Sightseeing in Dijon, France.
At the group dinner in Dijon: Berny Dare, Carol Duvall, Adam Zebrowski, Tim Hickey, Dan Reynolds, and Pascal our bus driver.
EURO DIAMOND LEAGUE TOUR REPORT
Fifty-five track junkies (and some not so junky) made the trip with us to the three final Diamond League meets in London, Zurich and Brussels. Ooh, what good meets. We saw PRs by Wheating, Manzano, Rupp, and Aguilera (3000 St), and a number of world-leading performances. Molly Huddle's American record in the 5000 was a very nice surprise.
And of course, we had some fabulous European sightseeing between the meets in Paris, Lucerne, Dijon, and the Loire Valley of France. Visiting those grand chateaux---Chambord and Chenonceau---and seeing the sound and light show in the late evening at Chambord remain vividly in the memory. Many of us took the Eurostar (the Chunnel train) for the first time and enjoyed the smooth, quick ride to Paris. After a few pleasant days in Paris, we loaded our luggage on the bus, which then departed for Lucerne, Switzerland. We tour members boarded the high-speed train at Gare de L'Est and made Basel in a couple of hours, switching to the commuter train to Lucerne. Our hotel was two or three blocks from the station, and we were then happily reunited with our luggage.
Another highlight was the trip to Mt. Pilatus, a 7000-foot peak a few miles from Lucerne. This was accomplished first by a half-hour boat trip to Alpnachstad. Then we boarded the cog railway which whisked us to the top of the mountain (the steepest cog railway in Europe). Tour members spent a few hours at the top, snacking and hiking and marveling at the views, and then individual gondolas brought us down to level ground again where our bus was waiting to return us to the hotel. Lucerne is on a beautiful lake (Vierwaldstatter See--say that fast three times) and there are innumerable lovely cafes and restaurants by the lake. And it's just 40 miles to Zurich. Most of us had not seen Zurich's rebuilt Letzigrund Stadium before; it's a keeper. London's Crystal Palace is also a beautiful, colorful venue---as good a place for a track meet as anywhere in the world.
ON TO 2011
So, now we're in preparation mode for the two tours scheduled for next year: the XIII World Track & Field Championships in Daegu, South Korea, at the end of August, and the U.S. Trials for the Worlds (the USATF National Outdoor Championships) in Eugene in June.
Daegu 2011. The IAAF, in its wisdom, has returned to the four days on, one day off, four days on schedule, which is much to our liking. That nine-straight-days schedule allowed less time for rest and sightseeing, and we can host our gala dinner on the day off. It beefs the daily schedule up too; the nine-day schedule made for a couple of rather thin days. For those who like to attend the morning qualifying events, there will be six mornings; the last two days will not have morning qualifications. Evening events start generally at 7pm and run to about 9:30 or so.
We'll be using the excellent subway system to get to the stadium. We do have one of the best hotels in town---one of the few with western standards---and are currently in negotiation for another hotel. Our tickets will be on the backstretch, across from the finish line. We determined this location would be far preferable to what was available on the finish side.
As most of you know, the Worlds provide a caliber of track & field---in terms of performance and competition---every bit as good as the Olympics. The current deposit requirement is $500 per person. There is still some space left. Basic tour dates are August 25 (arrive Daegu) to September 5 (depart Daegu).
Eugene 2011. Meet dates for the USATF Nationals are Wednesday, June 22 through Sunday, June 26.
As you know, this meet picks the U.S. team for the Worlds, and Eugene---Tracktown USA---hosts again. Our lodging is the Campus Inn and Suites---a 20-30 minute walk to the stadium (or take the EmX tram from the nearby stop to Agate, up Franklin Blvd.). Tour members can opt for a 3, 4, or 5 night tour, with the price range $660 to $1210, depending on length of stay, room configuration, etc. The motel is close to restaurants and shopping.
The current deposit required is $250 per person. There is not much space left at the Campus Inn, so get on board now to make sure you'll have a spot on the tour.
LONDON 2012 (Click here for more details)
Ed and Janet took the opportunity of the Diamond League tour's start in London to check out and confirm our hotels for the Games in 2012. Room rates during the Olympic period of course are outrageously high, and 'twas ever thus for the Olympics. London is one of the world's most expensive cities, but we still hope to keep the basic tour price in the $7000 per person range. One reason is that we'll not have to engage buses for stadium transportation, since the famous London Underground---one of the most extensive systems in the world---should take us efficiently and with dispatch to the stadium from our central London hotels.
To date we have four hotels, with one of them a four-star which will be completely renovated by 2012. The three-stars have rather smallish rooms, but the monetary saving to the tour member will be considerable. They are all well located, with good access to restaurants, sightseeing, shopping, and the Underground.
At present, about 600 are signed for the Games tour, and the current deposit needed is $1000/person. If you are at all interested, we urge you to sign up as soon as possible, since we'll undoubtedly be in a wait list mode by the middle of next year.
We'll have a good selection of optional extension trips both before and after the Games to attractions like Stonehenge, Blenheim Palace, Stratford-Upon-Avon in England, and in Ireland and France.
TRIALS 2012 (Click here for more details)
Eugene is host for the next Olympic Trials, as you know, and we have booked the Campus Inn again, and two nearby motels---all walking distance to the stadium (no bus rides from Cottage Grove this time). More than 200 are signed on and there isn't a lot of space left. Again, early signup is imperative if you don't want to miss out. At this time, the deposit required is $500 per person. Meet dates? Nothing official yet, but it looks like June 22-25, two days off, then June 28-July 1.
