Five Jamaican sprinters test positive, Bold needs to brush up on his stock reply about doping positives Options

[D-Queued]

well I tried to get someone to post that the flame Carl Lewis was clean when he was in Tokyo 199??something or another. I was there and it was something to watch! Now this weekend I watched another similar track and field meet that left me with the same feeling. False racing. Anyone who tells me that it is real can go and #### off!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTM_mvA4kas

Were you the little kid beside Carl's mom waving the American flag?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq4KrymPtXY&feature=fvw

"I believe that everyone on International is using performance enhancing drugs.

Q: Majority use performance enhancing drugs?

A: Yes

...

Athletes not saying nice things were also using..."

Dave.

This post has been edited by D-Queued: Aug 19 2009, 04:41 PM

[OAR]

I am at work and can not watch your video / youtube link. I was not waiving any flags at the Track and Field World Championships in Tokyo. I probably was wearing a UST&F wind breaker / warm up and hanging around other similarly dressed folks, no flags being waived.

This post has been edited by OAR: Aug 19 2009, 06:43 PM

[crockett]

Well, I think that track & field has a worse reputation than cycling right now. I showed my wife (who does not follow sports at all) the 100M final, and her unprompted comment was that she couldn't get excited about it because she fully expected that we would learn later that he was on drugs.

I then showed her the women's 800m finals.............

[D-Queued]

Well, I think that track & field has a worse reputation than cycling right now. I showed my wife (who does not follow sports at all) the 100M final, and her unprompted comment was that she couldn't get excited about it because she fully expected that we would learn later that he was on drugs.

I then showed her the women's 800m finals.............

Worse reputation?

No way.

It is all done on McNuggets and Yams. McNuggets! That is waaaay better than boring old cycling's mental tenacity and high cadence.

Usain Bolt's Secret to Being the Fastest Man: Chicken Nuggets

First, there's me. Then, there's the yams. Then, there are the other hams. Got it? Next time, though, I am gonna run the full 100 meters and try and set a real record.



Plus, this is cool...
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/08...t-graphic.html#

It is like the track version of the Tour wattage chart post EPO.

Did someone say Usain has a Ferrari?

I might become a trackie fan yet!

Dave.

[The Rake]

More controversy - though of a slightly different kind (and potentially embarrassing):

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/8210471.stm

[VdB]

Wouldn't be the first time! And the way she completely blasted that race leaves more than enough reason for doubt, imho.

Oh and lol @ chicken nuggets.

[D-Queued]

More controversy - though of a slightly different kind (and potentially embarrassing):

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/8210471.stm

Apparently they need to watch Crocodile Dundee

"The gender verification test is an extremely complex procedure. The situation today is that we do not have any conclusive evidence that she should not be allowed to run."

You either have 'em or you don't.

If he don't, then he can run as she.

FWIW, the UCI has let former guys race as gals.

Dave.

This post has been edited by D-Queued: Aug 20 2009, 02:23 PM

[Kiwi]

Plus, this is cool...
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/08...t-graphic.html#

It is like the track version of the Tour wattage chart post EPO.

Did someone say Usain has a Ferrari?

That is a cool graphic, putting the time into perspective.

Thrilling stuff, watching him run; just like Pantani climbing.

At some point though - and maybe this point has been well passed now - everyone starts to say, something doesn't look quite right here...

[Chris E]

Apparently they need to watch Crocodile Dundee

"The gender verification test is an extremely complex procedure. The situation today is that we do not have any conclusive evidence that she should not be allowed to run."

You either have 'em or you don't.

If he don't, then he can run as she.

FWIW, the UCI has let former guys race as gals.

Dave.

I haven't been posting alot lately, but for some reason this subject drew me out of hibernation.

Is eye bleach required after administering the gender test?

[Roadent]

I haven't been posting alot lately, but for some reason this subject drew me out of hibernation.

Is eye bleach required after administering the gender test?

As usual, a good discussion around all this on the Science of Sport blog.

[Chris E]

Is "Caster" short for "Casterate"?

[Tom T.]

Bolt wins 200, shaving 0.11 off world record. He was 0.62 seconds in front of second place. This is like someone attacking at the base of Alpe d'Huez and winning the stage by 5-7 minutes. Incredible and way too good to be true.

