Events that should be added to T&F

[parkerclay]

Some of these would help with popularity in the US.

Standing long jump
Baseball/softball throw
(this would make it 5 throws and 5 jumps)

40 yard/meter dash
(throw in some US football players to excite US fans)

Any other ideas??

Re: Events that should be added to T&F

Some out of the box ideas: I would add/subtract events in order to shorten meets and make them more exciting to average fans. I am not talking about dumbing it down to the NASCAR fan level, but streamlining for jhs/hs/college dual meets while still having the full schedule for large invitationals & championships. My proposal would be to run 100, 110H, 4X200, 4X400, 4X800, Mile, Steeple, & also a streamlined field event schedule. I think a great improvement to the present events would be to make no event, save 400h & 4X100, with more than a one turn stagger. I would include the open 400, & 4X400 in the one turn stagger with the 800 possibly on a waterfall. Finally, your first false start dq's you in any event.

Re: Events that should be added to T&F

Put XC back in the Olympics. The WINTER Olympics that is. Run the meet as is every year, but in an Olympic year run it as part of the Winter Games.

[tafnut]

Re: Events that should be added to T&F

I'm not even a distance fan, but I'd love to see a DMR or 4xmile

[parkerclay]

Re: Events that should be added to T&F

I like the cross country run idea!

Re: Events that should be added to T&F

No event should be added. Track meets are too long already.

[The Flash]

Re: Events that should be added to T&F

There was a thread here...somewhere...talking about how the NFL would never go to FAT, because that would wash out the "fast" times from NFL-ers, and I tend to agree. You would then have your Darrell Green's of the NFL running a 4.4 instead of a 4.2.

Honestly, I think the NFL should use FAT in a race that would allow comparisons to sprinters. NFL has a 60 yard (c. 55m) dash competition, but again it is hand-timed. They need to dump the pride and fear of being compared to the fastest men in the world and run standard sprint distances, so we can see how they really rate.

However, I would like to see a short race included in outdoor...possibly the 50 (since the 60 is so prevalent indoors), or even the 60, BECAUSE it is so prevalent indoors.

I would love to see the Standing Long Jump in competition. That is a very difficult event, and it is not at all like the running Long Jump.

About the streamlining of events for dual meets...I think it would appeal to the fans, somewhat, however, I think that it would stunt invitational performance in the events that are not being contested from week to week, allowing for "practice to make perfect".

[The Flash]

Re: Events that should be added to T&F

I also am not a fan of the DQ on the first false start...I believe it hurts the sport. Sure, it encourages honesty in starts, but I think that it hurts competitive times (because everyone is timid in the blocks, sitting longer than they normally would)and seems unforgiving to fans and athletes alike.

Re: Events that should be added to T&F

The Olympic and World Championships should add the 4 X 200 relay.

[abinferno]

Re: Events that should be added to T&F

I'd love to see some "fast" NFL players go up against the real sprinters with automatic timing. I'm sorry, but even though Michael Vick may be fast, I'd bet his legitimate, non-exaggerated, FAT 40 time would be around 4.5, maybe slower.

Re: Events that should be added to T&F

A few years back the Tx Relays invitational 4x100 that included an NFL team. Seriously, at the 2nd handoff the NFL was about 50 meters behind the next slowest team (a team from Houston with not one sprinter remotely close to the top 100 in the US). By the last handoff the NFL anchor tried to save face by making it into a joke by running backwards and hamming it up for the crowd.

Re: Events that should be added to T&F

Ditto the idea on Winter Olympic cross country. I've wanted to see that for years. Sadly, I can't see that being added. The way things have gone lately with the Olympics, they are subtracting events, rather than adding them.