Comments on: Team Running USA & Philippine Sports

By: kingofpots

kingofpots — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 04:15:08 +0000

workaholicrunner, it is sad to admit the reality that our runners don’t qualify even the olympic B standards due to lack of consistency of our sports program and maybe due also to the lack of focus & commitment by the gov’t and private sectors. i am also lost as to where i could get information about the records of our past athletes in athletics/track & field and that’s the other thing that we lack–proper documentation. maybe your friend was right about our runner not being able to break the sub-4 a mile, however, i have to make a research. thanks

By: workaholicrunner

workaholicrunner — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 23:29:08 +0000

Baldrunner,

I was just curious how the current crop of Philippine runners stack up against world standards. Could anyone of them have reached either the Olympic A or B standards? It is hard to find resources on the internet on how Philippine track and field athletes are doing.

A sprinter friend of mine tod me years ago that he was fairly sure that no Philippine runner has actually broken a four minute mile. I find that hard to believe since Roger Bannister broke it over half a century ago. Could this be true?

By: sfrunner

sfrunner — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 05:05:32 +0000

BR, thank you for sharing this with us. There was a void here in the U.S. for several years when the U.S. didn’t have these programs (Brooks, Project Oregon and Team Running USA). Too much individualism and not enough team. Then the Nike Farm Team (Stanford) was established. Eventually, Vin Lahaina went to Oregon to be the coach of Oregon and assists Project Oregon.

The Kenyans and Ethiopians are still a force to reckon with. However, the world (not just the U.S.) is closing in. Tomescu-Dita (Romania) won the Women’s Marathon but there were two Chinese that finished third and fourth. The Men’s Marathon could change now that Cheriyout (Kenya) and the Athens’ Olympic Champion are out with injuries.

By: highaltitude

highaltitude — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 03:51:41 +0000

BR,

this is excellent observation. however, i was bothered to read your predictions of what will be happen later. i was not in to sport things before, as i mentioned earlier that it is in the philippines, i am interested in sport, especially in running. but i could still remember few years ago when indonesia has no medal for man and woman single for badminton and your predictions were exactly happened.

I have a strong conviction that few if not many of your predictions will come true. but i hope before those predictions happens, those people will read this particular post and reflect on it.

perhaps, some media should take a look on this post as well…

ps. i sent you an email to your hotmail =) if you have time please check it out.

By: DATC

DATC — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 03:36:49 +0000

Baldrunner, you must have ESP. In BF’s speech before the Takbo Bayani run last Sunday, he spoke about conducting similar races in other parts of the country such as Leyte and Baguio. He said he would send the winners to participate in the Tokyo Marathon, an event that Japanese officials regularly invite him to.

All the politicians who will be planning to run for President in 2010 will be visible or even personally sponsoring sports events in Metro Manila just to give the “impression” that they are also fit and athletic (?) or fully support our sports program and national athletes…which is very far from the truth!