[D-Queued]

Bolt wins 200, shaving 0.11 off world record. He was 0.62 seconds in front of second place. This is like someone attacking at the base of Alpe d'Huez and winning the stage by 5-7 minutes on a unicycle or anyone riding above 420 watts... at 37 after two years off. Incredible and way too good to be true.

Making a good analogy a little tighter.

Speaking of the twit-a-holic, and in some sort of echo to Ben Johnson being stripped in order to pass the gold to a completey dirty Carl Lewis, here is another story from Berlin. Here we have the medalling Canadian getting a surprise, last-minute doping control:

"Shortly after speaking to CBC Sports following her semifinal run, Lopes-Schliep was taken by an IAAF representative into doping control, a highly unusual development given the time span of less than three hours between the semis and the final.

"I said on the way to the warmup track, 'Listen, I have a race to prepare for and I know you are doing your job but I am here to race,'" said Lopes-Schliep. "The girl didn't understand. There was as bit of a language barrier. I was a little angry but I got it done and I got a silver."

Lopes-Schliep was tested ten minutes before the race start. Apparently, she must be the token Canadian in the field. Yet, virtually no national outcry. No strumpeting Hombrecitas. Just part of the sport.

Had this happened to the tweety-monster we would never hear the end of it.

Dave.

[one-mint-julich]

Bolt wins 200, shaving 0.11 off world record. He was 0.62 seconds in front of second place. This is like someone attacking at the base of Alpe d'Huez and winning the stage by 5-7 minutes. Incredible and way too good to be true.

Or maybe like winning the final stage of the TDF by multiple bike lengths?

http://www.slate.com/id/2225866/

Big guys have physics working against them. According to the Journal of Sports Science & Medicine, "[T]he acceleration of the body is proportional to the force produced but inversely proportional to the body mass, according to Newton's second law. … This implies an inverse relationship between height and performance in disciplines such as sprint running." In other words, it's hard to produce enough power to overcome the drag of a big body. Usain Bolt, science tells us, is a top-heavy minivan racing against a field full of Suzuki Hayabusas.

That Journal of Sports Science & Medicine study, which may now need to be rewritten, found that world champion sprinters ranged between 5-foot-9 at the low end to 6-foot-3 at the absolute max…That range covers all the recent gold medalists, from Maurice Greene to Linford Christie. But not Usain Bolt.

This post has been edited by one-mint-julich: Aug 21 2009, 02:13 PM

[teamcinzano]

More in line with the interactive maps on the NYTimes article above, what would be the equivalent performance in the Men's Sprint on the track? Or the Kilo?

This graph, also from the 2008 Summer Olympics coverage, has Bos's 2006 record of 9.772. Given the physics of it all, what would a cycling Bolt improve that too?

What's amazing to me about the 19.19 is that both of his 100m splits in that race would have been world record 100m times just a week ago-- he held his speed over double the distance.

Edit: I think that Sireau went 9.650 in Moscow, so we'll reset the benchmark there.

This post has been edited by teamcinzano: Aug 21 2009, 02:35 PM

[Tom T.]

If you look at the replay of the 100, Bolt was out of the block as fast or faster than everyone else. For a man that large to be out of the blocks that fast is simply remarkable. It makes sense that he excels at the 200 because he has lots more time for those long legs to eat up ground. He might be a top-heavy minivan, but he's got better "fuel" than most. I would like to see him do a 400.

This post has been edited by Tom T.: Aug 21 2009, 06:10 PM

[one-mint-julich]

I would like to see him do a 400.

Me too. In one of the qualifying heats of the 200 he ran something like 20.70 hardly even breaking a sweat. That time would put him well in the lead of any 400m race, then all he would have to do is hold his lead to the end.

People have argued that Phelps has an unfair advantage in being a swimmer, because more medals are open to athletes in that than in most other Olympic events. In most events, even the most talented individual could not even compete for eight medals. But if Bolt won the 100, 200 and 400, plus was a winning member of the 4 x 100 and 4 x 400 relays, you could make the argument that those five gold medals would be just as extraordinary as the eight won by Phelps. To be the best in the world at both the 100 and 400 is just as much evidence of all-around excellence as being the best in both the fly and freestyle. They are very different races. Michael Johnson got a lot of publicity just for doing the 200-400 double.

