Latest news with #trackandfield
CBC
2 hours ago
- Sport
- CBC
Different puzzles, same goal: How do track & field athletes plan out a world championship season?
Social Sharing The best track and field athletes in Canada will be in Ottawa this weekend with the goal of earning their place at September's World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. In theory, it all seems so simple for athletes: the nationals are in your competition calendar, so just make the travel arrangements, plan your training schedule, and show up in peak shape. But in practice, it's like spinning plates — Canadians have a multitude of events all over the globe and an incredible amount of logistics that accompany that schedule. Athletics Canada throws coach Richard Parkinson says balancing training and logistics is "like getting a 3,000-piece puzzle and not having all the pieces." One of the athletes Parkinson works with to piece that puzzle together is two-time world indoor champion, and four-time national champion in women's shot put, Sarah Mitton. "At the beginning of the year, we sit down and we start with the yearly training plan. Sarah and I work as a team. It's coach-led, athlete-focused, and in Sarah's case — because we've worked so closely together for eight years or nine years now —it's more of a collaboration, more of a team [effort]," Parkinson said. Parkinson and Mitton begin with the key, major competitions that they want her to have "peak performance or have performance-on-demand at." "This year, for instance, was the world indoor championships and outdoor world championships. Those are the two big key dates," Parkinson said. "Then we fill in the [next] priorities ...which for Sarah, would be the Diamond League meets." The planning process for a new season can begin as soon as final major meet from the following year finishes. For Parkinson, that means vacation time also includes a healthy amount of calendars and meet research. "Last September, I go to the lake and I'm on the dock with the computer and I'm writing the plan around hitting world championships [and] world indoor tour, because those are money [and] income meets for Sarah," he said. "Then we go to world outdoors, but then I've also got to plan the five Diamond League meets." Navigating a rookie season That's how a veteran approaches the season — a high world ranking helping lock down invitations to key meets, allowing early planning and knowing when they need to be at their competitive best. For rookies, there are no guaranteed spots in Diamond League start lists, and the process to map out a season of competition looks much different. Canadian sprinter Audrey Leduc signed with Adidas this year, so she's just starting her foray into scheduling a full season of pro meets. That means she's new to the scene and needs to be more flexible when it comes to invites. One of those invites came just days before she was to leave for her first European trip as a pro, and it was an offer she couldn't refuse. "[At the] last minute, the Diamond League said 'we have a spot,' maybe…like two days before I was leaving for Europe. They said 'we have a lane' so I was like, 'OK, I'm going to enter the Diamond League,'" she said. "You need to be adaptable, but you need to also consider that you have big meets coming up like nationals, like world championships … it's a long season so you need to think about which meets you want to do and don't overdo it." WATCH | Leduc helps Canada clinch women's 4x100m spot at world championships: Canadian women's 4x100m team clinches spot at world championships 3 months ago However, 26-year-old from Gatineau, Que., also needs to balance that willingness to race with only accepting meet invites when her body is ready to perform. Leduc said it's a "tricky" balance to strike – she wants to show that she's interested in taking invitations and competing, but can't risk accepting an invite when her body isn't ready to perform at a peak level. "If the Diamond League is calling, and you're like 'well, where is it, how fast can I get there, and how good am I going to be ready to run?'" Leduc said. "If you're in a block of training and you're in the middle of it, I don't think I will be able to say yes because I might be on load. "If you're on load and you're going to compete in a Diamond League, and you don't perform well, they might not invite you back." Canadians face tough travel schedule Travel time is also a major factor for Canadian athletes, as the bulk of the meets and prize money, are in Europe. When they're overseas, the full team that help athletes maintain their peak condition and recovery, like physiotherapists and massage therapists, stay behind. Leduc has improvised where she can, but it's another hurdle to clear when planning a competition schedule. "It's a bit difficult [when] you don't have your team ... because you're asking a lot of your body, but you don't have the same treatment that you have back home. But you're expected to perform on the track, so you need to find ways to make your body recover," Leduc said. "I have cups [for cupping therapy] and I have compression boots, I have a lot of stuff that can help me just recover on my own." Parkinson says some higher-level meets offer access to treatment professionals, but there is a level of unfamiliarity when doing body work on a pro athlete. "The Diamond League does provide some support staff