Heusden 5K

[gh]

8 Kennedy Bob USA 13:21.85
10 Abdirahman Abdihakem USA 13:23.25
11 Torres Jorge USA 13:24.17

w/ the A qualifier at 13:21.50, might we actually see the resurrection of Bob K to the point where he ends up running in Paris?

[gh]

Re: Heusden 5K

To clarify: yes, I know that somebody else would also need to have an A for Kennedy to make the team should he run that fast.

[Guest]

Re: Heusden 5K

So, at this moment, is Torres the the only guy who will be in Paris?

[bubba]

Re: Heusden 5K

>So, at this moment, is Torres the the only guy
>who will be in Paris?

correct.

[Guest]

Re: Heusden 5K

Speaking of 5Ks in that meet, note that down in 7th in the women's race Lauren Fleshman PRed at 15:20.xx

[Guest]

Re: Heusden 5K

Kennedy is awesome - remember he ran a 28 flat 10K while in 13:40 shape - his comeback certainly changes the lanscape for next years Oly trials.

Great to see him back in action. He deserves much credit given the obstacles he has overcome the past few years.

Speaking of distance guys - the U.S. steeple guys have been MIA unless I have missed something - is Lincoln planning any races soon?

[Guest]

Re: Heusden 5K

I am still struggling to come to terms with US team selection policy.

If Bob Kennedy runs the 'A' standard and no one else does, why can't he go.
Likewise if Robison Improves in the 1500m by another .8 he'll have the 'A' why would you not send these people under such circumstances?
If the 1st place getter at NC only has the 'B' standard does this mean if this person can't get the 'A' only they can go.

By the way Broe is injured and not going, is that correct?

[gh]

Re: Heusden 5K

USATF is trying to serve two masters with the selection policy (and not doing too bad a job of it). The first priority is to maximize team size. So if you get multiple A's, they go, no matter what.

But failing an A qualifier, they keep the paying customers satisfied by putting on a race at the Nationals where the fans know that the guy who crosses the line first (99.9% of the time) is going to the WC/OG. Tough to sell tickets to a seleciton meet where at meet's end you have no idea if the winner actually won anything.

So, as long as the winner has a B, he goes, so long as there is only one A. As soon as there are two A's, the winner gets trumped.

Broe could barely walk (bad back) after the final at Stanford. Don't know if he's going to try for an A, but since hasn'tso far, my GUESS would be no.

[tandfman]

Re: Heusden 5K

> My own impression has been that gh's reasoning (you want everyone to see the winner crossing the finish line and thereby making the team) has been
advanced for the marathon trials. There, there is an interest of the sponsors and fans in seeing that the trial race really means something in
every case.

But in track and field, there are dozens of trials events going on and nobody is going to feel cheated if one or two winners don't make the team. For T&F, the rationale for taking only the winner, when he/she has a B and only one other has an A, has been that the places on the team should be decided by head-to-head competition. It is fair to take the winner over the lower placer who has a faster time somewhere else if doing so does not deprive anyone else of a place on the team (which, by hypothesis, will be
the case when we have only one A).

[Guest]

Re: Heusden 5K

I agree w/all above. But let's face it - the A/B qualifier thing seems to be a common "event" for U.S. Mens 1500 runners. Seems they always run slow/tactical at nationals, let a kicker (Harris, Herrington, etc.) win, then go to Europe trying to get the A qualifier that the kicker has little chance of attaining.

If you can't figure out how to win in the U.S. at 1500m, you certainly won't be a player on the international scene.

Part of being at the highest levels is learning how to peak and race. If you can't prove you can do it on the national level why should you be allowed to take the place of someone (at Olympics/WC) who proved themselves under pressure.