the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

[gh]

Relying mainly on memory at this point, I gotta ask, is this year's schedule for August—when the sport is traditionally supposed to be at its strongest—the weakest it has ever been? Is this any way to promote the sport?

I refer to the fact that if you look not just at the DL circuit, but at meets that used to be "Grand Prix" (so including the IWC circuit as well), this August gives us London and nothing more to go with the World Championships.

Or calling it "August" let's compare it to the last WC year, '09. These were the '09 meets: July 28 Monaco, July 31 Stockholm [insert World Champs], August 28 Zürich, August 31 Gateshead & Zagreb.

This year you need to go back go July 22 to find Monaco, then Stockholm on July 29, London August 5-6. Then after the WC you have to go all the way to September 8 for Zürich.

From Stockholm to Zürich means 3 invitational meets in 6 weeks. Is that enough to sustain fan interest when the season is supposed to be at its most exciting?

There are those who also argue that any meet after the WC is by definition somewhat anticlimactic. Although it certainly helps in the host cities in question to be able to trot out all the freshly minted new world champions, does it do much to further the sport's international image or does it just look like an exhibition tour?

Just doesn't seem like the kind of cohesive, well planned structure the sport needs.

[guru]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

I wonder how many athletes would compete a week or two prior to, or immediately after, the World meet, especially those with a heavy event schedule.

[gh]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

to answer the "after" part of your question, EVERYBODY who can wangle an invite to compete in Zürich 4 days after the meet ends will do so! (obviously, the 4 days only applies to the final-day competitors, but for most it'll be only about a week; and that's with a long flight across many time zones)

[kuha]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

In answer to the original question: yes, this year's scheduling is terrible.

[tandfman]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

to answer the "after" part of your question, EVERYBODY who can wangle an invite to compete in Zürich 4 days after the meet ends will do so! (obviously, the 4 days only applies to the final-day competitors, but for most it'll be only about a week; and that's with a long flight across many time zones)

I understand they've arranged a charter flight to Zürich to make this easier.

[26mi235]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

It seemed that there were a number of European 'Trials/Champs' at the beginning of this interval, after which it was starting to get close to the WCs, and the Americans etc. had gone back across the pond.

[tandfman]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

There are those who also argue that any meet after the WC is by definition somewhat anticlimactic. Although it certainly helps in the host cities in question to be able to trot out all the freshly minted new world champions, does it do much to further the sport's international image or does it just look like an exhibition tour?

Couldn't you say that the invitational circuit has always looked like an exhibition tour? And what's wrong with that? Golf seems to do just fine with what looks like an exhibition tour with a few championships sprinkled in.

At least now, with Zurich and Brussels, you have the Diamond League finals, with most of the titles at stake. So there is some linkage to the rest of the season and less of the standalone exhibition tour feel. But even without that, there will be meets in Berlin, Zagreb and Rieti, and with (as you point out) the interest generated by freshly-minted World champions and medalists, they should be good events that attract some attention, particularly locally.

[gh]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

...Golf seems to do just fine with what looks like an exhibition tour with a few championships sprinkled in....

Golf doesn't go 20 days in the middle of the prime season with ZERO appearances by ANY of its names. Indeed, it rarely goes more than 3-4, neh?

This is akin to throwing a 6-hour intermission into the middle of a basketball game.

[tandfman]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

I'm not familiar enough with the golf calendar to respond intelligently. I had the impression, though, that none of the biggies played the week before the US Open, for example.

Another point is that in many countries, national championships were held during that 20-day period. At least in those countries, there should have been something going on to maintain interest, maybe even heighten interest since, unlike the DL meets, all of the nation's good athletes would be participating.

[gh]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

....
Another point is that in many countries, national championships were held during that 20-day period. ...

If you call Finland, Norway, Sweden and Poland "many," yes. Otherwise, I believe there are none. At least not of nations worth international attention.

Seriously, take a look at the calendar. The sport DOES NOT EXIST at this point in time. Other than Steve Mullings, that is.

Usain Bolt—for whom the general public IS the sport—is going to go 28 days without competition (Asafa Powell 27, Blanka Vlasic 40, Yelena Isinbaeva 29.... should I continue?)

The structure of the Diamond League contributes to this, mandating, as it does, that half the athletes are by definition, pretty much ruled out of every second DL meet. So events that werent' contested at the DL level in London either didn't exist, or generally had reduced fields.

I think this is an untenable model.

[26mi235]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

days without competition: Blanka Vlasic 40

And she sometimes goes several times a week, it seems.

[donley2]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

I have never really liked the down time before the major championships. So when the schedule ends up like this years I am with GH, this is garbage and not helpful for the sport.

[gh]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

the gap has "always" been too large, but I'm guessing this year's is about teh worst (in the modern "GP" era).

19 empty days between London and first day of Daegu.

Count in Berlin was only 14. It meant only one weekend without a presence. And that's more than enough travel/prep time for everybody. Particularly when, as noted earlier, the first day of the WC isn't the first day for all but a small portion of the competitors.

[rainy.here]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

the gap has "always" been too large, but I'm guessing this year's is about teh worst (in the modern "GP" era).

19 empty days between London and first day of Daegu.

Count in Berlin was only 14. It meant only one weekend without a presence. And that's more than enough travel/prep time for everybody. Particularly when, as noted earlier, the first day of the WC isn't the first day for all but a small portion of the competitors.

Those 19 days seem really long already. Are we there yet?

[gh]

Re: the worst major-meet scheduling ever?

You mean on just the 5th of 19 days?