler’s Aryan nation still brings a chill. In front of packed crowds, he showed the world Hitler’s theory was a crock of crap. Jesse achieved international fame in winning four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Games in the 100, 200, long jump and 4 x 100 meter relay.Bob Hayes: No one faster than the speeding bullet.By the summer of 1964, Bob “The Bullet” Hayes was dubbed the original “World’s Fastest Human” at the 1964 Tokyo Olympic
Games. The U.S. team was in fifth place when Hayes got the baton in this famous 4 x 100 meter relay — he couldn’t even reach out and touch them.In perhaps the most memorable 100-meters in track history, he ble Read more:Greatest
, Track
BYOF: The U.S. Food Strategy at 2008 Beijing Olympics 2008-03-19 23:03:22 Being your own food!The food quality in China is so suspect that the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) plans to drop ship more than 25,000 pounds of meat and other foods to a training camp at Beijing
Normal University. The USOC will serve athletes in several locations near the Olympic village during the 16-day event.Other countries are considering the same thing, and Beijing is somewhat annoyed. “I feel it’s a pity that [the Americans] decided to take their own food,” said Kang Yi, the head of the Food Division for the Beijing organizing committee.The move sounds drastic, but a look at the food quality issues in China reveals a serious cause for alarm. A caterer working for the USOC told the New York Times about finding a half chicken breast measuring 14 inches long while shopp Read more:Olympics
, Strategy
Texas Sprinter Bianca Knight Goes Pro 2008-03-19 01:33:05 Trackshark.com is reporting that BiancaKnight
turned professional, joining a growing number of track athletes leaving the college ranks early. She will forgo her remaining eligibility in collegiate track and field.The world of elite track and field was introduced to Bianca Knight last Saturday at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field championship meet in Fayetteville, Arkansas.The freshman from the University of Texas
broke the NCAA meet record at 200-meters in a stunning time of 22.40. The second fastest time ever by an American runner puts Bianca on the level of the world’s elite sprinter.If Bianca can deliver similar times at the professional level, she’ll be competitive among the world’s best sprinters. To put her indoor time of 22.40 into proper context, just take a look at the resu Read more:Sprinter
100-Meter Debate May Be Settled Soon! 2008-03-23 01:29:46 Since last summer fans and pundits alike have been debating who will prevail in a 100-meter show down between reigning 100 and 200-meter world champion Tyson Gay of the U.S. and current world record holder Asafa Powell of Jamaica.What’s fueling the debate is that Gay beat Powell head-to-head in the 100-meter finals at the 2007 world championships last summer in Osaka. It was clear to most fans that Powell tensed up and panicked in the final 40 meters, finishing third behind Tyson Gay and Derrick Adtkins of the Bahamas.Despite blazing times, Powell has struggled at major competitions, missing a medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics. The 2007 world championship race again called into question his ability to win the big races. Then one month later, Asafa went to Rieto, Italty in a meet that di Read more:Debate
, Meter
The Final Lap: April = Relay Meets 2008-03-26 01:22:40 Most professional runners are competing in relay meets in April
. This is the relay time of year on the U.S. pro sprint scene. These collegiate track meets primarily feature relay races with a limited number of individual events, so the relays make for some exciting performances from pro runners. Relay meets have an open section for professional runners. No pro outdoor meets are held in the United States at the early stage of the outdoor season.Running on relays allows pro athletes to evaluate their training and conditioning in a low stakes environment while having lots of fun. Relays races are one of the few chances to have a team experience in what is largely an individual sport.The meet schedule for the next month is packed with collegiate relay meets such as the Texas Relays (April 2), Read more:Final
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