THE magic carpet on which Carl Lewis flew to a world 100 metres record
in Tokyo this year may be grounded -- but Lewis's record on it allowed
to stand, possibly putting it out of reach for decades, like Bob
Beamon's long-jump mark.
When Lewis led a record six men under 10.00sec., setting a world best
of 9.86 at the world championships, it was on a new, hard surface which
technical officials of the world governing body, the International
Amateur Athletic Federation, had already ruled did not match their
performance specification.
A letter from the IAAF's honorary technical consultant, Tony
Rottenberg, in the magazine Athletics Today, says the IAAF will not
certify future tracks whose surfaces fail to conform, and says this
could affect future world records.
Olympic organisers are already investigating the possibility of the
Tokyo surface being laid in Barcelona for next year. The IAAF's chief
technical official, Mike Gee, was unavailable yesterday to say whether
that would be allowed. Rottenberg's comments suggest not.
Gee has a meeting today in Stuttgart, where that issue is likely to be
discussed. But if the magic carpet is banned it means future
world-record attempts will be disadvantaged -- having to be on a slower
surface.
If the IAAF are not prepared to sanction the surface, they should axe
the Tokyo time. Records should compare like with like. Already sprint
ranking lists carry * against altitude times, and W against
wind-assisted ones. Will they now have MC for magic carpet? It is worth
recording that other sprint times at the world championships did not
reflect those in the 100m -- although Beamon's long-jump record was
broken.
''There is no question of the 100m record being de-ratified,'' said
IAAF spokesman Mark Butler yesterday. ''But this new surface is giving
cause for concern.''
* THE Scottish Cross Country Union has been judged guilty of denying
natural justice to Colin Shields, author of their centenary history.
Shields spent nearly 1500 hours researching, writing, and proof
correcting ''Whatever the Weather,'' while his wife spent 500 hours
helping, at their own expense, although a #500 honorarium eventually was
paid.
But the book ran to nearly double the agreed length and cost, leaving
the SCCU with a bill in excess of #10,000. Shields, a lifelong supporter
of athletics and a former president of the SAAA, was suspended for
withholding details of the overspend.
He insists that until the final computer discs were run it was
impossible to tell how long the book would be, and therefore the costs.
When the typesetting was completed the bulk of costs had been incurred.
Incensed, he took legal advice, and has just heard that his appeal has
been upheld, with a recommendation that the suspension be quashed,
serious criticism of the SCCU disciplinary procedures, and an attack on
their constitution.
The three-man appeal panel was independently chaired by Robert Carr
WS, from a leading Edinburgh legal firm recommended by the Scottish
Sports Council. The other two members were from the sport.
In a nine-page judgment Carr ruled that Shields was denied natural
justice on several counts, including the right of representation, and
the right to call and question witnesses.
''We have unanimously reached the view that the principles of natural
justice were fundamentally flouted,'' wrote Carr. He accepted that the
SCCU had ''acted in good faith,'' but added: ''We do not think, given
the views which they have already reached on this matter, that it would
be possible to remit the matter back to them. We have reached the view
that Mr Shields' suspension should be quashed, and he should be
reinstated as a member.''
He added: ''We unanimously take the view that the constitution of the
SCCU requires immediate revision . . . for the protection of the sport
and its members.''
Shields' club, Greenock Glenpark, want him restored as their
representative on the SCCU West District committee, and for his name to
be restored to the list of those available to officiate at events.
Shields is inquiring about claiming legal costs. ''But even if I
cannot,'' he said, ''it will have been worth every penny to clear my
name.''
* A VIDEO shot at the national relay championships by Cambuslang
member Bob Burt shows no evidence of an alleged V sign from national
cross-country champion Tom Hanlon. The footage terminates as Hanlon
crossed the line, but Burt, whose club was edged out by Hanlon, said:
''I was right at the finish, and saw no V sign.''
* EIGHT hours a day of abuse from employment benefit claimants and
Britain's miserable climate have driven Scottish internationalist Karen
Hutcheson abroad.
The 26-year-old Dunfermline woman, based for several years with her
boyfriend and coach, Alan Hargrave, in Mansfield, is emigrating to the
Vendee in France where she plans to train full time for the Olympics.
Hutcheson, fourth in the Commonwealth 3000 metres, said: ''The benefit
office is supposed to be non-smoking, but I'm asthmatic, and I'm always
having trouble with claimants. I frequently get verbal abuse -- it's
been constant this week -- and while I never have been assaulted while
out training, there is always a first time.''
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article