WMA Prez Beccalli replies on Neil Griffin doping case
No doubt about it. Cesare Beccalli of Italy/Brazil is a world-class politician. He can say a lot while saying nothing at all. I wrote him yesterday about the Neil Griffin case, asking him to comment on the assertions made by Chris Melluish. Cesare ignored the issues raised and said, “I do not have to make comments on the final decisions.” Cesare cc’d his reply to Stan Perkins (chairman of the WMA Anti-Doping Committee), Monty Hacker (WMA executive veep) and Friedel Schunk (chairman of WMA’s Law and Legislation Committee). So those three are effectively silenced, since it’s not kosher to contradict the Boss.
WMA negligence leads to Briton’s two-year dope ban
World Masters Athletics has some ‘splaining to do. Chris Melluish in Britain reports on my Forum that a teddy bear of an M55 thrower named Neil Griffin has been slapped with a two-year doping ban on the basis of some very questionable arguments. Now it’s clear: WMA would sooner kiss IAAF butt than be an advocate of masters athletes. I’m seeking further response from WMA officials, including Prez Cesare Beccalli.
Sacramento coach defends Charlotte nationals team
Randy Sturgeon, coach of Brooks Fleet Feet Racing in Sacramento, posted a comment on an old blog entry today that’s worth revisiting. His was the club that included Terri Lowe, the “walking hurdler” of Charlotte nationals fame. Randy started by apologizing for the delayed response. He said he’d been dealing with the death of his oldest brother at age 65, and “I just wasn’t able to jump into the conversation at the time but did want to respond as my team asked me to do so.” So here’s his response to the August post.
Introducing Mr. Gary Snyder, masters chair candidate
When I noted the candidacy of Gary Snyder for USATF masters T&F chair, I included the little I knew about him via Google search. Today Gary sent me a note that fills in the blanks. Since I’ve already afforded Joy Upshaw Margerum a chance to share her credentials, I’m giving Gary (and the others) a fair shot as well. Gary writes: “I am a candidate for the Masters Track & Field Committee Chair and would like to introduce myself.”
October 25, 2006
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Posted image a hoax. USATF logo still a mystery
Whew! No Nike swoosh. We’ve been informed that the “new USATF logo” posted on the Track & Field News message board was a prank by a guy named Daisy. The real new USATF logo has not been seen online yet — and won’t be unveiled until the Indy convention. Apparently, it has several permutations, and the final version ain’t chosen. In any case, Alan Roth of USATF has weighed in on this and other USATF issues raised on the USATF Associations mailing list. Alan writes: “The new logo has gotten a lot of negative comments on this list. Unfortunately, some of those comments come from people who do not know what led up to decisions that were made nor even what it looks like.”
Report: USATF is spiking popular “Superman” logo
Steve Vaitones of the New England Association of USATF has a disturbing revelation: USATF is ditching its current logo, the triangular one with Superman connotations. He made this report on the USATF Associations listserve on Yahoo Groups today. Under the subject line “3-2-1 Happy New Logo!” Steve writes: “Apparently no longer top secret but I have yet to see anything on this discussion board, so I will be the first to post regarding the impending new USATF … logo. Given chat about other topics, I’m surprised that this has yet to be discussed on this listserve.” The new logo is below. Nike made ’em just do it. (Now show us the money!)
Bob Fine latest entrant in race for masters chairman
M75 racewalker Bob Fine, a retired New York lawyer who helped found the World Association of Veteran Athletes in the mid-1970s, has been involved in American masters track from its inception. Now he wants back in the chairman game. (He was masters chair from 1972 to 1980.) Bob, now a Florida resident, has informed Phil Byrne that he’s a candidate for the unexpired two-year term of George Mathews, who resigned recently. This brings the number of official candidates to four. Bob certainly knows where the bodies are buried in USATF and can play the organization like a fiddle, but he also has a penchant for privacy. Although he makes good use of the Internet, he often handles issues behind the scenes, saying he wants to “do things through channels.” That’s fine, Bob, but will you be open to suggestions from the grass roots — and share your plans for the sport? We’ll see.
A vaulter’s Field of Dreams: His own backyard runway
Mike “Souleman” Soule is a vaulter in his mid-50s up in Minnesota who built his own Field of Dreams — a lighted backyard vault runway leading to a pit surrounded by beautiful trees. Doug “Bubba” Sparks of Texas, another case of arrested development, is a vaulter who fans the flames of the pole-jumping geeks by posting pictures of their setups on his Web site. Check out the Soule series here. Soule may not jump as high as the kiddies, but he’s head and shoulders above them in landscaping and building skills. No elite vaulter has a set-up as nice as Mike’s in Wyoming, Minnesota. Cost of runway: $686. Cost of pit, home-made standards and crossbar: $475. Being able to step out the door and vault in your own back yard: priceless.
Speaking of candidates: Canadian javmeister is one
Folgo Della Vedova is not a household name in masters track, but he’s apparently a well-known figure in the Canadian town of Sault Ste. Marie, where he’s running for City Council in the 6th Ward. A javelin thrower since as far back as 1970, when he was a city record holder as a prep, Folgo apparently was national-class and made the ill-fated Canadian Olympic team in 1980 — the Moscow boycott olympiad. During a news interview, he said: “I still actively train and compete at the Masters Track & Field level, having set several provincial and national records.” For electoral encouragement, Folgo can always turn to masters athlete Bill Gentes, the blogging mayor of Round Lake, Illinois. Any other masters politicos out there?
October 22, 2006
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Japanese masters nationals results: Willie-san, etc.
Willie Banks may have been the star of the show, but the Japanese masters nationals last month also featured an M95 sprinter/thrower and some pretty sharp marks. My Asian correspondent Quick Sand sent these results (in Excel format) and reports: “The Japan Vets Championships was held in a vast stadium and sports park outside Sendai in Miyagi prefecture, northern Japan. It was a beautiful facility, built for the football World Cup, with a good practice track and an indoor practice straightaway. Excellent organization. I don’t know how many athletes they had, but it was a couple of thousand. The meet program was about 2cm thick.”
