Archive for July, 2008

Trials winner: A little birdie whispered: ‘You can do this’

Donna Lawrence beams after taking masters 200 at Trials. Video cameras weren’t allowed at Hayward Field during the Olympic Trials, lest some aunt of a women’s hammer thrower shoot some footage that might show up on YouTube and cause NBC to lose all its money. Pity. We might be able to see W40 Donna Lawrence […]

July 31, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  2 Comments

Rex Harvey, three Europeans in race for WMA presidency

Rex Harvey of Ohio, our former decathlon star, has thrown his hat in the ring for the presidency of World Masters Athletics, he’s informed me. The vote will come in the General Assembly at Lahti, Finland, in 2009 — midway through the World Masters Athletics Championships. They’ll pick a successor to Cesare Beccalli, who died […]

July 30, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  3 Comments

Danny McFarlane threatens own M35 WR in 400 hurdles

A ladies pole vault record dominated headlines from yesterday’s Monaco meet, but It was Danny McFarlane who had the most impressive mark. Leading most of the lap, the 36-year-old Jamaican won the 400 hurdles in a season best 48.39, just off his world age-group best of 48.32. (The listed WR is 48.93 by Merlene Ottey’s […]

July 30, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  No Comments

Olympian, 80, dressed down for running up escalator

I live for these stories. Under the headline “Man, 80, reprimanded for escalator run,” UPI reports out of Farnham, England: “An 80-year-old former Olympic hurdle runner said a Farnham, England, store has threatened to ban him if he is caught running up a down escalator a second time. Peter Hildreth, who represented Britain at the […]

July 29, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  4 Comments

Orville Rogers falls 2 seconds short of M90 WR in mile

Orville Rogers, our “Faces in the Crowd” kid last spring, ran the mile in 10:56.61 Saturday at the Texas Masters Championships, held at Coppell High School. Not bad for 90. It’s better than the listed M90 world age-group record of 13:43.6 by American Herb Kirk in 1986 — but is 2 seconds off the listed […]

July 28, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  2 Comments

Five world records in first three days of Eurovets meet

Ivar Söderlind of Sweden, one of the best masters statisticians in the world, reports on the world, European and meet records set after only three days of the Eurovets championships in Slovenia. See his compilation here. Ivar writes: “After three days of the European Veterans Championship (EVACS) in Ljubljana, I have noted 5 World Records/European […]

July 28, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  No Comments

WMA regional seeks officials (no experience necessary)

World Masters Athletics, which recently noted a spate of botched world championships, is fun (and easy) to mock. But I’d prefer it not be at America’s expense as well. So I was shocked to see this note in the Orlando Sentinel: “The National Training Center . . . needs volunteers for the North, Central and […]

July 28, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  9 Comments

M50 newbie Henry James authors a pair of sub-55s in 400

I love out-of-the-woodwork stories — when complete unknowns show up and set records. That happened over the weekend in Tumwater, Washington — south of Seattle — which hosted the state’s Senior Games. The athlete is Henry James, and his meet record was an impressive 54.83 in the 400. He’s 50. A week earlier, Henry ran […]

July 28, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  One Comment

TV profiles Steve Robbins, ‘world’s fastest Medicare’ man

TV coverage of masters track is usually cliche-ridden and one-dimensional, but a Fox affiliate in Seattle got it just about right this past week with a 2-minute, 45-second profile of M65 sprint champion Steve Robbins. They showed him on the track, of course. But they also explored his author side and interviewed his wife, Laura […]

July 27, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  2 Comments

Eurovets results being posted expeditiously — and well

The folks in Slovenia have a good handle on this Web thing. Click here for results of the European Veterans Athletic Championships — the biggest outdoor masters meet on the planet this year. Decathlon results show how sophisticated the hosts in Ljubjana are about giving us complete info. They aim to impress, of course. Here’s […]

July 26, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  6 Comments