Ethan Harris at the Beijing party, with Kristin Heaston, Aretha Thurmond and Hyleas Fountain.
FAREWELLS
Ralph Spencer sends word of the passing of Ethan Harris, who died March 21 at age 81. Ethan attended every Summer Olympics since 1968, the last five with TAFNOT. He also went to the Worlds in Edmonton with us in 2001. A B.S. graduate in civil engineering from Howard University, he obtained advanced degrees at Columbia, and then settled in to a varied 48-year career in the public sector, first with the Army Corps of Engineers, working on civil and military projects in Los Angeles, New York, New Jersey, and Canada. He later moved to management positions at the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and retired in 1997. Ralph writes, "He was a warrior, classmate, and close friend. . . we shall miss him."
Glenn Adams, a longtime TAFNOTer, died recently at age 92 at his home in Sedona, Arizona. Glenn attended every World Championships with TAFNOT, 1983-2009, and five Olympic Games. In all, he participated in 24 tours with Track & Field News, 1968-2009. Glenn A. Adams, Jr., was a Cal Berkeley graduate and became a bomber pilot in WWII, flying more than 30 missions in his "Silver Queen." He was proud of the fact that he never lost a crew member flying under his command. After the war, he worked for Standard Oil of California (now Chevron) and moved up eventually to a managerial position in the San Francisco home office. He retired in the late 70's. A track star in high school, Glenn never lost his love of the sport. His son Buzz reports that he was "in training" for the Worlds in Daegu next year---"A die-hard track fan to the end!" Glenn, it won't be the same without you.
George "Pete" Keyes died this summer in an auto accident at age 73. Pete and his wife Betty went on 10 tours with TAFNOT, including one Olympics (Sydney) and four World Championships (1999-2005). Pete was an attorney in Binghamton, NY, and was a Notre Dame grad and avid fan. He made a point of getting to the Penn Relays every year. He was a long-time Niagara Association of USATF vice president. Personable and amiable, Pete will be sorely missed.
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS REQUIREMENTS
The IAAF touts its biennial World Championships as "the jewel in the crown of the IAAF's global competition." Behind only the Olympics and soccer's World Cup, it's the third largest sporting event in the world, with athletes competing from 200 nations. If your city would like to bid for a future IAAF World Championships, keep these requirements in mind: 1) your city must have a population of at least one million; 2) it must have a suitable 30,000-seat stadium (with at least an 8-lane synthetic track); 3) it must have three close-by training venues; 4) it must be served by an international airport; 5) it must be able to handle a minimum budget of $40 million; and 6) it must have at least 3000 beds in four-star hotels.
Sorry, Anaheim, Azusa or Cuckamonga. You don't qualify.
OLYMPIC STADIUM TAKES SHAPE
In March, fourteen light towers were put into place at the London 2012 Olympic Stadium as progress continued on construction of the Games centerpiece venue---a venue, by the way, which has a 537 million pounds price tag (about $800 million U.S.). The fixtures tower 53 meters above ground level, which is a bit taller than Nelson's Column in Trafalgar Square.
OLYMPIC SPORT PREFERENCES
No surprises in a recent TAFNOT 2012 member questionnaire when we asked what other sports they might like to attend (other than track & field). Swimming and Gymnastics tied for the top of the list, with Basketball a fairly close third. After that, the curve drops sharply, with Volleyball, Diving, Beach Volleyball, Cycling and Tennis in the next most popular grouping, followed by Boxing, Football (Soccer), Water Polo, Table Tennis and Weightlifting. The least popular sports were Canoeing, Shooting, Archery, Synchronized Swimming, Trampoline and Taekwondo. Unfortunately, there is not always a good relationship between the sports asked for and the tickets we can actually get for an Olympic Games. Swimming and Gymnastics are often the most difficult tickets to acquire. But for London, we're hoping for a better result than the rather meager supply of major sport tickets available to foreigners for Beijing.
OLYMPICS DOLLAR DISTRIBUTION
Track & field (athletics) will still get the most money from Olympic TV revenues, as compared to other Olympic sports. In a meeting in Dubai in April, it was agreed to maintain the distribution formula that has obtained since 1996. Of the $375 million that is expected to be doled out from 2012 Games TV money, about 9-1/2% will go to the IAAF (track's international federation)---about $35.77 million. Seven sport federations are in the next tier and they get about 5% or $18.73 million each: swimming, basketball, gymnastics, cycling, football (soccer), tennis and volleyball.
The swimming federation argued unsuccessfully for a bigger slice of the pie (based on the popularity of swimming events at Beijing). In the next tier are rowing, equestrian, handball and field hockey, and those sports will get $13.17 million each. The other 14 sports get $11.19 million per. All of these amounts are good increases from 2008.
That third tier looks rather strange to American sports fans---handball and field hockey more deserving/popular than wrestling, weightlifting, boxing? TV ratings, attendance and ticket sales are some of the most important criteria for determining distribution tiers.
THAT'S IT FOR NOW
Other tour matters we're currently working on are finding a good optional extension trip before or after Daegu that makes sense, planning the 2013 World Championships trip to Moscow, and of course the first South American Games: Rio de Janeiro 2016, our first tour to that continent. We already have about 100 signups.
Until next time,
Janet Vitu & Ed Fox
TAFNOT Times #38 PDF Download
Check our web site at www.trackandfieldnews.com/tours