Coventry Godiva's Director of Athletics, David Dix has dropped star man Stephen Emery after he "showed contempt to his teammates" at the Midland 12 Stage on Saturday. A dismal performance saw the 3:48 (Stretford Timing) star slump to a miserable 27:21 clocking for a long leg at the weekend - an occurrence that "undoubtedly cost" Godiva a medal - according to Dix. "It was arrogant and unprofessional" thundered Dix of Emery "we all know that he wants away from here, but the offers just haven't been good enough". Coventry paid £19.3m for Emery in 2009 and it is understood that Dix wants "at least double" that price in order to let him go.
Emery has been fined two weeks wages (roughly £100,000) after he was photographed on a night out just days before the Midlands event and Dix has said that he is "making a point" by leaving arguably his most important athlete out of the line up for next month's National Relay. "I want to show that the club is bigger than just him. Sure, I'd like to hang onto someone like that but not at the cost of losing the soul of the club." Emery could be replaced in the team by a member of the youth team to further demonstrate "the future".
Coventry legend Dave Moorcroft blasted Emery yesterday evening and stated that the club was "ready to sell". The former Rugby & Northampton talisman was furious in January when the club turned down a £25m bid from Tipton, but Moorcroft's comments now seem to leave the door open for Emery to fulfill his "boyhood dream" of pulling on a Green and White vest. Speaking exclusively to the lufbra echo, Josh Lilley (who recently joined Tipton) said that the club "was the right place" for Emery. "We're building a team that will dominate" said Lilley "it's time to get serious now and go after the big boys".
Emery's spokespeople refused to comment this evening, but he did use his Twitter account to bemoan the increased level of fluoride in Loughborough's tap water.
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Showing posts with label Moorcroft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Moorcroft. Show all posts
Tuesday, 22 March 2011
Friday, 27 August 2010
UKA MUST SHARE THE LOVE IF RECOVERY IS TO CONTINUE
The 2010 athletics season will be largely remembered as the year that British distance running remerged from its hiatus of nearly three decades. The performances of Mo Farah and Chris Thompson in Barcelona were no doubt inspirational and Farah’s imperious performance in relieving Dave Moorcroft of his 28 year-old British 5,000m record was one of the season’s many highlights. Strangely, after a cross country season where UKA were lambasted from pillar to post (deservedly so in some cases), something appears to have gone at least half-right over the summer. The performances of Stephanie Twell and Michael Rimmer also show that the middle distances are, whilst not thriving, making solid progress under Stewart, Gandy et al. Whilst it is important not to get carried away – the European Championships are a fair way from World Class as was demonstrated at the Crystal Palace hangover – the British performances in a scandal-free Barcelona will have gone someway to reengaging the British public at large with Track and Field athletics. The only risk being that televisions across the nation are quickly turned off again when the viewer is forced to endure a tortuous interview by Phil Jones or some useless analysis from Denise ‘110%’ Lewis.
With the top level of the sport doing fine (if not well), attention will no doubt shift to the up and comers. It is here that excitement can perhaps be tempered. With some very notable exceptions (Niall Brooks, Richard Goodman and several female 800m runners), this has been a summer without significant breakthroughs. The number of men who are regularly running under 3:40 for 1500m this summer has been lower than ever before and promising winters (and proclamations of 3:36 not being a problem) have come to very little. Whilst bad luck, injury and illness has to take at least some of the flack, the British Milers Club too has seemed a little jaded this summer. This scribe has been one of the BMC’s most outspoken advocates and did himself enter into a pointless dispute on Eightlane about the organisation of the Watford Grand Prix. However, now looking back over the course of the season, it has become clear that all is not what it was.
