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**LuckySpikes** · 24-06-21, 12:09

For the distance events on the track, I've just realised that 4 of the 5 reigning men's World Champions will probably be missing from Tokyo.

Brazier out, Cheruiyot & Kipruto out (unless Kenyan selectors change their mind) and Edris probably not making the team after finishing 4th at the trials. So, Joshua Cheptegei in the 10,000 will probably be the only reigning World Champion in those events.

**Grassmarket** · 24-06-21, 17:51

Ewa Swoboda is a no show at the Polish nationals.

**Grassmarket** · 24-06-21, 20:00

If you think things are bad for us, just look at this list of missing in action Germans, quoted on Totallympics. It is practically every single world class athlete they have.

Kevin Kranz (men’s 100 m)
David Storl (shot out)
Thomas Röhler (javelin throw)
Andreas Hoffmann (javelin throw)
Fabian Heinle (long jump)
Mateusz Przybylko (high jump)
Raphael Holzdeppe (pole vault)
Gina Lückenkemper (100 m)
Alina Reh (5000 m, 10000 m)
Konstanze Klosterhalfen (5000 m, 10000 m)
Cindy Roleder (100 m hurdles)
Pamela Dutkiewicz (100 m hurdles)
Kristin Gierisch (triple jump)
Annika Fuchs (javelin throw)
Carolin Schäfer (heptathlon)
Lucie Kinast (heptathlon)

**RunUnlimited** · 24-06-21, 20:06

Originally posted by Grassmarket

If you think things are bad for us, just look at this list of missing in action Germans, quoted on Totallympics. It is practically every single world class athlete they have.

Kevin Kranz (men’s 100 m)
David Storl (shot out)
Thomas Röhler (javelin throw)
Andreas Hoffmann (javelin throw)
Fabian Heinle (long jump)
Mateusz Przybylko (high jump)
Raphael Holzdeppe (pole vault)
Gina Lückenkemper (100 m)
Alina Reh (5000 m, 10000 m)
Konstanze Klosterhalfen (5000 m, 10000 m)
Cindy Roleder (100 m hurdles)
Pamela Dutkiewicz (100 m hurdles)
Kristin Gierisch (triple jump)
Annika Fuchs (javelin throw)
Carolin Schäfer (heptathlon)
Lucie Kinast (heptathlon)

Big ooooof.... No wonder the German Championships looked so bare of talent last month.... Though I did see Holzdeppe compete in the pole vault there, but he was clearly not in his 5.90 shape of years gone by then.

**paul** · 25-06-21, 11:58

Sherika Jackson (really great 400m runner) being awesome at the Jam 100m trials. 10.91 in heat!

**SprintRelayFan** · 26-06-21, 03:23

And continuing today with a 10.82! Top 3 all under 10.85 in the final.

**philipo** · 26-06-21, 06:38

Originally posted by SprintRelayFan

And continuing today with a 10.82! Top 3 all under 10.85 in the final.

Safp reliable as ever 10.71 legal with herath and Jackson not far behind.

**Ladyloz** · 26-06-21, 07:18

Perhaps this is where our male 400m runners are going wrong. They all need to drop down to 100m and they'll be world class 😂. It's clearly the thing to do right now.

**philipo** · 26-06-21, 10:53

Cannot help reflecting on a week end with lots of trials and National championships at the awful state of European track standards. Take Germany, UK, France, Italy, Spain, Poland with a combined population of over 300 million; the amount of top quality track stars is practically non existent; why is this ???.Just a few promising mid distances, a couple of Norwegian superstars.
Fortunately these countries possess some fine throwers and a few jumpers, but; all the sprints and longer distance stars are American, Caribbean and African athletes.
So has Europe lost significant interest in the track with very few super elite except a couple of outstanding Norwegians, Warholm and Ingebritsen.??

