Tokyo Olympics ... [no foreign fans] [no fans period]

[AldousZX]

Her schedule problems are compounded by having the heat and semi of the 200 on the same day. 4 races over 2 days aint easy. She will be 27 and at her peak, she may well be around and in good shape for Paris 2024 but there’s no guarantee, my inclination is that she runs one event. And if it’s the 200, the 400 is WIDE open without Shaunae and potentially Nasser

Shaunae is streets ahead of Dina when it come to head-to-heads but Dina has never raced Shaunae at her absolute best. In 2017 she was coming back from injury, 2018 commonwealths were early season, Shaunae also has lots of Diamond league victories. Shaunae often saves her best for major championships but DAS does to a greater extent- her SBs were set at the majors every season 2015 through to 2019. I think it would be a lot closer than last years margin in Zurich would have many believe

[ATK]

Any race before the 200m final is a negative for SMU's chances there. But she could run as much as she wants before the 400m and I would still consider her a "lock" (assuming Naser does not run)

[Wiederganger]

Her schedule problems are compounded by having the heat and semi of the 200 on the same day. 4 races over 2 days aint easy. She will be 27 and at her peak, she may well be around and in good shape for Paris 2024 but there’s no guarantee, my inclination is that she runs one event. And if it’s the 200, the 400 is WIDE open without Shaunae and potentially Nasser

I know this would disadvantage her compared to the other women running 200m....however, bear in mind many of them would have already run the 100m too, whereas she wouldn't. Also, go back in time to when the women ran 4 rds of the sprints, not the 3 they do today, and in Seoul, for example, they ran the 1st rd & QF on the one day and then the SF and F the very next day! (and HD also had the LJ the morning of the 200m SF and F 😮) so it is very much doable when you're in form.

For me, she should keep her options open, continue to train as she did in 2019, and gauge others form too. If she's thrashing them on the circuit again, I would go for the double.

Shaunae is streets ahead of Dina when it come to head-to-heads but Dina has never raced Shaunae at her absolute best. In 2017 she was coming back from injury, 2018 commonwealths were early season, Shaunae also has lots of Diamond league victories. Shaunae often saves her best for major championships but DAS does to a greater extent- her SBs were set at the majors every season 2015 through to 2019. I think it would be a lot closer than last years margin in Zurich would have many believe

I do agree with this though. DAS is superb at raising her game at a Champs and her 2017 run still gives me shivers after her injury that year. DS also tends to save her bests for Champs too. I think for non US/JAM athletes this is probably easier, without the pressure of a crazily competitive National Champs to qualify in. I also think DAS knows what she needs to do to beat SMU now.

[Conor Dary]

Meanwhile....long article in the Post.

The Price of Gold

For the Olympics, poor communities in host cities are regularly displaced. For the Rio 2016 games, one village’s resistance sparked a global question: Should they be abolished?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/magaz...l/?arc404=true

[jc203]

Rose Parade cancelled as of today. Makes sense not to expend more money and effort planning for a huge event less than 6 months away. How long before the same decision will be made for the entire Tokyo Olympiad?

[Conor Dary]

I would speculate rather soon...Quantas announced they aren't planning flights in and out of Australia, except NZ, until July 2021.

[Tuariki]

In the meantime Dick Pound is talking about Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics being cancelled

[wamego relays champ]

Rose Parade cancelled as of today.

Doo Dah Parade cancelled its tradition and is going virtual.

[TN1965]

IOC president Thomas Bach does not want the Tokyo Games behind closed doors

International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach appears to have ruled out the Tokyo Games happening without spectators next summer.

https://sports.yahoo.com/ioc-preside...170810834.html

[Conor Dary]

That's interesting....likelihood of the Olympics is even more remote....the writing is on the wall.

[tandfman]

Headline: Tokyo reports record 293 new coronavirus cases

Tokyo has recorded a new high for daily COVID-19 cases today, with a second wave now a growing concern ahead of the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

https://www.insidethegames.biz/artic...19-cases-koike

[Conor Dary]

Meanwhile....Alan Abrahamson...


If, again if, no Tokyo 2021, no Beijing 2022, no Dakar 2022, that might well thus mean the next edition of an Olympics after PyeongChang 2018 would be Paris 2024. That’s six years.

Who wants to bet, meantime, that the taxpayers of France are going to be paying significantly for those Games, which the IOC said would never, ever happen under Agenda 2020 and the New Norm, its so-called reform plans?

Even before the coronavirus, how was Paris ’24 going to sell the $1.25 billion in domestic sponsorships its budget calls for? Remember last year, when they dissed the oil company Total on grounds of woke climate change?

https://www.3wiresports.com/articles...in-deep-crisis

[Wiederganger]

I see a path to 200m gold being a bit more crowded than the 400m.

In a world where Schippers and Thompson are back fully healthy, and Asher-Smith is even better, its not far fetched to see SMU outside of the medals.

According to an interview last week, Schippers said she is no longer suffering from her groin/adductor injury, so she is able to train freely once again.

(with no Games this year ) "There was always a rush and that is completely different now. I have time to work on things. Normally everything goes fast quickly and now there is more rest. For example, I no longer suffer from my groin and that is a wonderful feeling."

"I am super fit, my body has been able to recover Now I could work on parts that I normally did not have time for. It is nice that the train has come to a standstill"

She is aiming for her usual 100/200/4x100m next season but said "Suppose my back continues to be difficult, I still have to make a choice, but now the goal is still everything."

which I took as more of an "if my back...." because she suffered from a back injury before too. And on being back training with Benemma:

"I've been doing a lot of strength training in recent years, but I need to be flexible. My strength is relaxation and I'm turning that around now. If I invest now, it will make a profit next year. What happens this year do not matter much to me and I do not think it is that important. The main goal is the Games next year, I am training hard t get gold there. Hopefully I can peak there. "


I don't think she or Thompson will ever get back to low 21.6 form and when I spoke to her coach last season, he effectively said the same. However, he saw no reason why she couldn't get back to her 2016 form (she had a best of 21.86 that year, as well as another 3 sub 22's). His plan to get her there was 22.0-22.1 in 2019 and then to build on that for sub 22 this season. However, she of course got that adductor, could only train at 70%, and that never happened. If Tokyo had been this year, as she intimated in her interview, she just wouldn't have had time to get into sub 22. But now her injury is gone she has time. If she can get back to her Rio/16 form, is that even enough to beat SMU? Who knows, but it would be enough to get on the podium again.

[vike27]

Tokyo Olympics - 1500m Analysis & Predictions Video on Youtube


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtnF54MJeuM&t

[1runner1]

3 days until "Opening Ceremonies": temps in mid to hi 80's; afternoon thunderstorms possible; temps in hi 70's next week.