for physio[therapy], but you don't know them until you get to use them. We're at that stage where we need to find something, because most of the massage and physio people like that do travel for meet to meet with a Diamond League," he said. "So we've got to get more familiar with some of those practitioners. You've had a bad massage, you've had a good massage, right? "You want to go to that person that you had a good massage with [because] we just don't want to risk having a bad one." Parkinson recalled that the shoe was on the other foot for some women's shot putters at the Prefontaine Classic this past June. "The women from Europe come to Oregon — which is even a little bit of an extra step for them because it's not on the East Coast — and they were like, 'oh, boy, the travel is exhausting.' We said, 'yeah, try doing it eight times a year.' "We kind of chuckled, and they got a sense of what Sarah goes through or any of the other Canadian athletes that go back and forth so many times for these meets," Parkinson said. "That's why we try to connect the meets so that when we go over[seas], you aren't just doing one-offs and coming back, that you go over [and] you've got a few in a row." Plans not set in stone Parkinson and Mitton recently had a wrinkle added to a planed grouping of overseas meets near world championship time. A meet in Beijing offering dual benefits of high-level competition and good prize money is now up in the air. "Now I'm finding out just yesterday that they have suspended invitations to all athletes and the meet might be cancelled," Parkinson said. "So what do we do to fill that gap between Zurich and going to Tokyo? That's a big I talked to Sarah's agent, and I'm World Athletics website for sanctioned competitions. "I'm having to be flexible, and then also the athlete, she has to learn to be flexible [about] where they have to be." It seems that the only consistent plan for any track and field athlete is planning to be flexible.
The Guardian
3 hours ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Amber Anning: ‘Gold is always the goal. Get to the final and then whatever happens, happens'
'That was quite tough to take,' says Amber Anning, thinking back to the selection process for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. She finished eighth – 'dead last' – in the 400m at the British championships and was the only woman in the relay pool not to go to the Games. 'But Tokyo's always been on my list, even outside of track. The blossom trees are something I've always wanted to go see.' For this weekend's British trials in Birmingham, where spots for September's world championships in the Japanese capital are up for grabs, Anning is the favourite and defending champion, not to mention the world indoor title holder. 'It comes with a little pressure but nothing I'm not used to,' says the 24-year-old who, having been based in the US since 2020, is itching to race in front of a home crowd – 'the best track-and-field supporters in the world'. Anning did not compete in this month's London Diamond League – her event was not included – but she was one of more than 100 British athletes to sign a letter asking the UK government to back the bid to host the world outdoors in 2029, which was taken up by the prime minister, Keir Starmer. When London last hosted, in 2017, a teenage Anning was in the stands, as well as at the Olympics. 'London 2012 was particularly special for me,' she says. 'That solidified my mindset that I want to be an Olympian.' That came to fruition in Paris last year when she came fifth in the 400m final, three-tenths of a second off a medal, before picking up two bronzes in the relays. When it comes to Tokyo, her first crack at an individual world outdoor title, Anning has tunnel vision: 'The gold is always the goal. We get to that final and then whatever happens, happens. Me and coach [Chris Johnson] are very aligned in my goals. I've written these down from the beginning of the year. I sat in his office and said: 'Look, these are the times I want to run this year, these are the medals I want to get. And, like, let's go. I'm trusting you to get me there.'' Christine Ohuruogu is her idol and mentor. The pair have been in regular contact during Anning's first couple of years on the professional circuit. 'I want to achieve what she achieved,' she says of the former Olympic and two-time world champion. 'We have so many connections.' Perhaps the strongest of those is the coach Lloyd Cowan, who died aged 58 in 2021 due to complications from Covid. 'He was such a charismatic man, just so caring, so loving,' says Anning, who worked with Cowan from the age of 16. 'It was a hard pill to take, particularly being in America and not being able to go to his funeral. It took me a long time to recover.' Anning's mother, Melanie, is a founding trustee of the Lloyd Cowan Bursary, which provides funding for young athletes and coaches, and into which Amber is able to contribute through her contract with Nike. 'It's in honour of him and all his work,' she says. Anning's parents were supportive of her decision to join the collegiate system in the US, where she has competed for Louisiana State and Arkansas, where she is still based. The former Brighton and Hove AC junior talks of needing to leave her comfort zone and expand her horizons but underpinning it all is an ambition to reach the top. 