UK's Moscow medal hopes • [Eriksson's out, who's in?]

[fromage]

Not after 50 years of connubial bliss

[shivfan]

Pity the fool who EVER writes off The Big O...

She looked comfortable in winning the womens 400m at the trials.

Pity about jodie williams....

[shivfan]

Having just received an email from UK Athletics (who SHOULD know better) in which it was encouraging me to buy Olympic Trials tickets just to see Adam Gemili, you then get ABSOLUTE NONSENSE articles like this on the BBC

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/olympics/18527642

We're all excited about the boy, but come on, no wonder people burn out early and get too much pressure too soon...

It makes me SO angry!

If he can't take the pressure now he won't be able to do so later. I wonder what jamaican newspapers wrote about Bolt after he ran a 19.93 at the age of 17.

Well, to the great disappointment of certain sections of the British media, Chambers won in 10.26, Gemelli second in 10.29, and Dasaolu third in 10.31. Not particularly great times....

Ennis won the womens' 100m hurdles as Porter stumbled over the last hurdle.

[mump boy]

Good god these trials are shit

I have not seen one athlete of note raise their game

[John G]

Good god these trials are shit

I have not seen one athlete of note raise their game

Josie, aged 5, watching her first live athletics disagreed with you.

John, aged 46, also disagrees. Aside from the fact Jess was sensational in horrible conditions, I don't think it's about the 'athletes of note' (I assume you mean the medal hopes). i think it's about the athletes for whom the crowning glory of their lives will be scraping into an Olympic team or even an Olympic Trials final. I thought there were some great moments yesterday. The W800 and M3000SC were cracking races. The men's 400 heats were unbelievably tense. I also thought Gemili, Judd, Weightman and Sharp all looked like future world class athletes. possibly Murray too. Can't wait for today's.

[fromage]

well we can agree on that; a certain poster of repute tells us that the athletes in the UK trials did not really care anyway.

All about mentality, for me.

[fromage]

My last post was to Mumps post; were you, John G , at the same trials as I watched. "The womens 800m was a cracking race ".

I will always recall this race as a sumptuous example of a so called top and experienced runner showing proof of the most inane stupidity possible. A ridiculous race.


The performances of all but Ennis as I immediately recall were ordinary verging on the poor or unconvincing ,with little or no people stepping up the plate signicantly for the OG Trials and dont tell me about the weather... it was cool, sure, just like Londons going to be. And Helsinki!!

[Speedster]

Good god these trials are shit

I have not seen one athlete of note raise their game

Sadly I have to agree, where are the breakout performances? Are conditions that bad? Will Helskinki results select the final team?

Awful images of Jodie Williams breaking down during the 100m final, I didn't see the semi but she never looked comfortable in that race. Why would you let her run?

I'd hoped that's team of Abi, Jodie, Asha and one more could have challenged for a spot in the London finals but all have been struck with injury. Fingers crossed that Abi's twinge was just that and she'll be back in time.

[fortyacresandamule]

The British press glamorized mediocrity in the sport. Just making the A standard is seen as a great achievement. No wonder,their standard is so low.Not to mention the over-hyping of junior athletes when they show a little potential. All of a sudden they are going to be the next Bolt or Allyson Felix.

[nevetsllim]

Well at least things have brightened up with the long jump. Proctor broke the 29-year-old UK record with 6.95m (0.1) and the competition was almost definitely the best ever on home-soil among domestic athletes. Lorraine Ugen set a PB of 6.74m (she's sort of fell off the radar a bit after her wind-aided 6.80m+ in the USA a few months ago) with Jazmin Sawyers setting a PB and world junior leading mark of 6.64m.

Ennis was a bit though after a super day yesterday. 6.27m isn't overly tragic but she was having all sorts of problems with her run-up and only had one decent effort out of six. She really needs to learn how to consistently bang out a good jump in one of her opening rounds though.

[mump boy]

Good god these trials are shit

I have not seen one athlete of note raise their game

Sadly I have to agree, where are the breakout performances? Are conditions that bad? Will Helskinki results select the final team?

Awful images of Jodie Williams breaking down during the 100m final, I didn't see the semi but she never looked comfortable in that race. Why would you let her run?

I'd hoped that's team of Abi, Jodie, Asha and one more could have challenged for a spot in the London finals but all have been struck with injury. Fingers crossed that Abi's twinge was just that and she'll be back in time.

Abi is fine buy precautionary to pull out, she'll be running 200m in Helsinki

Already today just in the wLJ we saw more great performances that the rest of the championships out together. I think they were inspired by the legendary Mary Rand being in attendance

Lorraine Ugen 1cm of A standard this is the kind of performance we haven't seen from anyone else, raising their game for 2012

[GP72]

I think it is good experience for juniors to compete at the junior level and maximise their winning performances. At the senior level it becomes much harder to win medals.
Having said that I also think if an athlete is capable and willing they should compete at the senior level (while a junior) in major competitions eg worlds, europeans, commonwealth and even the olympics.

[nevetsllim]

Bleasdale 4.71m at the UK Champs. Peaking at the right time.

