USATFâs annual meeting will vote on more than 50 rules changes, including many with masters impact. At least four involve masters records. One I like: You need at least two entrants in an event (rather than the current three) to have an age-group mark ratified, but in field events all entrants across age groups count toward the minimum. One I donât like: All members of a relay team have to be USATF members. This would be a rarity, of course, but I can see a day when four ninetysomethings gather at a Senior Olympics to challenge the Winston-Salem marks. I donât know that Don Pellmann was a USATF member when he set five M100 world records at the 2015 San Diego Senior Games. A proposal by outgoing national masters chair Gary Snyder aims to make sure that when an individual or relay team scratches from the next round, the next ranked original non-qualifier shall be advanced. âThis procedure shall be repeated until the subsequent round is full. ⊠Rationale: The intent ⊠is to have full heats/flights in subsequent rounds wherever possible, giving non-qualifying athletes another chance to compete should a qualifying athlete be unable to compete in the subsequent round. So if two qualifying athletes were unable to run the subsequent round, the next 2 best non-qualifiers could advance.â Itâs a tweak of an existing rule, but helps clarify it.
Ron epitomizes resilience; heâs run at masters worlds every so often since Rome 1985.
Ron Robertson of New Zealand took gold in the M75 cross-country race in Perth, but fell short of his goal â medaling in four distance events. It wasnât a bridge too far, since he became WMA Athlete of the Year in 2011 after winning four golds (three in WRs) at Sacramento worlds. But this year an injury blocked his way. As his local paper explained: âSix weeks before the championships, he felt a âslight twingeâ as he lifted a bike into the back of his station wagon. âAfter four or five days I realised something was up, and an X-ray showed a tendon in my right shoulder had pulled off the bone.â With travel and entry fees paid, he decided to push on and hope for the best. He trained on a bike and ran with a shoulder brace. âIt was pretty painful. I wasnât full of confidence going over there. I wasnât sure I would get through the races. With painkillers I got through two-thirds of the cross-country without too much of a problem, but the last third â when the pain kicked in â wasnât pleasant.'â
His eyes are bloodshot. His face grim. This is how Kettrell Berry, 53, looked when sentenced Thursday to 9 years, 8 months in prison for having sex with a student at the San Diego school where he worked. I wish I had been in court to hear the judge, who apparently noted kind words from his friends. Presumably these included masters track pals and those he coached. They knew the national-champion long sprinter as I did for nearly 15 years â selfless and supportive. What his trial revealed was shocking, though. Sex with a 12-year-old? Her case never led to charges. But the woman, now 27, was quoted as saying: âPsychologically, Iâve been messed up in the head. I donât know what was going on in his head âŠÂ to make him think that the things he did were OK.â A local reporter added: âAfter the sentencing, the woman sobbed for several minutes in the courthouse hallway,â saying: âI wish that no child has to go through the things I went through.â His conviction involved a girl 15 and 16, who had credibility issues. DNA evidence also was lacking. But a pattern of abuse led a jury to convict Kettrell, and heâs now behind bars at the South Bay Detention Facility in Chula Vista. Heâll be moved to state prison. I hope to learn his earliest release date. Heâs a better person, and father, than depicted.
Champ Goldy led off worldâs first M90 relay, handing off to Orville Rogers in North Carolina.
A star at Michigan nationals was Champion Goldy Sr., a modest minister who represented all our hopes for active old age. Now Iâm sad to report he wonât achieve his own goal â competing at age 100. Wednesday morning, USATFMasters tweeted the news: âRev. Champion Goldy passed away last night at 99 years & 10 months old. May he Rest in Peace.â I waited for a more official report before sharing the news. That came in this newspaper obituary. Heâs a long part of oursportâs history, who deserves induction into our Hall of Fame. I spoke to Champ several times in Grand Rapids. He was usually in a wheelchair, but he ran and threw on his feet. He was quiet but still well-spoken and witty. He was part of the first-ever M90 4Ă1 relay team at 2014 nationals that I enjoyed covering. Iâm shocked by his passing and hope to learn more soon. Until then, join me in wishing strength and comfort for his family and friends.
Aside from a DNF in the 1500, Bob Weiner had a good worlds. He beat his archrival Doug âShaggyâ Smith in the M65 steeplechase and got lots of attention for Team USA via his Masters Media Committee. His final summary is posted on USATF.Mary Trotto compiled medal winners. Gary Snyder, our outgoing national chair, was quoted as saying: âGreat meet. Amazing facilities, top quality. Well organized by WMA and Perth.â Man of few words.
