Unlike USATF, which formally announces Masters Hall of Famers and Athletes of the Year in December, Canada’s top awards are revealed in June. So we’re happy to learn that Olympian and masters record-holder Debbie Brill (the real inventor of the Flop) is one Famer. (I met her at 1999 Gateshead worlds.) The other is Richard Graves, who died in February. He served for 20 years as a Canadian Masters Athletic Association leader. Awards will be presented at Canadian masters nationals Aug. 13 in Toronto.

Read the rest of this post »

Starting Friday, entering Grand Rapids nationals will cost $50 more, so if you’re planning to compete in Michigan, now’s the time to enter here. The drop-dead deadline is 11:59 p.m. Eastern June 24. The oldest entrant so far is 99-year-old Champion Goldy Sr. — down for four throwing events and the 100. W95 Jeanette Baas, whose name is unfamiliar to me, is the oldest woman. She’s in the 100. It’s too soon to say the meet’s fields are anemic, but I suspect Perth worlds and the Americas Masters Games in Vancouver are bleeding Grand Rapids. Even so, Canada is sending some stars, including record-holders M85 Earl Fee and W60 Karla Del Grande. Among the most ambitious entrants are 91-year-old George Roudebush, paying for 11 events, and W60 Rita Hanscom, in nine.

Four months ago, we noted the 20th anniversary of this site. Today’s milestone boggles me even more: 30,000 comments. No. 30K was posted by Tracey Leah, a first-timer. She apparently lives in Melbourne and wrote to applaud fellow Aussie Stan Perkins, the WMA prez. Who posted the most comments? Wasn’t me! (Though I had 1,418.) The champ, of course, is announcer Peter Taylor at 1,761. Other elites are distancer Mary Harada (881), high jumper Weia Reinboud (544) and 800 guru Matt B (434). Y’all make a daily contribution and keep the site fresh and lively. My deepest thanks. (Feel free to show your appreciation for this platform with a PayPal donation or check. Write me at TrackCEO@aol.com, and I’ll share my address.)

Read the rest of this post »

By the time you read this, Ed Whitlock may have lowered his Friday world record in the M85 mile. His 7:18.55 on a dirt track with no railing may not pass muster with record authorities. But in reply to a Q&A, Ed told me he was running a mile Sunday on all-weather track. So as we await his latest spectacular, let’s savor his first M85 mile mark.

Read the rest of this post »

Competing Saturday at the Portland Track Festival, W45 Kris Paaso won the women’s 3000 by 45 seconds and beat the listed American record by 12 seconds. Kris clocked 9:45.66. The old record was 9:57.27 by Monica Joyce in 2004. (The WR is 9:17.27 by Russian outlier Yekatarina Podkopayeva.) Joshua Gordon won the men’s masters mile Sunday in 4:35.04. Women’s race organizer Joanna Harper writes: “Kris led the race for all but the first lap, constantly clicking off 78-second laps on the cool, cloudy night that was nearly perfect for distance racing.” Kudos to Kris on her latest AR!

Read the rest of this post »

When I checked in yesterday for the 100 at the San Diego USATF Open Championships, I asked the clerk: Is Mike Powell entered? She looked through her sheets and said: “I don’t see him.” Drat. I was hoping to watch the world record holder, at age 52, try to get a qualifying mark for the Olympic Trials. He says the current crop of elite long jumpers is “pathetic.” So why not him on the Rio team? According to a mid-May article out of India, Mike is aiming for an Olympic comeback: “I have watched these people jump at the World Championships last year and I know I can beat them,” he said. “No other sport has fallen behind the way the long jump has.” He also is quoted as saying: “I am the master of the long Jump, I am the Beethoven of the long jump. I am the Bach of the long jump. If they said they were coming back to write some music, you would not doubt them. Don’t doubt me. And the people who do doubt me, I say watch.” I say: When? He isn’t entered yet, says the status site.

Read the rest of this post »

Friday night in Cambridge, Ontario, all-galaxy runner Ed Whitlock boggled minds again by running a mile in 7:18.55. He’s 85, folks! That obliterated the listed M85 world record of 8:04.7 by Germany’s Josef Galia in 1985. A Canadian running magazine reports: “Whitlock’s most recent record came at the historic Cambridge Classic Mile, an annual event that takes place on a crushed red clay track at Galt Collegiate in the southern Ontario city. The event is inspired by Roger Bannister’s sub-four mile which was run on May 6, 1954. … Whitlock was part of the 55-and-over race at the Cambridge Classic Mile, which began at 6:35 p.m. local time on Friday.” Nice run, Ed!

Devon Joan Martin, chair of USATF Club Council, writes: “If you loved running at Penn Relays, you can run at Franklin Field again on June 25 at the USA National Club Championships! USA Club Nationals has always had masters in its relay events including numerous masters relay records set there. Club Nationals has four relays: 4×100, 4×800, DMR and 4×400. This year, we plan to have a separate masters heat for the 4×400 if we have sufficient entries. Again, masters can enter any of the four relays.  Maybe a new American Record in the 4×100? We have also added a Special Masters 800 this year.  All are welcome in the masters 800. Entry Info & Status of Entries and Registration are here. That’s the good news from the Right Coast. The bad news comes from Bill Murray, Southeast USATF Masters Region coordinator.

Read the rest of this post »

The World Masters Athletics website, never a model for fresh news, is more out of date than ever. Its top story is coverage of IAAF Portland masters races — from late March. I think I know why. A new WMA website is being built. (The old one dates to 2001.) Same name but no hyphens. worldmastersathletics.org (and a .com version) was created in December, according to registration records. I posted a question to the WMA Facebook page, and President Stan Perkins graciously replied: “The website is being upgraded to make it easier to navigate and to be more relevant to the athletes. Jeff Brower is doing this work for us.” Jeff, the USATF masters webmaster as well, became WMA webmaster in January 2014. So he’s finally making a dent. But I hope the site features photos better than what we see now (in the background). I’ll reserve further critiques until the new one is christened.

At 48, Christian Cushing-murray is a masters road legend who sometimes ventures onto the track. He’ll be there big time in Eugene next month when he races the masters 1,500-meter exhibition at the Olympic Trials. But he’s nervous that quotes attributed to him in a Runner’s World profile make him seem too cocky. On Facebook, he wrote: “Just a clarification — in discussing the exhibition 1500m where it said ‘I think I can win,’ in the complete context of the conversation I meant that I thought I’d at least have a chance.” No worries, Cush. He also explained to me why “murray” is lowercase in his last name: “An eccentric great-grandfather recommended it, along with the hyphen, to his son-in-law (my grandfather on my father’s side of the family). My grandfather’s dad disappeared under mysterious circumstances when he was young, after which my grandfather was adopted by his step-father, last name of murray, so Cushing is our blood-name, but murray was an adopted family name.” So now we know! Go Cush! (And check out Marc Bloom’s marvelous story in Runner’s World.)

Read the rest of this post »