The aim of the BMC is to advance the performances of the middle-distances by producing a number of quality races throughout the summer. There are many who will question the efficacy of paced races and their role in developing the racing instincts of an athlete, however there is no doubt that this is a sport that is fundamentally judged by time. Therefore, you would think that an organisation that nobly claims its raison d’être is to advance the sport would do their best to ensure that timing was accurate. Alas, timekeepers have been repeatedly embarrassed by the wonderful new initiative that is Athleticos. It has been clear to everybody except those who matter that the timing at several races was completely wrong and yet little has been done to rectify the problems. This culminated in the ultimate humiliation of one evening’s race times being completely void after protocol had been thrown out of the window; several athletes made personal breakthroughs to no avail. One is well aware that this sport relies upon volunteers to run it and it is with a heavy heart that they must be criticised. But the fact remains that when you pay £5 to enter a race, the very least you expect at the end of it is a time that counts. For a timekeeper to allow a race to be run without a starting pistol is the equivalent of a football referee arriving without a whistle. However voluntary, it is unacceptable.
Having alluded to pacemaking, it seems prudent to evaluate it. There are mixed feelings surrounding whether such races are really a good thing. Do they teach the athlete to actually race, or simply teach them to brainlessly follow? Either way, it is irrelevant; the BMC advertise Grand Prix and Gold Standard races on the premise that they will be paced to suit the athletes within each race. Why then were there, in some cases, only 2 pace makers to cover 7 events? Why were ‘A’ 1500m Gold Standard races going with a pacemaker who could only go as far as 500m and some without a pacer at all? It cannot be disputed that quality pacemakers are difficult to come by, but it costs money to enter and it is generally understood that this money is used to pay pacemakers.
Perhaps the BMC has been a victim of its own success. More and more athletes are seeking places with less and less willing to take on the burden of pacemaking. The blame should not be laid squarely at the door of those in charge. The high standard of this organisation means that when these standards slip ever so slightly, it is jumped upon. It has been a fabulous summer and the BMC has no doubt played its part in that. With UKA deservedly patting itself on the back for a job well done in Barcelona, perhaps a little of that good will should cascade down to a bit of funding for an organisation that will doubtless continue to offer a quality platform of British distance talent across the country. Such funding might just make that quality a little higher.
With the top level of the sport doing fine (if not well), attention will no doubt shift to the up and comers. It is here that excitement can perhaps be tempered. With some very notable exceptions (Niall Brooks, Richard Goodman and several female 800m runners), this has been a summer without significant breakthroughs. The number of men who are regularly running under 3:40 for 1500m this summer has been lower than ever before and promising winters (and proclamations of 3:36 not being a problem) have come to very little. Whilst bad luck, injury and illness has to take at least some of the flack, the British Milers Club too has seemed a little jaded this summer. This scribe has been one of the BMC’s most outspoken advocates and did himself enter into a pointless dispute on Eightlane about the organisation of the Watford Grand Prix. However, now looking back over the course of the season, it has become clear that all is not what it was.
The aim of the BMC is to advance the performances of the middle-distances by producing a number of quality races throughout the summer. There are many who will question the efficacy of paced races and their role in developing the racing instincts of an athlete, however there is no doubt that this is a sport that is fundamentally judged by time. Therefore, you would think that an organisation that nobly claims its raison d’être is to advance the sport would do their best to ensure that timing was accurate. Alas, timekeepers have been repeatedly embarrassed by the wonderful new initiative that is Athleticos. It has been clear to everybody except those who matter that the timing at several races was completely wrong and yet little has been done to rectify the problems. This culminated in the ultimate humiliation of one evening’s race times being completely void after protocol had been thrown out of the window; several athletes made personal breakthroughs to no avail. One is well aware that this sport relies upon volunteers to run it and it is with a heavy heart that they must be criticised. But the fact remains that when you pay £5 to enter a race, the very least you expect at the end of it is a time that counts. For a timekeeper to allow a race to be run without a starting pistol is the equivalent of a football referee arriving without a whistle. However voluntary, it is unacceptable.
Having alluded to pacemaking, it seems prudent to evaluate it. There are mixed feelings surrounding whether such races are really a good thing. Do they teach the athlete to actually race, or simply teach them to brainlessly follow? Either way, it is irrelevant; the BMC advertise Grand Prix and Gold Standard races on the premise that they will be paced to suit the athletes within each race. Why then were there, in some cases, only 2 pace makers to cover 7 events? Why were ‘A’ 1500m Gold Standard races going with a pacemaker who could only go as far as 500m and some without a pacer at all? It cannot be disputed that quality pacemakers are difficult to come by, but it costs money to enter and it is generally understood that this money is used to pay pacemakers.