'I think I wanted to be the best of the best and I want to be the best in the world – and the times that America are running are world class. I knew it was going to take time, going from being a big fish to a small fish over there.' Indoor tracks are very much a feature of the collegiate system, giving Anning an edge going into the European championships in March of this year. Her disqualification for a lane infringement in the heats was 'heartbreaking' and 'a shock to the system', but it prompted her to decide with her coach to go to the world indoors in China two weeks later. 'The aim was never really to go to worlds,' she says. 'I had set my sights on Europeans and coming back and prepping for the outdoor season.' In pipping Alexis Holmes on the line in Nanjing, Anning became the first British woman to win an individual world indoor sprint title. 'It was a really great experience,' she says. 'It made me trust a lot about the programme of coaching, how we're moving in the right direction for outdoors.' And outdoors is where it's at. The additions of Michael Johnson's Grand Slam Track – despite its financial difficulties – and the all-female Athlos League set up by Alexis Ohanian, the husband of Serena Williams, to the calendar are welcome. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion Anning talks of the importance of building momentum, using all available means to raise profiles. 'We had people running with cameras while we were warming up to get our content,' she says of May's Grand Slam meeting in Miami. 'It's what people want to see. They don't want to see just the bog standard track-and-field scenario. They want to see more personality.' Alongside her training in the US, Anning completed a degree in advertising and PR – 'as an athlete, branding is everything' – and a minor in psychology. 'I actually originally wanted to come and do neuroscience,' she says. 'I've always loved how the brain works and understanding it on a deeper level.' She has read mindset books but right now is hooked on fantasy – 'dragons and fighting and kingdoms and all of that'. Anning plans to take a few books with her to Tokyo, where the main focus will be a first individual medal outdoors. There is no hiding her excitement for the relays, though, with the team spirit fostered in her time on the England netball pathway shining through. But before all that, there is a job to be done this weekend in Birmingham.
CBS News
10 hours ago
- Sport
- CBS News
UT Dallas cuts track, cross-country programs weeks before school starts, leaving athletes scrambling
UT Dallas has abruptly cut its men's and women's indoor and outdoor track and field programs, along with its cross-country teams, just weeks before the fall semester begins, a move that's left dozens of committed student athletes in shock. Incoming freshman Travis Matchett had just accepted a full-ride scholarship to join the track team, fulfilling his dream of competing in college after years of running at Midlothian High School. "UTD was the first school to seriously recruit me," Matchett said. "My recruiting process was really short because UTD was the place I wanted to be." That all changed Monday morning. "I'm still in a state of disbelief," he said. "We got a very brief email at 10 a.m. saying they were shutting down the program." The email, sent by the school's director of athletics, cited "ongoing budget constraints and a lack of on-campus facilities" as reasons for the decision. It also noted that affected athletes could keep their first-year scholarships and still come to UTD academically, but for Matchett and many others, that offer falls short. "Being an athlete, it doesn't work like that," he said. "If you don't compete, you won't have any times for the 2025-2026 season, and it'll be nearly impossible to get into another program." Matchett said he believes more than 60 athletes and several coaches were blindsided by the news, with no warning that the programs were on the chopping block. An online petition is now calling for answers and accountability from the university. "It's really affected a bunch of lives," Matchett said. "It's all very confusing and very shocking." He's now scrambling to find a new school, making calls, scheduling visits, and even exploring opportunities out of state. "Yesterday I didn't have more than five minutes off the phone, between coaches and schools texting me," he said. "I've had the biggest accomplishment of my life stripped from me, but I'm still trying to stay hopeful." CBS News Texas reached out to UT Dallas with questions about when the decision was made, whether other programs were considered for cuts, and if fundraising was ever discussed as an option. The University only provided the following statement: "UT Dallas has decided to discontinue men's and women's indoor and outdoor track & field and men's and women's cross country, effective for the 2025-2026 academic year, because of ongoing budget constraints and a lack of on-campus facilities. We recognize the disappointment this decision brings to our student-athletes and the impact on their experience at UT student athletes will retain their athletic scholarships for 2025-2026 should they choose to remain at UT Dallas to continue their academic work. For those who wish to continue athletics participation elsewhere, our staff will provide support and services to assist in the transfer portal process."
