what a mess.should JD have been reinstated? other athletes suffered as in patrick johnson(didn’t qualify) and MLF was not pleased at all with the hoop la and clearly blamed JD for causing him yto run crap.
what a mess
What happened, here in undeveloped countries we don’t have this on TV, why aren’t the results for QF2 up yet?
They should have just let them run and then discussed afterwards (like they did with the british 400meter runner during indoors.)
both john drummond and powell were disqualified for breaking the second time. both drummond and powell had illegal reaction times to the gun. looking at the replay, you could see drummond’s back foot twitch on the block, without actually pushing it. (pretty sure we’ve all twitched on the blocks).
when they told drummond he was d/q, he blew up,adament he hadnt moved, lay down in the middle of his lane, refused to move…in the end they sent all the second heat back into the cool room and ran the next two heats.
after that they pulled out the runners from the second heat, minus powell and drummond. video feed showed drummond in tears on the warmup track.
then the crowd got in on the act, and jeered the runners about 5 times before letting them run. ato got extremely agitated before finally settling down and winning the race.
that a good enough brief analysis, aln? anyone feel free to add more
Thanks for the account, it’s much appreciated. What an odd situation, I guess there is a first for evreything, but most of all, it sounds like the decisionmaking bodies didn’t make decisions fast enough or at the right time. Good thing this was the qf’s and the athletes will have a night to get back their composure/concentration or this could have had serious effects on the final.
Good run from Ato … despite the mess. I think P.Johnson was the guy who suffered the most.
I can’t understand how they removed two guys for one false start? So what will happend if everyone moves befor the gun?
I was thinking the same thing. We may see a final with only 4 runners.
Oh great, they better sort their act out before I get there tomorrow. Who was responsible for letting the French run this thing!!!
JD obviously broke the rules but the rules do not seem fair and I sympathise with his anger. Should a twitch in the blocks be reason to prevent an athlete from racing, especially after all the preperation and hopes? I feel the second chance rule should be reintroduced and is the best compromise to holding a race reasonably and fair.
good point richard, i also think Drummond was unfairly treated, and i might be wrong , but am sure the original false starter caused Drummond to twitch, even though it was the slightest of twitches.
Drummond never moved forwards as he so said. so why Dq him when no advantage cudnt have been gained?
as i was thinking earlier , WHO said a computer is always right??
Man created computers! and as far as i know, men arent always right…
i think sometimes they should go by wat they see and Drummond in my opinion shouldnt have been the one to go.
Why dont we have a count down from 10 … 9 … 8 have a set on 5 and the athletes go on 1. Better yet, let’s count down from 100.
How amazingly unfair is it, to see athletes, most of which in the prime of their racing season and some in the prime of their lives, to have their dreams (which only last a brief moment) taken away but such a #*(& rule. Athletes should not false start, but the penalties are tooooo severe to be fair.
Media and TV control the rules but have no idea what sacrafices these athletes go through, daily training and strict life styles, and when a JD throws himself on the track … they see it as good for TV. We all know JD can react faster than .1, and do it legally, so how can the old false start rule NOT be brought back. Everything in life goes through evolution and change, the problem here is that this change can affect a group of individuals in their one chance. It’s not the same as taking away a free throw in the 2nd quater of the Nuggets 17th game of the season. It’s ir-reversable.
Thanks for letting me vent my frustrations 
A sad advertisement for athletics …
The technology proved to JD, that he had moved - he had to go.
Rules are rules.
Now, if as Richard is implying, the rules are unfair - well then we change the rules, but until they are changed, rules are rules and rules must be obeyed - other wise anarchy prevails …
The same rules were there for everyone - so to say JD was unfairly treated is not true. If anyone was unfairly treated it was Ato, PJ etc.
JD was wrong, rude and as Michael Johnson was saying if he didn’t leave he should have been ‘escorted’ from the track by ‘security’.
MJ also called him and idiot - which I think went a little far.
PJ was the loser - which is a pity. I was hoping to see him make it further and do himself some justice …
Ato was pi$$ed off - major.
MJ should be escorted from the damn planet. Pompous ass who knows stuff all about the 100 anyway.
Furthermore, PJ was never going to qualify anyway. When his love handles appear his acceleration disappears. He doesn’t look physically anything like he did in the local season, and he doesn’t run technically anything like he did. Maybe the two go hand in hand. He and Esa do seem to be getting better each year. Perhaps Athens will be the year. I really hope so as the guy has unfeasible talent and is a wonderful ambassador for the sport.
right, do you remember when the computer displayed that dwain chambers ran 9,53 and in london ?
i can understand drummond’s reaction…he obviously didn’t move, it just seemed as if his calf contracts.
Rules are there to be bent - surely the french know this?
To be thrown out according to a computer while the people in charge dont know what to do ought to fill a man with anger.
I agree DC - I feel really sorry for PJ.
Re: MJ - I don’t know.
He says what he thinks and I guess he has earned a right to speak - though not to call anyone an idiot.
He does make me laugh - though.
Thor:
True - The scenario we saw yesterday would drive anyone to go ballistic - but it is …
- The rule
- The Rule enforcement
… that need to be changed.
I still stick to my point though -
Until the rule is changed - it is the same for everyone and therefore should be observed respectfully by all.
What many seem to miss, but the audience felt was that this was an unprecedented first.
When circumstance creates a situation were human-made rules and human-made technology does not participate in a ,for the situation meaningful way ,surely humans have the duty to make decisions of their own.
This is one of the laughable aspects of modern sport - in this the least profound human activity everyone acts like they are on a mission from god.
I see that since the officials could not clearly decide who crossed the line first of Thomas and Pognon they have decided that both run in the semifinal. Ofcourse this would be the case even if one of them where not french. It was a coinsidence too that the frenchman where labeled fourth seconds after the finish.
I’m not a Drummond fan by any means but I think he was hard done by. Remember this happened to BJ in the Semi’s in Seoul. As I think Charlie said at the time, the technical information should be used intelligently. Athletes do twitch but this does not warrant a false start.
I think the big problem now is that the press are now suggesting that the 1 start rule needs to be abolished. They miss the issue completely, it’s not about the number of starts, it’s about using the technology correctly.
Also, I do not agree with the rule that allows more than one athlete to be disqualified at one time. An athlete prempting the gun will likely trigger another athlete to do the same.
That said, who was the idiot directing the big screens within the stadium?
“Until the rule is changed - it is the same for everyone and therefore should be observed respectfully by all”
is it still a rule tho, when its penalising the guy even tho he didnt technically break the rule?
the pressure pads measure any back pressure being put on them. presumably when u go into set more pressure is placed on the blocks. and if u twitch, or ur calf muscles twitch, that presumably alters the pressure ur putting on the pads. if u do this right before the gun, then its a false start. but is it?
i read somewhere, kim collins saying if u break wind while in the set position, it sets off the pads. is that a false start? ===> afterburner assistance. :eek:
on a different note, an interview i saw today on SBS with one of the officials said the federation IS sticking by the new false start rule, THEY believe in it.
in the end its easy for the officials to say that. no matter what happens, tomorrow they will still have a job and a paycheck. for the runners its a bit different tho, with this perhaps being their only big chance at a result.
having said THAT, drummond will prob get so much media attention from this, it will more than make up for any financial deficit.