Bob Weiner beat Canadaâs Doug âShaggyâ Smith in the M65 2K steeple by 9 seconds. Photo by Rob Jerome
Bill Collins, who won the Perth 1-2 double amid health issues, is an American nominee for WMA/IAAF Masters Athlete of the Year â along with Jesse Owens Award dinner Athlete of the Year-to-be Irene Obera. Weâve heard the basic news on Billâs scare, but friend and teammate George Haywood (who defended his Lyon M60 title in the 300 hurdles at Perth) has shared the whole story. Itâs amazing â as is this Q&A with Bill:
Jon Beverly, longtime editor of the late great Running Times, is looking to interview masters runners of distances from 800 and up. If youâre 50 or older and been competing fairly steadily since youth, Jon would be interested in talking with you for a book he is working on about principles of lifetime competitors. You can contact him at jb@101degreeswest.com Heâs a relatively recent disciple of masters running, as I noted in a 2008 blog post: âJon gets it. And his eloquent writing is infused with truth as well as beauty. He writes in the tradition of the late Dr. George Sheehan, the running philosopher.â So I recommend him highly as someone who can do your story justice.
Worldâs oldest lady steepler is now Clasina Van der Veeken, shown in 2014.
Perth went into the books Sunday, and 19 world records were set or tied, including six by Americans. The Aussies won the medal chase, of course. As if I care. But Iâm impressed how, competing in November, Northern Hemisphere athletes did so well after a hauntingly long season and Southerners excelled early in their year. Thrilled to see 2K steeple records fall like leaves â with W85 Clasina Van der Veeken of New Zealand becoming the oldest lady steepler on record, setting a debut age-group 18:30.80 WR; W80 Anne Martinâs 13:38.80 beating the listed WR by a whopping 2 minutes, 5 second; W75 Xuhua Chenâs 11:30.55 going under the listed WR by 10 seconds; and W65 Kathy Martinâs 8:57.54 lowering the listed mark by 2.5 seconds for her second WR of the meet. Also happy to see my native country, Kenya, win 10 medals, including golds by M45 Joshua Kipchumba in the 10,000 (31:40.16), M50 Yego Paul Kibet in the 10,000 (33:13.34) and three M40 gents led by Francis Komu (1:11:07) sweeping medals in the half-marathon. M55 Joshua Pondo won Kenyaâs lone field event medal â bronze in the shot. Havenât seen many complaints, but Iâd still love to hear from yâall on the meetâs conduct. Give it a grade from A to F and explain why.
Despite such a small squad, Kenyans at masters worlds took home 10 medals.
Perth organizers are trying to make a buck, of course. One way is through sale of athletesâ action photos. The image store is here. But give the folks Down Under credit for taking advantage of technology more than any other world masters meet â livestreaming the entire meet and archiving the footage for free access. They give these instructions: âYour friends and families can watch Perth 2016 live or as a reply all over the world thanks to the live stream at the WA Athletics accutane online Stadium. Hereâs how to re-watch the live stream: 1. Use [this] link. 2. Click on the link that says âPerth 2016 â World Masters Athletics Championshipsâ next to the red âLIVE BUTTON. 3. All daily videos will appear in a menu on the right.â You also can view short video highlights, mainly Aussie-centric, at the meetâs YouTube channel here. Nice job, ladies and gents. And the end of Bill Collinsâ 200 is deep into this clip:
If youâre free in late December and can afford the $225 fee and trip to San Diego County, this track camp is for you. Dick Fosbury, Mike Powell, Willie Banks, Mac Wilkins, Tonie Campbell and others are holding clinics Dec. 29-30 at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista. Cool. Of greater interest to most is the local USATF Winter Track Classic Series, featuring four all-comers meets. Organizer Paul Greer writes: âThe first event will be at San Diego State University on Saturday, Dec. 3âŠ. The second event will be hosted by Sweetwater High School on Jan. 21, 2017. The third event will be hosted at Del Norte High School on Saturday, Jan. 28, and our last of these four events is slated for Saturday, Feb. 4, at San Diego High School. ⊠For more information regarding all of our events, please visit summernightstrack.com or sandiego.usatf.org.â Entry fees vary â like $5 per event or $10 for pre-registered. I vouch for these. Great place to race 9-year-olds!
Ken has followed track as an athlete, writer and web-master since the late 1960s, and saw most sessions of track and field at the 1984 Los Angeles and 1996 Atlanta Olympics. He also attended the 1988, 1992, 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012 Trials, the last three as a blogger and Patch correspondent. [More...]
