Archive for August, 2008

Petition opposes Clermont, Fla., as site of 2009 nationals

As you may have read in these comments, some sprinters have been circulating this online petition rapping Clermont, Florida, as the site of the 2009 masters nationals. Tellingly, it doesn’t ask for a new venue. But that’s how it might be read. It’s not just the central Florida heat, however. Petitioners argue that the site […]

August 31, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  60 Comments

Hot 400s highlight Day 2 of WMA regional championships

Yesterday’s finals at the WMA regionals in Clermont, Florida, included the 400, 800, steeple, short hurdles and some jumps and throws. This very tight M45 finish in the 4 caught my eye: Paul Brown (51.95), Marcus Shute (51.99) and Courtney Muhammad (52.07). At Spokane nationals, the top three were: Muhammad (51.41), Saladin Allah (51.61) and […]

August 30, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  13 Comments

WMA Prez Hacker calls for younger council candidates

The latest WMA handbook is prefaced with this revealing note from South Africa’s Monty Hacker, interim president (until 2009). “Fellow WMA members, I must begin by drawing your attention to the loss of two of our former presidents in the space of just two years, Torsten Carlius (Nov. 2005) and Cesare Beccalli (Dec. 2007) in […]

August 29, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  2 Comments

Results being posted for WMA regional championships

The WMA regional championships got under way today in Clermont, Florida, site of the 2009 masters nationals, and results for Day 1 have been posted. (Click here for the results PDF.) Officials aren’t cutting entrants any slack, however. Among the DQs in the 5K racewalk was 91-year-old Maria Ramirez of Mexico. And one of my […]

August 28, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  12 Comments

Masters Athlete magazine flourishes after being ‘folded’

The September issue of Masters Athlete magazine (formerly GeezerJock) is the biggest money-maker ever, I’m told by founding editor Sean Callahan. That’s thanks to the staff’s own efforts, and not the company that owned it, however. A year ago, Turnstile Publications acquired GeezerJock and renamed it Masters Athlete. Then in late May, it sold Masters […]

August 28, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  4 Comments

USATF secretary alleges financial mischief in top board

As mentioned in the previous post, USATF held a workshop over the weekend in Indianapolis on the looming restructuring of the group’s Board of Directors, which previously backed a plan to deep-six many committee chairs, including that of masters track and field. On Saturday, USATF national secretary Lynn Cannon, a former national-class spearchucker, threw a […]

August 27, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  5 Comments

USATF President Bill Roe to TrackCEO: Drop dead

The following note, posted with extreme prejudice, is part of an email exchange over the issue of delayed meet results from the national masters weight pentathlon championships. Not a word has been changed in this dyspeptic missive, sent with extreme ignorance, by Bill Roe of Bellingham, Washington, the elected president of USA Track & Field. […]

August 26, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  16 Comments

Gloria Krug sets American record in weight pentathlon

USATF has posted results for Saturday’s National Masters Weight Pentathlon Championships. Click here for the page. In it we learn that Gloria Krug, 77, of the Philadelphia Masters TC scored 3,877 points — which smashes the listed American age-group record of 3,573 by Bernice Holland at 2003 Puerto Rico worlds. Before they went up sometime […]

August 26, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  3 Comments

Pity masters in People’s Republic: Starved for meets

The People’s Republic of China used to be called Red China. And deservedly so. They should be red-faced with shame over how they treat masters track! With 1.3 billion people and a booming economy, you’d expect their masters track movement to be going gangbusters. But nope. How many masters meets does the PRC hold every […]

August 26, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  3 Comments

Track returns to San Diego Senior Olympics (for 50-plus)

Last year, I noted how the San Diego Senior Olympics wouldn’t have a track meet for the first time. A meet was promised in 2008, and it’s a go for Saturday, September 13, at scenic Point Loma Nazarene University (not San Diego State as some sites suggest). However, I learned today that the meet will […]

August 25, 2008   Posted in: Uncategorized  6 Comments