[Speedster]

Good god these trials are shit

I have not seen one athlete of note raise their game

Sadly I have to agree, where are the breakout performances? Are conditions that bad? Will Helskinki results select the final team?

Awful images of Jodie Williams breaking down during the 100m final, I didn't see the semi but she never looked comfortable in that race. Why would you let her run?

I'd hoped that's team of Abi, Jodie, Asha and one more could have challenged for a spot in the London finals but all have been struck with injury. Fingers crossed that Abi's twinge was just that and she'll be back in time.

Abi is fine buy precautionary to pull out, she'll be running 200m in Helsinki

Already today just in the wLJ we saw more great performances that the rest of the championships out together. I think they were inspired by the legendary Mary Rand being in attendance

Lorraine Ugen 1cm of A standard this is the kind of performance we haven't seen from anyone else, raising their game for 2012

Thanks for the update on Abi, great to hear. Much better second day with the 400mh, 400m, 200m and 110mh all gutsy competitive races.

FYI Mump/Flump, you both appeared on the Women's LJ coverage, on your phones no less!

[mump boy]

Haha i missed that

Todays trials were great mostly because Mary Rand hugged me

[fromage]

Bearing in mind the comments I made numerous times about rushing Jodie last year and how wrong I thought it, I was interested to read Afilaka 's comments about Gemili in todays Telegraph with which I so agree; how inadvised it is to ruin careers by rushing young athletes into heavy senior competitions for which they are not mentally ready and his remarks about the number of young athletes who never recover from excessive pressure heaped on them by the notorious British media and others. Acc to Afilaka, Gemili was pooped by the pressures this w/e and the Juniors in Barcelona are priority numero uno.

sensible guy who seen it all before.

Hope Gemili concentrates on the the lesser task in the Juniors.

[mump boy]

i hope he concentrates 100% on Barcelona and then runs in london as an afterthought, he's earned his place and is not keeping anyone else of note out of the team

[Flumpy]

It's also an Olympics in his home country, an opportunity that will never happen again.

He should though avoid the relay aand all media so as not to feed the idiotic hype that is bound to surround him.

[John G]

My last post was to Mumps post; were you, John G , at the same trials as I watched. "The womens 800m was a cracking race ".

I will always recall this race as a sumptuous example of a so called top and experienced runner showing proof of the most inane stupidity possible. A ridiculous race.

I thought Okoro's mistake just added to the drama. Great home straight battle between a veteran and a junior with a complete outsider coming through to take in the latter stages.

A lot of people think I'm quite strange, getting so much enjoyment from a minority sport. Didn't expect to get ridiculed for it on one of the sports own message boards.

Serious question, Fromage - why do you follow the sport?

[bushop]

Aust targets six Olympics athletics medals
June 25, 2012
"Athletics Australia high performance manager Eric Hollingsworth has long flagged an ambitious target of six medals in London - a figure not achieved by Australia at Olympic or world championships level since Mexico City in 1968."

Jessica Zelinka, Dylan Armstrong head Canada's Olympic track squad
Jul 1, 2012
"Canada has targeted three medals in London and between six and eight top-eight finishes."

[bushop]

Final British team named for European Championships
Who are the 17-18 possible medalist?

[fromage]

John G,
Anybody who thinks that pleasure from Track and Field is strange is weird; its a great sport relatively untainted by the crazy excesses of national team sports , vast amounts of money, ridiculous egos , etc, etc. the world over, especially professional ball sports such as soccer, and the corrupt stuff in another country! Minority sport , be buggered. A great sport.A centre piece of the OG.

I follow our great sport more in my seventies than I did since the 48 games ,as I have more time and the tv and computer connects me all over the world with whats happening, and instantly.

I profoundly disagree with your estimation of a great race in the womens 800m at the w/e with a lot of moderate talents afraid to even follow through to a sub 2 mins result and the crazy running of Okoro.

I abhor the attitude that we are all bound to say nothing but wonderful( so called "positive") things about our own countries athletes, even when unjustified and unrealistic; sadly, a lot of track fans around, especially in ones own country, think that love of our sport translates to little interest in Track and field around the globe merely at home.

Frankly, I am at least as interested, or even more, in many cases in the American Olympic Trials than the milk and water stuff over the w/e in Birmingham.

[bushop]

The british 4x100 women just kicked themselves out of the olympics[at the European Championships]. Poland and Switzerland made it into the top 16 and Australia and GBR are out.

