Weakest U.S. track and field event

[Mellow Johnny]

What is currently our weakest track and field event?

Historically, what has been our weakest?

[BillVol]

Re: Weakest U.S. track and field event

What is currently our weakest track and field event?

Historically, what has been our weakest?

Would have to be a running event over 400M. Take your pick.

[Mellow Johnny]

Re: Weakest U.S. track and field event

What is currently our weakest track and field event?

Historically, what has been our weakest?

Would have to be a running event over 400M. Take your pick.

For our current weakest event, I'd say the 800 with no finalists in either race at the Olympics (given, it's only an 8 person field, though).

1500, steeple, 5K, and 10K all had a runner or runners in the final for men and/or women and we got a medal in the 10K...

[mike renfro]

If you are speaking of all of athletics, not just track and field, the walks are the glaring weakness. It has been awhile since the US has had more than one A q, usually just a B. I don't think the women have ever had a medalist and the men, not since a 50K guy, Larry Walker, I think. The FAST annual doesn't even carry all time lists for the walks.

[BillVol]

If you are speaking of all of athletics, not just track and field, the walks are the glaring weakness. It has been awhile since the US has had more than one A q, usually just a B. I don't think the women have ever had a medalist and the men, not since a 50K guy, Larry Walker, I think. The FAST annual doesn't even carry all time lists for the walks.

mike, walks don't count. In fact I think they have been eliminated from the Olympic Games. :wink:

[Powell]

The walks are top of the list, followed by men's HT. Men's and women's JT and women's TJ are also of poor quality. I don't think any of the track events (not even women's 800) is as bad as those.

[Kurt Francis]

The walks are top of the list, followed by men's HT. Men's and women's JT and women's TJ are also of poor quality. I don't think any of the track events (not even women's 800) is as bad as those.

The men's JT is actually of decent quality... 1/2 dozen over 80m is very decent...try naming very many countries with that many over 80m. We're just used to seeing Finland with a ton of them.

The men's DT has fallen off the radar with guys that can't hit 65m in majors regularly. Very disappointing with the crop of the last 10 years.

[az2004]

i think if you look at the top 100 lists, and to a head count of americans in the top 100 per event, this question can get one kind of answer

[Marlow]

wTJ, wHT, wJT

[Paul Henry]

Men's LJ. Relative to the Lewis/ Powell exploits the US is currently MIA .

[Jaack]

wTJ, wHT, wJT

Has there ever been a major medalist in ANY of those events? Hell, I can't even recall the US having a finalist in any of them!

The US need help with the jumps. The technique on display in the womens LJ pit was surely humiliating, no? Jomoh and Reese have to go down as two of the most horrific technichians I have ever witnessed.

[Pego]

wTJ, wHT, wJT

Has there ever been a major medalist in ANY of those events? Hell, I can't even recall the US having a finalist in any of them!.

Once upon a time, there were Karin Smith, Kate Schmidt in JT.

[NormZylstra]

The walks are top of the list, followed by men's HT. Men's and women's JT and women's TJ are also of poor quality. I don't think any of the track events (not even women's 800) is as bad as those.

pretty weak ... very little in the past 40 years

men's hammer ::
Lance Deal
- 1996 Olympic silver

on the horizon ::
Walter Henning
- 2008 Junior Worlds gold
Conor McCullough
- 2008 Junior Worlds silver

[Marlow]

on the horizon ::
Walter Henning
- 2008 Junior Worlds gold
Conor McCullough
- 2008 Junior Worlds silver

I'm sure I feel like many of y'all in desperately wanting them to succeed on the world stage.

I am also very sad that year after year we have some stellar HS girl TJers who never pan out. And now we've got Hannah Carson in the wJT to root for. Not much in the way of a wHT who could break out.

[MJR]

it is all part and parcel of a system where coaches decide what events they want their athlete to compete in rather than finding what events the athletes would do best in. ideas like "this event is stupid" are rampant in the US coaching fraternity and the overall development of the sport suffers as a result. its no wonder we lose so many athletes to other sports.