Canada Track & Field and Cross Country News
© Copyright – 2012 – Athletics Illustrated
Steve Magness writes science-based running and training articles primarily for the website The Science of Running.
Magness recently accepted a coaching position with the University of Houston, his alma mater. Previously he was an assistant coach at Nike Oregon Project, leading up to the 2012 London Olympic Games.
Magness ran in the NCAA for Rice University and the University of Houston. Currently he coaches professional runners Jackie Areson, who has run as fast as 4:12 in the 1500m and owns a 5k personal best time of 15:14. He also coaches Sara Hall and Tommy Schmitz. Schmitz owns an 800m personal best time of 1:49 and a 1500m best of 3:39.
© Copyright – 2012 – Athletics Illustrated (via athleticsillustrated.com)
University of Victoria Vikes team workout at nearby Mount Doug Park, with guest appearance by Canadian Olympian and 800m specialist Geoff Harris. Hill repeats were the order of the day of various distances.
© Copyright - 2012 - Athletics Illustrated
Hans-Joachim “Hajo” Seppelt is a freelance journalist for ARD, a nationwide German TV and radio broadcasting network located in Berlin. He is, as his bio indicates, a film author who is involved in creating features and reporting for all of the German state broadcasting institutions. At this time, he is primarily reporting for the regional WDR network with the doping editorial team (WDR in Cologne).
© Copyright – 2012 – Athletics Illustrated (via athleticsillustrated.com)
© Copyright - 2012 - Athletics Illustrated
Are athletics federations doing enough to support WADA in suspending athletes who test positive for performance enhancing drugs?
Athletics Kenya’s Chairman Isaiah Kiplagat, gave a one week ultimatum to all foreign athletics coaches working in Kenya without work permits to leave. Kiplagat claims that the foreign coaches are responsible for the latest spate of drug use allegations, most notably from German journalist Hajo Seppelt, who acted as a sport agent, and reported that performance enhancing drug use in Kenya is rampant by both Kenyans and foreign athletes training in the country.
© Copyright – 2012 – Athletics Illustrated (via athleticsillustrated.com)
© Copyright - 2012 - Athletics Illustrated
Ben Johnson - 30 for 30
If you have spent the last twenty-five years getting over the drama and disappointment of Ben Johnson’s world record gold medal win in the 100m at the 1988 Olympic Games and subsequent disqualification and positive test, I do not suggest watching the ESPN 30 for 30 special 9.79 which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival this summer and aired on TSN this week.
Carl Lewis, who has long come off as somewhat arrogant and phony (and not exactly the best singer) shows that time has not dulled his worst attributes. Much of what was contained in the documentary was not necessarily new – the positive test by Lewis at the 1988 US Olympic Trials for a banned stimulant has long been in the public domain.
© Copyright – 2012 – Athletics Illustrated (via athleticsillustrated.com)
© Copyright - 2012 - Athletics Illustrated
Steve Magness recently accepted a coaching position with the University of Houston, his alma mater. Previously he was assistant coach at Nike Oregon Project, leading up to the 2012 London Olympic Games. He ran in the NCAA for Rice University and the University of Houston.
© Copyright - 2012 - Athletics Illustrated
Photo: (Markus Schreiber/AP)
The World Marathon Majors series is pointless and does not accomplish what it has set out to do. Most world-class marathon runners that are focused on peaking for the Olympics and World Championships and are dealing with recovery or injuries are not able to compete in enough events to earn the points required to compete for the World Marathon Majors prize purse, so they don’t bother. There typically remains a field of just a handful of East Africans that compete to the end, which is not edge-of-your-seat sporting competition to say the least.
© Copyright - 2012 - Athletics Illustrated
Khadevis Robinson is an American runner who specializes in the 800m distance. He has proven to be one of the fastest and most consistent 800m runners that the US has produced. A four-time US champion both outdoors and indoors, he has competed at seven consecutive IAAF World Championships in Athletics, from 1999 to 2011 and is a two-time Olympian.
© Copyright - 2012 - Athletics Illustrated
CASE STUDY AND INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR Dr. TRENT STELLINGWERFF
Dr. Trent Stellingwerff is a former track and field athlete who competed in the NCAA for division 1 Cornell University, where he was selected as a co-captain. He also competed in the CIS for the University of Guelph, where he twice earned All-Canadian status.
Stellingwerff was an academically decorated student who made the Dean’s list at Cornell University. In 2006 he took a position in Switzerland for the Nestle Research Centre (Powerbar) as a Senior Research Scientist in Sport Nutrition, Energy and Performance. Stellingwerff has also served as the Nutrition and Physiology Consultant for Athletics Canada. He now lives in Victoria, BC and is a Senior Physiologist working with the Canadian Sport Centre Pacific.
By Paul Gains
When Gilbert Yegon made his marathon debut in Amsterdam three years ago he instantly attracted attention as his time of 2:06:18 knocked two seconds off the course record held by the legendary Haile Gebreselassie.
Following the race he announced that, had it not been for muscle cramps suffered in the closing stages of that race, he would have also beaten the 2:06 barrier. Gebreselassie, of course, is also a two time Olympic 10,000m champion and held the world marathon record at 2:03:59 until last year.