I'm furious about the 4x1
UK have made absolutely no attempt to qualify until today total, incompetence and apathy

[bushop]

British Olympic team
July 3, 2012

British Olympic team
WOMEN
100m: Anyika Onuora, Abi Oyepitan
200m: Margaret Adeoye, Onuora, Oyepitan
400m: Shana Cox, Lee McConnell, Christine Ohuruogu
800m: Lynsey Sharp
1500m: Lisa Dobriskey, Hannah England, Laura Weightman
5000m: Julia Bleasdale, Barbara Parker, Jo Pavey
10,000m: Bleasdale, Pavey
3000mSC: Eilish McColgan, Parker
100mH: Jessica Ennis, Tiffany Porter
400mH: Eilidh Child, Perri Shakes-Drayton
Pole vault: Holly Bleasdale, Kate Dennison
Long jump: Shara Proctor
Triple jump: Yamile Aldama
Hammer: Sophie Hitchon
Javelin: Goldie Sayers
Heptathlon: Ennis, Louise Hazel, Katarina Johnson-Thompson
20kmW: Johanna Jackson
4x400m: Child, Cox, Emily Diamond, McConnell, Ohuruogu, Marilyn Okoro, Nicola Sanders, Shakes-Drayton

MEN
100m: Dwain Chambers, James Dasaolu, Adam Gemili
200m: James Ellington, Christian Malcolm
400m: Nigel Levine, Martyn Rooney, Conrad Williams
800m: Andrew Osagie, Michael Rimmer
1500m: Andy Baddeley, Ross Murray
5000m: Mo Farah, Nick McCormick
10,000m: Farah, Chris Thompson
3000mSC: Stuart Stokes
110mH: Lawrence Clarke, Andrew Pozzi, Andy Turner
400mH: Jack Green, Dai Greene, Rhys Williams
High jump: Robbie Grabarz
Pole vault: Steve Lewis
Long jump: Greg Rutherford, Chris Tomlinson
Triple jump: Phillips Idowu
Shot: Carl Myerscough
Discus: Abdul Buhari, Brett Morse, Lawrence Okoye
Hammer: Alex Smith
Javelin: Mervyn Luckwell
Decathlon: Daniel Awde
50kmW: Dominic King
4x100m: Chambers, Dasaolu, Ellington, Gemili, Mark Lewis-Francis, Malcolm, Danny Talbot, Simeon Williamson
4x400m: Richard Buck, Green, Greene, Luke Lennon-Ford, Levine, Rooney, Rob Tobin, Williams

[Flumpy]

British Olympic team
July 3, 2012
"Other events, meanwhile, were left open as athletes were given a chance to chase further qualifying marks in the lead up to the deadline."

What does this mean? Who?

[bushop]

British Olympic team
July 3, 2012
"Other events, meanwhile, were left open as athletes were given a chance to chase further qualifying marks in the lead up to the deadline."

What does this mean? Who?

I was quoting the article.
I assume it means folks not named to the squad can pursue a team spot in upcoming competitions. I'm also curious as to who can/ will... esp if Sharp would pursue an "A" so more Brits can run the 800m.

Which I now see was not the intent of the text... no chasing.

[andyjgt]

Ricky Soos in Paris all over again...

(yes that was a WC but they hadn't introduced the send-B-with-As option by then)

[bushop]

Drugs cheats Chambers and Myerscough in but no place for Meadows
Tuesday, 03 July 2012
"Sharp... appears to have got the nod because she is seen as a racer rather than a time trialist, having also won the official UK trials at Birmingham last month, beating her main rivals."

Golden pledge: I'll quit if we don't win eight medals, says athletics chief
3 July 2012
"Van Commenee added that a different but weighty number of medals — ‘such as seven golds or 15 medals with no golds’ — would also be sufficient to stay in the post."

[bushop]

Track & Field News' predicts van Commenee's resignation:
5 men’s medals...
5k Mo Farah
10k Mo Farah
400m h Dai Greene
LJ Greg Rutherford
TJ Phillips Idowu
1 women's medal,,,
Hept Jessica Ennis

[bushop]

Phillips Idowu, Team GB triple jumper, denies injury reports
11 July 2012
"Any of the 12 men in the final will be a threat," added Idowu.

GB athletes need confidence boost - Cram
11 July 2012
"The likes of Phillips, Dai and Mo, our big medal contenders, will really want to perform, especially if it's their last competition. They'll want it to be a good one."

[mump boy]

We've always known that it was a possibility but were rather losing hope, Perri just added herself to list of medal contenders in BIG WAY

[fromage]

one swallow does not a summer make.

A very excellent performance by PSD, but it aint three rounds in the OG.

PSD went public with her thoughts the other day and said she is not yet ready for medals perhaps in her career, but her ambition is to reach the final, which in a rather indifferent year for womens 400m hurdles is within her compass.

[mump boy]

one swallow does not a summer make.

A very excellent performance by PSD, but it aint three rounds in the OG.

PSD went public with her thoughts the other day and said she is not yet ready for medals perhaps in her career, but her ambition is to reach the final, which in a rather indifferent year for womens 400m hurdles is within her compass.

Do you understand the meaning of the word contender ??

[Flumpy]

HA!!! He started a thread here complaining that no Americans were congratulating Perri on her 'fine performance', but as soon as a British person make the same observation we immediately hear from him why it's not so good after all.

What a berk.

[errolM]

HA!!! He started a thread here complaining that no Americans were congratulating Perri on her 'fine performance', but as soon as a British person make the same observation we immediately hear from him why it's not so good after all.

What a berk.

Compared to some of the most poisonous racism I've read in years that PSD's performance attracted on the Daily Telegraph's comment sections, I have no problem with anything here.

Jesus, that rag is getting worse. A concerted BNP blogbomb these days.