DO YOU VALIDATE? Facing an empty schedule, 22 inches of snow outdoors and no indoor facilities, high school coaches in Suffern, New York, measured out a 300-meter loop in a parking garage underneath a mall. After a successful debut, the garage, closed to traffic during the pandemic, is set to host a series of meets. No, the unique-facility marks won’t appear on any of our lists…
Kieran Tuntivate is the newest member of the Nike Bowerman TC. The former Harvard star represents Thailand internationally…
Steepler Colleen Quigley has left Nike Bowerman and is now being coached by Portland State’s Josh Seitz, who coached her when she was a Florida State senior…
Former Kennesaw State multi-eventer Jordan Gray, who holds the AR for the women’s decathlon at 7921, has launched letwomendecathlon.org to lobby for the inclusion of a women’s decathlon at the next Olympics…
When Cruz Culpepper ran a 3:59.53 mile in Seattle in January, he joined his dad Alan in becoming the 13th father/son duo to break the 4:00 mark…
The USOPC and Puma will be going to battle over trademark issues. USOPC says it owns “TOKYO 2020” and “PARIS 2024” among others. Puma has filed applications to use “PUMA TOKYO 2021” and “PUMA PARIS 2024.” In its legal brief, the USOPC calls the situation “shocking” and charged the athletic-gear company with wanting to “willfully undercut critical funding for athlete training and programs.”
The IOC Executive Board has proposed a new strategic roadmap to guide the body for the next 5 years. The recommendations are based on trends that are “likely to be decisive in a post-coronavirus world.”…
Ryan Crouser may be atop the WR list indoors but the Olympic champion is no longer the Texas school record holder. Tripp Piperi’s 71-4 (21.74) topped Crouser’s ’16 record by a centimeter…
According to USADA head Travis Tygart, the new Rodchenkov Anti-Doping Act “is going to be a game-changer for athletes, fans and sponsors.” The legislation gives the FBI the authority to pursue international doping conspiracies…
WADA has decided not to appeal the CAS decision to reduce the Russian ban from 4 years to 2 (“Last Lap,” January). Though the organization expressed disappointment, it said it “believes an appeal would have served no useful purpose.”…
In related news, the AIU has announced 4-year bans for 5 Russian officials involved in forging documents and covering up a positive doping test for high jumper Danil Lysenko (who as yet has received no formal sanctioning). Former federation president Dmitry Shlyakhtin is among the bannees…
No Euro Indoor for any Russians this year, as WA will not consider any applications for neutral athlete status until after the event has passed…
WADA has signed an agreement to strengthen its cooperation with Interpol…
Canada has announced that no spectators will be allowed at its Olympic Trials in July. Athletes who have already made Olympic Q-standards will not be required to attend…
More bad news for dopers comes from South Korea, where scientists say they have devised a wearable optical sensor that detects illegal drugs in sweat. This would, it’s claimed, allow non-invasive testing to be done in a minute or less. The devices can be manufactured for less than 50 cents each…
Implicated by the AIU for “tampering” with the testing process (“Last Lap,” February), hurdler Brianna McNeal said on Instagram that she is innocent: “I am still me! Very clean, very honest and transparent. Once all of this blows over I will provide more details of what’s actually going on.”…
London ’48 sprint gold medalist Barney Ewell will soon be getting a statue in his hometown of Lancaster, Pennsylvania…
Are fears that the pandemic might not be over keeping Paris ’24 organizers up at night? Tony Estanguet, head of the organizing committee, recently said, “There’s no official Plan B but we’re identifying the risks and the solutions.”…
Elsewhere in the French capital, disgraced former IAAF president Lamine Diack has been allowed a chance to leave France where he has been under house arrest for several years. He will not have to serve any of his 2-year sentence for corruption in prison. However, he’ll have to pay off his $600,000 bond if he wants to go…
The pandemic hasn’t been kind to Dentsu, the marketing agency for the Tokyo Olympics. The company, after an in-the-red year in ’19, followed up with $1.5 billion in losses in ’20…
Louisville’s new indoor track facility opened to rave reviews, but one local coach is not happy: he’s suing the mayor and the Urban League for allegedly stealing his idea for the complex…
Early-season prep sprint-list leader Shawnti Jackson is the daughter of ’05 WC hurdler Bershawn Jackson. Just 15, she has clockings of 7.24 and 23.23…
Kenya has boiled its potential Olympic marathon squads down to 4 names. For the women: Ruth Chepngetich, Vivian Cheruiyot, Peres Jepchirchir & WR holder Brigid Koskei. The men are Lawrence Cherono, WR holder Eliud Kipchoge, Vincent Kipchumba & Amos Kipruto…
The organizers of the Boston Marathon are back in the business of deciding which elite athletes will get an invite. In recent years, that task has been handled by sponsor John Hancock…
The national federation is watching footwear in Portugal. The times of 6 athletes in the national 10,000 champs in December have been annulled as the shoes were in violation of the new WA rules on stack heights…
Now it’s official for ’92 Olympic 10,000 winner Derartu Tulu. Interim president of the Ethiopian federation for nearly 3 years, she has finally been elected to that post…
Banned from her main event unless she takes medicine to suppress her testosterone production, Olympic 800 silver medalist Francine Niyonsaba says she will be attempting the 5000, an event she has never competed in…
Responding to reports that the Russian Indoor would not offer compensation, high jumper Mariya Lasitskene said, “My jaw dropped when I found out there would be no prize money. And this is not because I am poor. We need to spur athletes, especially in our difficult situation. I have no words. This is amazing and very sad.”…
In early February hurdler Lolo Jones won a World Championships gold in the 2-woman bobsled. Said the 38-year-old Jones, “I didn’t think I would be emotional. I don’t know if the snow was hitting me at the braking stretch or if I was crying, but I think I was crying.”…
Former Michigan State sprinter Herb Washington, who set indoor dash WRs in the early ’70s, is back in the news. The longtime McDonald’s franchise owner is suing the parent company for pressuring him to sell his restaurants to white investors…
The decision of British miler Charlie Grice to train with Oregon-based coach Pete Julian is being investigated by UK Athletics. Julian is a former assistant to banned coach Alberto Salazar…
With his recent NR in the 1500, former Badger Olli Hoare would seem to be in a good position for an Olympic berth. However, the Aussie federation will require him to run in the national championships in April, a trip Hoare sees as impossible. The federation says that exemptions can be granted, but if Hoare doesn’t show and the winning athlete runs the Olympic standard, that athlete would be selected instead…
We don’t know if Wilma Rudolph even drank beer, but now she has one of her own. Two breweries have gotten together to honor the Olympic legend with “Gazelle Hazy IPA,” which features a picture of the sprinter. The limited edition brew is produced by Nashville’s Tennessee Brew Works and Chicago’s Turner Häus Brewing. □