Well, we're one step closer to knowing where the Olympic Marathon Trials will be held in 2016: they may be in Houston, they may be in Los Angeles; they definitely won't be in Cincinnati.
At a conference in December, USATF went over some really confusing and political procedures for choosing the host city. (Read the detailed report here) While there's some debate between hosting in Houston or LA, at this point Cincinnati is out of the running (please excuse the pun).
While I would love the trials to be hosted in my hometown (with the potential to race at home!), I think USATF made in the right call in dropping Cincinnati's bid. In defense of their position, USATF cited Cincinnati's lack of experience hosting elite athletes (from p.3 of the Road Race Management report, linked above).
And you know what? They're right. Cincinnati's bid was spearheaded by the Flying Pig Marathon, an event that consistently does not offer prize money, comp'd entries, travel assistance, and other amenities to attract top local, regional, and national competition. In the past few years, national-caliber runner Sergio Reyes has won the marathon by miles...literally -- that's not a competitive race. And in 2013, the Pig also established the Beer Series, a set of three races throughout the year celebrating Cincinnati's brewing history. In the Little Kings Mile, the elite race went off about 15 minutes ahead of schedule (not acceptable for an elite race on a time schedule). And in the Hudepohl 14k, the top three runners were directed to a wrong turn on the course (this is also a three-year-old race which, after offering prize money it's first two years, inexplicably did not following the Flying Pig takeover).
All things considered, Cincinnati and the Flying Pig are not ready for an elite, competitive race like the Olympic Marathon Trials. I really wish that weren't the case.
And so, this leads me into the semi-rant portion of this post:
Running (and road racing in particular) is unique among sports in that it is set up for the masses to compete alongside the elites, sub-elites, masters elites, etc. (From here on out lumped under the general term elites) But, interestingly, most of those masses are either oblivious to, or -- in some cases -- contemptuous of the elite side of the very race they are both running. One might think that, with road race participation swelling by the millions, those mass participants would translate into fans fostering growth for the elite side of distance running. In many cases, though, the opposite has been true, with races spending more time, energy, and money catering to the mass participants while putting less focus on the elite runners racing for the win. As outlined above, the Flying Pig is an example of this phenomenon, as is Competitor Group's announcement this summer that it would dramatically decrease support for elite athletes at it's races. Said Competitor CEO Scott Dickey: "We have always been about the back of the pack." Imagine that; a race director not concerned about the race!
It doesn't have to be this way. Mass participation and elite support aren't mutually exclusive. Rather, I see them as mutually beneficial. Events with mass participation ought to attract elite runners -- they offer increased media attention, fan support, and organizational infrastructure (think: Boston, New York, Chicago, LA, and Houston marathons; all have tens of thousands of participants and great elite fields). Races with established elite contingents ought to attract more mass participants, too -- they offer the chance to run with the best, to push past one's limits, to chase a new PR.
For Cincinnati and the Flying Pig to take the next step towards hosting a national-class event, they have to begin attracting and fostering relationships with top runners. Top local runners, top regional runners, top national runners. These efforts don't have to -- nor should they -- detract from the many amenities that make the Flying Pig a top-10 "Most Fun Run," according to Runner's World.
Believe me, I want to see that happen. I really want to see that happen. It would be great for the running community in the city, and it would be great for the sport in general. Here's to an optimistic future!
At a conference in December, USATF went over some really confusing and political procedures for choosing the host city. (Read the detailed report here) While there's some debate between hosting in Houston or LA, at this point Cincinnati is out of the running (please excuse the pun).
While I would love the trials to be hosted in my hometown (with the potential to race at home!), I think USATF made in the right call in dropping Cincinnati's bid. In defense of their position, USATF cited Cincinnati's lack of experience hosting elite athletes (from p.3 of the Road Race Management report, linked above).
And you know what? They're right. Cincinnati's bid was spearheaded by the Flying Pig Marathon, an event that consistently does not offer prize money, comp'd entries, travel assistance, and other amenities to attract top local, regional, and national competition. In the past few years, national-caliber runner Sergio Reyes has won the marathon by miles...literally -- that's not a competitive race. And in 2013, the Pig also established the Beer Series, a set of three races throughout the year celebrating Cincinnati's brewing history. In the Little Kings Mile, the elite race went off about 15 minutes ahead of schedule (not acceptable for an elite race on a time schedule). And in the Hudepohl 14k, the top three runners were directed to a wrong turn on the course (this is also a three-year-old race which, after offering prize money it's first two years, inexplicably did not following the Flying Pig takeover).
All things considered, Cincinnati and the Flying Pig are not ready for an elite, competitive race like the Olympic Marathon Trials. I really wish that weren't the case.
And so, this leads me into the semi-rant portion of this post:
Running (and road racing in particular) is unique among sports in that it is set up for the masses to compete alongside the elites, sub-elites, masters elites, etc. (From here on out lumped under the general term elites) But, interestingly, most of those masses are either oblivious to, or -- in some cases -- contemptuous of the elite side of the very race they are both running. One might think that, with road race participation swelling by the millions, those mass participants would translate into fans fostering growth for the elite side of distance running. In many cases, though, the opposite has been true, with races spending more time, energy, and money catering to the mass participants while putting less focus on the elite runners racing for the win. As outlined above, the Flying Pig is an example of this phenomenon, as is Competitor Group's announcement this summer that it would dramatically decrease support for elite athletes at it's races. Said Competitor CEO Scott Dickey: "We have always been about the back of the pack." Imagine that; a race director not concerned about the race!
It doesn't have to be this way. Mass participation and elite support aren't mutually exclusive. Rather, I see them as mutually beneficial. Events with mass participation ought to attract elite runners -- they offer increased media attention, fan support, and organizational infrastructure (think: Boston, New York, Chicago, LA, and Houston marathons; all have tens of thousands of participants and great elite fields). Races with established elite contingents ought to attract more mass participants, too -- they offer the chance to run with the best, to push past one's limits, to chase a new PR.
For Cincinnati and the Flying Pig to take the next step towards hosting a national-class event, they have to begin attracting and fostering relationships with top runners. Top local runners, top regional runners, top national runners. These efforts don't have to -- nor should they -- detract from the many amenities that make the Flying Pig a top-10 "Most Fun Run," according to Runner's World.
Believe me, I want to see that happen. I really want to see that happen. It would be great for the running community in the city, and it would be great for the sport in general. Here's to an optimistic future!
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