Al Jazeera
17 hours ago
- Sport
- Al Jazeera
World Athletics gene test introduced for female category
Clarifying promised rules on female eligibility, track and field's governing body has set a deadline of September 1 for athletes to pass a gene test for competing at the world championships. World Athletics said in March it would require chromosome testing by cheek swabs or dry blood-spot tests for female athletes to be eligible for elite-level events. The next worlds open September 13 in Tokyo, and September 1 is 'the closing date for entries and the date the regulations come into effect,' World Athletics said in a statement on Wednesday. The latest rules update gives certainty for the 2025 championships in an issue that has been controversial on the track and in multiple courts since Caster Semenya won her first 800 metres world title as a teenager in 2009. Semenya won a ruling at the European Court of Human Rights three weeks ago in Strasbourg, France, in the South African star's years-long challenge to a previous version of track and field's eligibility rules affecting athletes with medical conditions known as 'differences in sex development'. The legal win, that she did not get a fair hearing at the Swiss supreme court, did not overturn track's rules. World Athletics drew up rules in 2018, forcing two-time Olympic champion Semenya and other athletes with DSD to suppress their elevated natural testosterone levels to be eligible for international women's events. Semenya refused to take medication. Now, the Monaco-based track body requires a 'once-in-a-lifetime test' to determine if it says athletes are biologically male with a Y chromosome. 'We are saying, at elite level, for you to compete in the female category, you have to be biologically female,' World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said. The governing body is covering up to $100 of the costs for each test with the protocol overseen by its member federations at the national level. Test results should be ready within two weeks. 'The SRY test is extremely accurate and the risk of false negative or positive is extremely unlikely,' World Athletics said. World Athletics has combined its eligibility framework for DSD and transgender athletes, with transitional rules that let 'a very small number of known DSD athletes' continue competing if they are taking medication to suppress natural testosterone. 'The transitional provisions do not apply to transgender women as there are none competing at the elite international level under the current regulations,' World Athletics said. Now age 34, and her track career effectively over, Semenya should now see her legal case go back to the Swiss federal court in Lausanne, where she lost her original appeal against track and field's rules at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
CBC
17 hours ago
- Sport
- CBC
Track and field sets Sept. 1 deadline for female eligibility gene tests ahead of worlds in Tokyo
Clarifying promised rules on female eligibility, track and field's governing body set a Sept. 1 deadline Wednesday for athletes to pass a gene test for competing at the world championships. World Athletics said in March it would require chromosome testing by cheek swabs or dry blood-spot tests for female athletes to be eligible for elite-level events. The next worlds open Sept. 13 in Tokyo and Sept. 1 is "the closing date for entries and the date the regulations come into effect," World Athletics said in a statement. The latest rules update gives certainty for the 2025 championships in an issue that has been controversial on the track and in multiple courts since Caster Semenya won her first 800 meters world title as a teenager in 2009. Semenya won a ruling at the European Court of Human Rights three weeks ago in Strasbourg, France, in the South Africa star's years-long challenge to a previous version of track and field's eligibility rules affecting athletes with medical conditions known as Differences in Sex Development. That legal win because she did not get a fair hearing at the Swiss supreme court did not overturn track's rules. Now, the Monaco-based track body requires a "once-in-a-lifetime test" to determine athletes it says are biologically male with a Y chromosome. "We are saying, at elite level, for you to compete in the female category, you have to be biologically female," World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said. The governing body is covering up to $100 US of the costs for each test with the protocol overseen by its member federations at national level. Test results should be ready within two weeks. "The SRY test is extremely accurate and the risk of false negative or positive is extremely unlikely," World Athletics said. World Athletics has combined its eligibility framework for DSD and transgender athletes, with transitional rules that let "a very small number of known DSD athletes" continue competing if they are taking medication to suppress natural testosterone. "The transitional provisions do not apply to transgender women as there are none competing at the elite international level under the current regulations," World Athletics said. Now age 34, and her track career effectively over, Semenya should now see her legal case go back to the Swiss federal court in Lausanne, where she lost her original appeal against track and field's rules at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