**Grassmarket** · 26-06-21, 10:57

Originally posted by philipo

Cannot help reflecting on a week end with lots of trials and National championships at the awful state of European track standards. Take Germany, UK, France, Italy, Spain, Poland with a combined population of over 300 million; the amount of top quality track stars is practically non existent; why is this ???.Just a few promising mid distances, a couple of Norwegian superstars.
Fortunately these countries possess some fine throwers and a few jumpers, but; all the sprints and longer distance stars are American, Caribbean and African athletes.
So has Europe lost significant interest in the track with very few super elite except a couple of outstanding Norwegians, Warholm and Ingebritsen.??

This is the downside of the funding-following-success model everyone is working to now. Once the tide goes out on a discipline or group of disciplines, it doesn’t come back in again.

**philipo** · 26-06-21, 11:53

i realise that its sacreligous to even entertain the thought, but could it be that the quality of UK coaching in a whole series of events just aint up to the standards required.
Our chief national coach, chosen for being a quiet young man who wont rock the sports politicos boats is not got anything much to say.
Will Prescod show the benefits of stateside coaching... i rather doubt it

. The philpo theory of British athletics is that after we discover a genuine world talent who succeeds at the global level , after that athlete or a couple in the event in question retire it takes 30 years or more before we find others in the same event.
So, for example,after Christie we must wait a great time till we get some British reliable world class sprint winner , if ever; in the Triple we had a good run with several great exponents, so in the next twenty years someone will come along.
DAS has come along a very long time after our top 100/200m woman retired.CO was a global 400m winner; we have a long wait before that happens again
Many other examples exist , the Backley, Hill javelin period and, cripes, what we got now;You wont see another MO ever, in my opinion.

Black and a host of great 400m male runners followed by a desert, till about 2035 i reckon; Jackson our first great short hurdler and nobody will come along to equal him for a long time;where is an Akabusi, a very fine athlete
And of course the mid distance greats who won Globals in the eighties ; promising guys now 35 /40 years later, but none of them has actually won or medalled globally.
Then a long time since the greats of HJ with Steve Smith and his fellow competitors.. soon to be distant memories( must not forget our 2012 medallist !!); Rowland in the steeple and a few who came later, and now we get excited when a guy goes 8.20.

**marra** · 26-06-21, 12:17

If you judge on times/distances there are plenty of events where many of our all time top 10 are either active now, or recently retired.

If you judge on medals, it looks a lot worse. But I would argue that global athletics is far, far stronger than it was 20 years ago, let alone 30-40 years ago. For a start, you don't have the boycotts that happened in those days. Then you add in the countries that have have gone from being talented but inconsistent performers, to being consistent powerhouses - the Caribbean nations in the sprints, the East Africans in the distance for the obvious examples. The best athletes from almost any country now are able to train with other great athletes. The resource advantage that countries like the UK had is not there.

Put simply, it's not that our athletes got worse as such, it's that everyone else caught up - and overtook in some cases - us.

**Christy93** · 26-06-21, 16:35

Shericka Jackson ran 10.77?! Wow... She could threaten Shaunae Miller-Uibo with her 400 background. DAS has another threat on the scene.

**philipo** · 26-06-21, 23:12

Originally posted by marra

If you judge on times/distances there are plenty of events where many of our all time top 10 are either active now, or recently retired.

If you judge on medals, it looks a lot worse. But I would argue that global athletics is far, far stronger than it was 20 years ago, let alone 30-40 years ago. For a start, you don't have the boycotts that happened in those days. Then you add in the countries that have have gone from being talented but inconsistent performers, to being consistent powerhouses - the Caribbean nations in the sprints, the East Africans in the distance for the obvious examples. The best athletes from almost any country now are able to train with other great athletes. The resource advantage that countries like the UK had is not there.

Put simply, it's not that our athletes got worse as such, it's that everyone else caught up - and overtook in some cases - us.

Doesn't hold water. The Caribbean had gold medal sprinters a long time ago; you were not addressing the facts I mention.ed which are simple facts,poster.

**philipo** · 26-06-21, 23:17

You are way off in talking ab out recently retired athletes and I cannot see this ridiculous arguments that take place on this by those that refuse to see what is staring them in the face, especially the specific examples I gave. I will desist from further comment.

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