V 11 N. 55 Jewett - Amos Collision, an Opinion from Richard Mach, Relay Exchange Issues, and Bob Schul Still the Only Western Hemisphere Runner to Have Won the 5000.

Isaiah Jewett and Nigel Amos collided in the semis of the 800 in Tokyo last week.  I've been hard pressed to find a good film of the fall, but the one below does show that Jewett appears to have established a gap ahead of Amos before he went down.  You have to put up with this rather forced narration of the event by someone who is just reading a script.  I've looked at several other tapes but couldn't make a conclusion except from this one.  Our reader  Richard Mach has a strong opinion about this as stated below.  We always look forward to Richard's observations from a highly skilled eye.  

The Collision

Slow mo video shown during prime time clarifies the US runner, Isiah Jewett’s back kick in the midst of the final turn — his heel hitting Botswana’s Nigel Amos’ knee and Jewett now off balance falls to the track and the following too close Amos cannot avoid him and falls too.   The officials — if they follow top racing @ all — know Amos has a checkered reputation when racing causing innumerable problems lurching about on the pack and making sudden untelegraphed moves throwing other competitors off stride and violating —rather severely —-English Rules.  To my knowledge he has never been sanctioned nor called onto account    Jewett was the innocent party here.  Clearly so.  As a racer, you are obliged to give competitors in front of you sufficient room not to get tangled up by your actions and choices.   

The decision on the matter was shocking.  Amos reinstated on into the final: Jewett is not and, by implication, seen as the violator.  I have no information that the US officials ever lodged a protest over this misbegotten decision.  However, it does occur to me that the decision was made on what served NBC.  And since the IOC gets most of its funding from selling the Olympic coverage to NBC, they along w the USOC, brazenly went along and excluded the innocent US runner.  With Jewett already on a tear and the very slow final, he could quite easily won the gold on his finishing kick. A disgusting injustice seen by anyone looking.   The sport of athletics has been so thoroughly invaded by cheesy network politics I hardly recognize it.  NBC has virtually homogenized our sport to fit its pre- and ill conceived notions of what they want it to be.     The only saving grace on the matter was Jewett’s on-track magnanimity that probably ended up working against him. As in he wouldn’t be likely to put up a stink.  And where does Amos end up finishing in the 9 man final: Next to last. 8th.  

What about those 4x100 relay passes?

Jim Metcalf, former member of Oklahoma State's 2 mile world record relay team with the Perry brothers John and David and Tom Von Ruden has sent some comments about our seemingly endless drama with men's relay exchanges.  He has shown us in clips first from  London 1948 and then Tokyo 1964 where the fastest man in the world, Bob Hayes had no trouble taking a pass from his teammate and going on to victory.  Jim makes note that this style of pass is quite simple, but it does require a bit of practice.   

London 1948 4x100   link

Tokyo 1964 4x100  link  This one has an especially good shot of the final exchange between Hayes and Richard Stebbins.   First two runners on that team were Paul Drayton and Gerald Ashworth.  

Rich Davis and Bob Schul