Track & Field -- FanHouse

New York Times Ethics Column Weighs In on Oscar Pistorius

Posted: Nov 10th 2009 9:30AM ET by Michael David Smith (RSS feed)
Filed under: Track and Field

The man you see above is Oscar Pistorius, a South African sprinter who races on prosthetic legs like the one he's holding. Pistorius is really fast -- so fast that he nearly qualified for the 2008 Olympics, which raised questions about whether his prosthetics give him an unfair advantage. Now the New York Times ethics column has weighed in on the debate.

Usain Bolt Adopts a Cheetah

Posted: Nov 3rd 2009 11:00AM ET by Will Brinson (RSS feed)
Filed under: Random Acts of Sport, Track and Field

14 COMMENTS

Usain Bolt is, without question, the fastest man in the world. He owns the record for the 150-meter dash, the 100-meter (where his record is a ridiculous sub-10 seconds), the 200-meter, and, as MDS mentioned, he may as well go ahead and try to add the 400-meters and the long jump trophies to a case that includes 2008 Athlete of the Year.

In the meantime though, he's busy with a new, ahem, pet project: he just adopted a cheetah, which, as you may know, is the world's fastest animal. Seriously.

100-Year-Old Ruth Frith Sets Age Group Shot Put World Record

Posted: Oct 13th 2009 3:30PM ET by Michael David Smith (RSS feed)
Filed under: Track and Field

2 COMMENTS

A 100-year-old Australian woman set a new age group record in the shot put Sunday at the World Masters Games with a throw of 4.07 meters, or 13 feet, 4 inches.

Tests Allegedly Reveal Runner Caster Semenya Is a Hermaphrodite

Posted: Sep 11th 2009 12:30PM ET by Mark Hasty (RSS feed)
Filed under: Track and Field, Women's Sports

10 COMMENTS

After easily winning gold in the women's 800 meter race at August's World Championships in Berlin, South Africa's Caster Semenya found herself the target of allegations that she was not actually a woman. At the time, International Amateur Athletics Federation officials were quick to note that Semenya was undergoing gender testing, but the results would take a while.

Well, it's been a while, and the results are now in. Semenya is reportedly intersexed, possessing both male and female genital organs.

Sarah the Cheetah Sets 100-Meter Record for Mammals, 6.13 Seconds

Posted: Sep 10th 2009 8:50PM ET by Michael David Smith (RSS feed)
Filed under: Track and Field

0 COMMENTS

Usain Bolt is the world's fastest man, but he's not the world's fastest mammal by a long shot. A Cincinnati Zoo cheetah named Sarah has covered 100 meters in 6.13 seconds, besting Bolt's record for humans by nearly three and a half seconds.

UCSD Pole Vaulter Dies After Missing Landing Pad

Posted: Sep 6th 2009 5:30PM ET by FanHouse Newswire (RSS feed)
Filed under: College Sports, Track & Field

90 COMMENTS

LA JOLLA, Calif. -- A college pole vaulter has died after missing the landing pad during practice at the University of California, San Diego's La Jolla campus.

The San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office says 19-year-old Leon Roach landed head first on concrete during a training jump Saturday.

Roach immediately became unresponsive, according to the coroner's report.

He was pronounced brain dead at a hospital. An autopsy is pending.

Young Gentleman of Leisure Gets KTFO by Field Goal at High School Game

Posted: Aug 27th 2009 5:28PM ET by Will Brinson (RSS feed)
Filed under: Sports of an Extreme Nature, High School, Track and Field

0 COMMENTS

Some people are athletes. Some are not. And the latter group is usually more likely to be tagged in the face by a football after it travels through the uprights en route to a successfully completed field goal. Like the kid below, who got absolutely dominated in this little tiny pile of awesomeoness.

Time for Usain Bolt to Challenge Himself: 400 Meters, Long Jump in 2012

Posted: Aug 24th 2009 9:31AM ET by Michael David Smith (RSS feed)
Filed under: Track and Field

26 COMMENTS

Usain Bolt could retire today, having just turned 23, and he would live forever as a legend in track and field. Having already won three Olympic gold medals and broken the world records in the 100 meters and 200 meters at last year's Olympics, he returned to the track and field world championships this summer and won three more golds, breaking his own records in the process.

So what's left for Bolt to do?

Natalia Rodriguez Finishes First, Disqualified for Pushing Fellow Runner

Posted: Aug 23rd 2009 11:59PM ET by Michael David Smith (RSS feed)
Filed under: Track and Field

0 COMMENTS

The women's 1,500-meter final had a strange result at Sunday's world track and field championship in Berlin, as Spain's Natalia Rodriguez made a late surge and crossed the finish line first -- only to be disqualified because part of that late surge included pushing past Ethiopian runner Gelete Burka, who fell to the ground and couldn't finish the race.

Decathlete Willem Coertzen Unhurt in Pole Vault Mishap

Posted: Aug 22nd 2009 9:49AM ET by Michael David Smith (RSS feed)
Filed under: Track and Field

0 COMMENTS

South African decathlete Willem Coertzen came away unscathed when his pole snapped into three pieces during the pole vault event at this week's world track and field championships.