From the Field
with Lewis Johnson
Saturday, February 10, 2007
All Track Athletes Should Love Chicken!
Tyson Foods is in full-commitment mode with track and field in Northwest Arkansas, and with USA Track & Field. Having the naming rights of a fantastic indoor facility and completing eight consecutive years of sponsoring the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, they have set the bar high for supporting U.S. athletes with that Olympic dream. I discovered in an interview with one of their Sr. V.P’s, Archie Sheppard, that Tyson is now a U.S. Olympic Sponsor. They will provide food products at the training centers, feeding athletes on the road to Beijing. Olympic protein provided by Tyson.
Sprinters’ Paradise!
Just before the start of the Men’s 400 you probably saw me begin a report up in lane six, then interview Bershawn “Batman” Jackson who was preparing to run. My question to him was, why do sprinters love to run in Fayetteville? It’s that 200 meter, perfectly banked track that has a strong history of fast times in the 200 and 400 meter dashes. Before the meet began I had a great talk with Arkansas head coach John McDonnell. I wanted to learn more about the history of the track and here is what McDonnell told me: The track was first used in the 1996 World Indoor Championships in Toronto. It later served as the surface for the Michael Johnson vs. Donavan Bailey match race. Remember the hype behind that event? The University of Arkansas purchased the track in 2000, adding a new Mondo surface and putting it in the Randall Tyson Facility. There are several tracks similar to it, but it is noted for its steep banks and that Arkansas atmosphere. That’s what makes the Arkansas track so special.
Well…ok!
Apparently that was the response by American Olympic Silver medalist Allyson Felix, when she was told that the folks running the Tyson meet had decided to have the 300 meters on the schedule. Last year Wallace Spearmon, Jr. broke the existing World Record at the same distance on the same track. With no previous plans to run indoors, Felix decided to make the trip from L.A. for a shot at the American and World Record on the special track I highlighted above. The results, for this early in the season, were great. The joy of a new American Record (36.33) was written all over her face in our interview. With Bobby Kersee as her coach, one can only imagine what she will accomplish in her career. And he was there, in the background now, unlike an era past when Bobby and JJK took center stage wherever they went. I saw Kersee giving instructions through the railing on the track, teaching a young sprinter the small things that will probably take her from Silver in the 200 in Athens to Gold in the 400 by the time we get to London in 2012. Agree?
He Can’t Breathe!
LaShawn Merritt could barely talk in our interview after winning the 400 in 45.51 seconds. Many of you probably wonder why we interview athletes when they’re sucking wind after a race. Here’s your answer: In a “live” broadcast event we have to keep moving. Once a race is complete, we must get that interview so we can put a period on everything after the replays and move to the next item on our format, the next event on the track or in the field. We often use the same philosophy when we tape events. We call it “live to tape.” In other words, we are treating the meet as if it were live, completing segments in chunks, which offer continuity and minimal editing after the event is over. If you’ve ever had to sit in a TV truck until two or three in the morning re-voicing, cutting and patching a show together, you’ll come to appreciate “live to tape”! It’s also the philosophy we use in our track coverage at the Olympics with the multi-hour time differences. This pushes us to get it right the first time, not leaning on the fact that we are on tape and can fix something later. We want the first call to be right and most of all authentic. You don’t want to see or hear any fabricated drama, do you?
So, when Merritt finished we had to get that interview right away to get his take on the win, then sell the fact that he had a little over an hour before he would toe the line again for the 4x400 Relay as the anchor. Merritt earned Visa Team USA Athlete of the Meet honors because of the 400 win and a come-from-behind win in the relay, catching the Baylor Bears in the final half lap. The college kids ran great, but Merritt displayed his conditioning and determination. Once again, Merritt could have used an oxygen mask in our second interview as I handed him the check for $2,500. Maybe the money will help him “breathe a little easier.”
Lay it on me!
Do you have any behind-the-scenes questions? Pass them along and I will try to give you an answer. I’ll talk to you in the coming weeks.
Throughout the 2007 Indoor Track season, Lewis Johnson, a broadcast vet, will pass along his reflections from the previous weekend. He will handle the interviews and reports from field level, which allows for a unique impression of the "circus-type" atmosphere of the Visa Championship Series.
