Tyson Gay demolished the 200 meter field that included Wallace Spearman and Jeremy Wariner.
I mean, he totally destroyed the field.
In doing so, he clocked a PR 19.58, becoming the third fastest man to run 200 meters, behind only the 200 former world record holder Michael Johnson, and the 100 & 200 current world record holder Usain Bolt.
One of my all-time favorite movies, in any genre, is Without Limits– the Steve Prefontaine story.
He was a front-runner. meaning, he went out front, grabbed the lead and held onto it until the finish line.
His coach, Bill Bowerman, at the University of Oregon, tried to get him to hold back and draft off other runners. Hold back so he could run his last mile faster than his first mile – and probably his overall time would be faster.
Pre, basically, would have none of it.
(Click here – Pre’s attitude – to play the movie trailer)
The only way he knew how to run was flat out, all the way.
Even if he lost, he would always know that he left nothing on the track.
His greatest race was the 5,000 at the 1972 Munich Olympics. He finished fourth.
But it was still his greatest race.
If I have to explain it to you, then you probably won’t understand. But that’s OK. There’s a ton I still don’t understand.
I do understand one thing though, if your goals aren’t impossible, you’re not reaching high enough. You can quote me on that one.
Carpe diem and leave nothing on the track. jeff noel 🙂
Derek Redmond was favored to win the 400 meters at the 1992 Olympics. This video clip shows that no matter what the obstacles before you, you should still try to finish the race. Never give up.
There comes a point in life, I believe, when we are faced with a tough decision.
But the toughness isn’t apparent. It’s not life-threatening. It’s not going to make us rich. It’s not the end of the world emotionally if it doesn’t happen. But happen it must.