Tweet
With the 2012 olympics less than 4 years away,our top runners,and field athletes might as well live in the sahra desert because they have the same captive audience in the usa[zero]Other than people in the track community,our athletes remain in abscurity.We need more tv coverage,and just more media coverage priod.I hope Im not singing the same tune when 2012 rolls around.
-
-
I agree. If you haven't seen it, please read Jim Beatty's letter on page 49 in the March issue. Track and field has so much to offer as a great sport, but you are correct, it needs a lot better national coverage. -
Mainstream North American audiences have seen track and field. They just don't care unless you have a USA on your chest.Comment
-
It is time the ath,letes take mor responsibility for their sport. Give better interviews, stay late and talk to the reporters and fans, and understand that Track and Field athletes are the underdogs. It is time for them to reach out more to the fans and media...Comment
-
9 golds hit the hammer on the nail !
Track and field athletes need to give better interviews,and interact with fans more.When we do have track events on tv I would also like to see better commentators.We need a Dick Vitale type.Somone who brings excitment to a sport,that is very exciting by itself.Comment
-
Track athletes are as good as they come when reaching out to fans and media.Originally posted by 9Golds
The big problem is a lack of media caring about asking for interviews. So long as newspapers (what are those?) and the ESPNs of the world aren't asking for track stories--and I can assure you they're not, finding our sport basically irrelevant unless it's drugs--the fault lies with them, not our people.Comment
-
Hold more joint press conferences and go radio.Comment
-
Epelle have you listened to US based sports radio in the last decade or so. Talk about a vast wasteland of garbage.Originally posted by EPelleComment
-
No, I haven't. I'm guilty of believing the airwaves over there carry as similar an interest in a famous person's voice as do ours. Wrong.Comment
-
I've served on the LOCs of both the old Bruce Jenner Classic (when the IAAF GP first started up 20-odd years ago) and the recent Stanford meets. In both cases we tried like mad to get talk radio interested. In the Bay Area market (and I"m sure it's no different elsewhere) it's all football/baseball/basketball all the time.
The San José Sharks have had the best record in the NHL almost since Day 1 of this season and they're lucky if they get more than one 15-minute interview per week, and that's because of the hosts of the prime show are big hockey fans.
Not sure what a "joint" press conference is, but if you're lucky that gets you perhaps a 30-second spot on a couple of the biggest TV stations, perhaps a 1-minute spot on the radio the day before the meet.Comment
-
There are no "famous" US track and field athletes currently.Originally posted by EPelleComment
-
About three years ago I started listening to local sports talk radio whenever I am driving during the week and in that time I do not believe I have ever heard T&F mentioned outside of PED references and the very occasional reference to Carl Lewis in the context of 'so-and-so football/baseball player is fast but he ain't no Carl Lewis'.Comment
-
You have two of the most "famous" in your own state. One would hope at least Richards would get good press due to her husband's stature, if nothing else.Originally posted by donley2Comment
-
Guarantee you that the vast unwashed multitudes have never heard of her and would not recognize her if she ran up (very quickly) and punched them in the nose.Originally posted by EPelleComment
-
OK what do you think the reasons are for the lack of media attention for track and field? Is the main reason the editors, producers, and executives don't like track and field? Or is it not profitable enough to cover track and field? Or are there other reasons?Comment
Comment