Moses putting forth (remember your Bible!)

http://playtrue.wada-ama.org/news/the-wada-interview-edwin-moses/

Impressive!

                           

Good to see "She Without Pole" dominate the Carslbad 5k. road race, running within 4" of her track best (2012 Olympics) - this augurs well for next week where she will race the 10k at the Cardinal (Stanford Univ.) aiming for the England AA Commonwealth Games qualifying time of 32'00". This was the meet where MoFa made his big break through at 10k. a couple of years ago.

Though shown as a live link this will replay the races (forward to 2'30" for start of women's race):
http://www.letsrun.com/news/2014/03/carlsbad-5000-watch-live-free-sunday/

Results:
http://www.letsrun.com/news/2014/03/results-carlsbad-5000/

Here she is doing a little "gentle training" in Ethiopia
http://vimeo.com/84537025

A Little Better!

Each major professional US sport has a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) negotiated between the owners and the players (union), part of which is the drug testing policy.
None of the 4 major sports has a policy that even remotely resembles that implemented by WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) for the so-called "Olympic" sports previously known as ("amateur" sports), with the exception of minor league baseball.
However to this point the MLB (Major League Baseball) policy has been pitiful, and of course it is "home" to the biggest miscreants - Bonds, Sosa, McGuire, Clements etc., etc. - needless to say the US does not select its Olympic team from these players!
Now, the two side, clearly reacting to the "Biogenesis" case last summer have ratified a stiffening of the programme:  i) first failed test - banned for 80 games (not quite 2/3 of a regular season of 162 games) - present ban is 50 games;  ii) second failed test - banned for 162 games and lose entire pay (previously 100 games); iii) lifetime ban for third failed test remains as preciously. In addition, a failed test (either 1st. of 2nd.) will make the player ineligible for post-season play - this will prevent a-holes like Alex Rodriquez returning for the play-offs after a 162 games ban and collecting all his pay.

Baseball not only stiffened its drug penalties, but for the first time will use the expensive Carbon Isotope Mass Spectrometry (IRMS), with at least one specimen from every player. The test was previously used only on a random basis, usually as a result of an elevated reading of the player's longitudinal profiling program. The IRMS test is designed to detect anyone who uses performance-enhancing drugs within a two-week period, instead of only being detected within a 24-hour period. MLB players will also be required to submit to two urine samples during the season, an increase from 1,400 to 3,200 overall. There also will be 400 random blood collections used to detect human growth hormone in addition to the 1,200 mandatory tests during spring training.

The Major League Baseball Players Association has been given most of the credit for this strengthening of drug testing, with the ineffectual Commissioner Bud Selig calling it "the most comprehensive in American sports history", little realising this to be a comment on the poor state of drug testing in the US, rather than the grand comment he thought it to be!

It's progress - Hallelujah!! 

A good read

We hear a lot/read a lot about the Kenyans all the time - nice to see an article about the "other" African country.

http://www.theatlantic.com/features/archive/2014/03/little-town-of-champions/284143

Hot off the presses ...

... Coach 'Salad Bar' to add more tumbling and gymnastic routines to MoFa's programme!

Oh No Mo!

Coach Salad Bar will have to include a few more gymnastic and tumbling routines in the proramme!!

https://vine.co/v/MhaJbMXaIYT

https://twitter.com/runningbydoing/status/445181890618990593/photo/1

http://www.letsrun.com/news/2014/03/mo-farah-falls-nyc-half-marathon-photos/

http://olympictalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/16/mo-farah-falls-nyc-half-marathon-geoffrey-mutai/

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/athletics/26564722

The story of the race (with plenty of video links):
http://www.letsrun.com/news/2014/03/2014-new-york-city-half-marathon-geoffrey-mutai-wins-mo-farah-falls-later-passes/

Anything Mo can do ...

Edward Cheserek having previously won the NCAA (US Collegiate) Cross Country with a phenomenal turn of speed (and also the Pacific 12 Conference - over a number of fancied Univ. of Colorado runners - and held in Boulder at altitude) exhibited it again at the NCAA Indoor Championships (also held at altitude, in Albuquerque) winning the 5k. (Friday) with a 25.9" last 200, and the 3k. (Saturday) with 25.8".

http://www.letsrun.com/news/2014/03/mens-3000/

Dream ends (for this season!)

Sheffield U. 2 - Charlton A. 0
That's what happens when you miss your own chances and give up 2 goals in two minutes

Come On You Robins!

No Virginia not the Addicks or the Valiants - when I was a boy we were the Robins!

From the Wikipedia entry for the song;
"The English football club Charlton Athletic play Billy Cotton's version of the song as the team come out on to the pitch at their home ground The Valley".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tc95FaqWKJA

I know we should be concentrating on avoiding the drop to "Division 3" football, but a FA Cup semi-final at Wembley would be huge for morale as our new masters strip the Club of its best players in an effort to get Standard Liege into the Champions League. Football is of course big business, and big business is big money - it sounds lucrative in the short term, but in the long term the money available to a team "residing" in the Premier League far outstrips that of the Champions League.

Sopot - so far so poor!!

Professional Suicide!!

After all the magnificent work he has done with Cycling and Track and Field this may be beyond even him!

Roy Hodgson recruits psychiatrist Dr Steve Peters for England                                   

England plan to use the psychiatrist who helped British cyclists win Olympic gold as they continue their preparations for the World Cup.

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/26435483

Do you think they'll call Kate now???

World Indoor Athletics: Eilish McColgan pulls out of British team

Eilish McColgan has withdrawn from the Great Britain & Northern Ireland team for the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Poland through illness.

But McColgan, who was selected to compete in the 3000m, has not returned to full fitness following her "recent minor illness".

"It's really disappointing that I'm not going to compete," she said.

"I was really looking forward to it, but I don't feel I would do my selection justice at this moment in time.

"I wish my team-mates the very best of luck in Sopot.