Perhaps the BMC has been a victim of its own success. More and more athletes are seeking places with less and less willing to take on the burden of pacemaking. The blame should not be laid squarely at the door of those in charge. The high standard of this organisation means that when these standards slip ever so slightly, it is jumped upon. It has been a fabulous summer and the BMC has no doubt played its part in that. With UKA deservedly patting itself on the back for a job well done in Barcelona, perhaps a little of that good will should cascade down to a bit of funding for an organisation that will doubtless continue to offer a quality platform of British distance talent across the country. Such funding might just make that quality a little higher.
Saturday, 21 August 2010
MOORCROFT QUESTIONS FARAH RECORD
Dave Moorcroft has questioned the length of the Zurich track after Mo Farah relieved him of his British record over 5,000m. Speaking from his holiday home in the Maldives, the ex-Coventry star said that he “didn’t even watch” the event that took place on Thursday evening. “My first question afterwards was: ‘where did he do it?’” said a clearly vexed Moorcroft, “when I was told Zurich, I didn’t care- that simply doesn’t count.”
The 13:00.41 5k man looked tired at the hastily arranged press conference and was quick to poor cold water on anyone who was seen to be overly enthusiastic about Farah’s achievement. “Answer me this: did he win the race?” stormed Moorcroft, “no, he didn’t. So how can he say that he is the best Brit of all time? Answer me that- how?” After dismissing an animated Phil Jones of the BBC (who asked Moorcroft how he felt the crowd could have impacted Farah’s run), the ex-British record holder once again turned his ire on Farah. “What’s he done anyway?” he asked, “take it from me: that track is short. Go out and measure it. There’s no way this can happen.”
Whilst standing by his view that he “hadn’t lost a thing”, Moorcroft revealed that Farah had been less than magnanimous in victory. “He sent me a nasty Facebook message,” blubbed Moorcroft, “he said that breaking 13 minutes was easy and he couldn’t see what all the fuss was about. It’s really disappointing when someone treats you like that. He may have run a half decent short 5k, but that is no reason to delete and block me on MySpace.”
For his part, Farah has said that he is “disappointed” with Moorcroft’s attitude. “Jealousy,” thundered the Newham and Essex Beagle, “that’s what it is: jealousy. That’s why he had to go on MySpace- that and Tariku [Bekele] told me to keep that for sub-13 minute athletes only.” Farah went on: “how can he say that the track is short? What planet is he on? Get over it mate- I’m number one around here now.”
Officials at the IAAF refused to go into detail on the spat but did state that they “stood by” their timing systems, which were “of the standard expected at almost all BMC meetings.”
The 13:00.41 5k man looked tired at the hastily arranged press conference and was quick to poor cold water on anyone who was seen to be overly enthusiastic about Farah’s achievement. “Answer me this: did he win the race?” stormed Moorcroft, “no, he didn’t. So how can he say that he is the best Brit of all time? Answer me that- how?” After dismissing an animated Phil Jones of the BBC (who asked Moorcroft how he felt the crowd could have impacted Farah’s run), the ex-British record holder once again turned his ire on Farah. “What’s he done anyway?” he asked, “take it from me: that track is short. Go out and measure it. There’s no way this can happen.”
Whilst standing by his view that he “hadn’t lost a thing”, Moorcroft revealed that Farah had been less than magnanimous in victory. “He sent me a nasty Facebook message,” blubbed Moorcroft, “he said that breaking 13 minutes was easy and he couldn’t see what all the fuss was about. It’s really disappointing when someone treats you like that. He may have run a half decent short 5k, but that is no reason to delete and block me on MySpace.”
For his part, Farah has said that he is “disappointed” with Moorcroft’s attitude. “Jealousy,” thundered the Newham and Essex Beagle, “that’s what it is: jealousy. That’s why he had to go on MySpace- that and Tariku [Bekele] told me to keep that for sub-13 minute athletes only.” Farah went on: “how can he say that the track is short? What planet is he on? Get over it mate- I’m number one around here now.”
Officials at the IAAF refused to go into detail on the spat but did state that they “stood by” their timing systems, which were “of the standard expected at almost all BMC meetings.”
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