I think, though, that the current setup makes it very difficult to compete in both the 400 and 100. I think their qualifying heats conflict, or at least make recovery difficult, particularly when the 200 is also being run.

[floridacyclist]

Me too. In one of the qualifying heats of the 200 he ran something like 20.70 hardly even breaking a sweat. That time would put him well in the lead of any 400m race, then all he would have to do is hold his lead to the end.

People have argued that Phelps has an unfair advantage in being a swimmer, because more medals are open to athletes in that than in most other Olympic events. In most events, even the most talented individual could not even compete for eight medals. But if Bolt won the 100, 200 and 400, plus was a winning member of the 4 x 100 and 4 x 400 relays, you could make the argument that those five gold medals would be just as extraordinary as the eight won by Phelps. To be the best in the world at both the 100 and 400 is just as much evidence of all-around excellence as being the best in both the fly and freestyle. They are very different races. Michael Johnson got a lot of publicity just for doing the 200-400 double.

I think, though, that the current setup makes it very difficult to compete in both the 400 and 100. I think their qualifying heats conflict, or at least make recovery difficult, particularly when the 200 is also being run.

Personally, I'd take Jesse Owens' 4-gold performance in '36 or Carl Lewis' 4-gold performance in '84. Running is running. Owens and Lewis proved to be dominant not only running, but jumping, and while jumping is driven by human performance characteristics, there's also a measure of skill involved. Whereas running is running is running.

For that matter, there's something to be said for "skill" sports as opposed to pure human performance sports. That's anathema to some cycling fans, of course, as they like to use the terms interchangeably, when they're not. If we're talking about bike-handling, we're talking about skill. If we're talking about ITT performance on a relatively straightaway course, the winner doesn't have "more skill," he has a bigger engine. I have greater respect for the guy who is a superior bike handler, than I do for a guy who was simply born genetically superior and therefore can go faster.

Speaking of Phelps, while the point is generally valid, I think it's worth a tip of the cap to note that he swims four different disciplines in the IM, and wins individual events in 2 of the 4 disciplines. And I think it's worth pointing out there's a bunch more skill involved in even a single 1 of the swim strokes than there is in running. True, running events aren't always won by the guy with the pure physiological superiority. Mechanics matter. But they matter a whole lot more in the pool.

[OAR]

Personally, I'd take Jesse Owens' 4-gold performance in '36 or Carl Lewis' 4-gold performance in '84. Running is running. Owens and Lewis proved to be dominant not only running, but jumping, and while jumping is driven by human performance characteristics, there's also a measure of skill involved. Whereas running is running is running.
For that matter, there's something to be said for "skill" sports as opposed to pure human performance sports. That's anathema to some cycling fans, of course, as they like to use the terms interchangeably, when they're not. If we're talking about bike-handling, we're talking about skill. If we're talking about ITT performance on a relatively straightaway course, the winner doesn't have "more skill," he has a bigger engine. I have greater respect for the guy who is a superior bike handler, than I do for a guy who was simply born genetically superior and therefore can go faster.

Speaking of Phelps, while the point is generally valid, I think it's worth a tip of the cap to note that he swims four different disciplines in the IM, and wins individual events in 2 of the 4 disciplines. And I think it's worth pointing out there's a bunch more skill involved in even a single 1 of the swim strokes than there is in running. True, running events aren't always won by the guy with the pure physiological superiority. Mechanics matter. But they matter a whole lot more in the pool.

Are you trying to bait me?

You are correct about the pool and the skill involved. I took up swimming seriously along with my running. The swim took and is taking so much time master.

[teamcinzano]

For that matter, there's something to be said for "skill" sports as opposed to pure human performance sports. That's anathema to some cycling fans, of course, as they like to use the terms interchangeably, when they're not. If we're talking about bike-handling, we're talking about skill. If we're talking about ITT performance on a relatively straightaway course, the winner doesn't have "more skill," he has a bigger engine. I have greater respect for the guy who is a superior bike handler, than I do for a guy who was simply born genetically superior and therefore can go faster.

That's what makes cyclocross the perfect cycling discipline-- the aerobic requirements of TT/Crit/Circuit Racing + the skill of MTB + running + jumping. Through in the occasional iron cross race, and you get the endurance too. Thankfully, it is almost Fall and the real racing can begin.

This post has been edited by teamcinzano: Aug 21 2009, 08:27 PM