Yesterday, U.S. fans left the stadium with mixed feelings.
On the up side, Maurice Greene produced the third-fastest 100 meters ever despite an injury that hit in the final strides. He led a U.S. sweep of the event, the first time that has happened in 10 years.
And Shelia Burrell came through with the best performance of her life to win bronze in the heptathlon. I love that kind of stuff. And I love the athletes like DeDe Nathan who don't win medals, but who give their all.
Yet some of the disappointments fell into the "sheesh!" category. I'm starting to think that professional track is a bad thing, because so many individuals have stayed in the sport longer than their desire has.
I just don't get Suzy Favor-Hamilton losing her composure after some jostling in the 1,500. She said she dropped out to save herself for Zurich. Heck, the girl that fell down in the jostling got up and qualified for the final. Suzy broke stride a little, and gave up.
Not to pick on the distance runners; I didn't even notice any U.S. athletes in the finals of the women's shot or the men's hammer.
But I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who's getting sick of our country sending athletes to nationals who repeatedly call in sick during the big event.
Pressure's hard to deal with, I know, but does our country really need these athletes to claim injury or distraction on the day of the big dance? We choose our teams based on the results of the national championships, but is it time we add psychological profile testing to the selection criteria?
Meanwhile, look at the Canadians.
Anyone can see that the fans are giving them tremendous support, even though they're not having a great championships in terms of medals. Realistically, I have to feel it's because their athletes are trying, at least.
Giving all seems to be what the Canadian athletes believe is expected of them. Out of breath and completely spent, they collapse after the finish line, not before it. The example should not be lost on the U.S. team; we would rather see athletes lose after giving all than failing because they gave up.
When they do that, they fail us all.
What's up with the 400?
Antonio Pettigrew made the finals of the 400 meters Sunday, which is quite notable considering that he is about 82 years old. He won his first national title in 1989, and won the Worlds in 1991. This is great for Pettigrew, who will have plenty to tell his grandchildren when he returns from Canada.
But Pettigrew was the only U.S. competitor in the finals. Not good.
What the heck happened in this event? Along with the long jump and the 110 hurdles, this event has always been ours. Our 400 runners were once feared; the ground would tremble when they stepped up to the start. Other countries knew they were running for what was left after the Americans crossed the finish.
Now they point to the United States and snicker that without Michael Johnson, we have nothing.
Pettigrew was our best 400 runner before Johnson hit the scene. Now Johnson has retired after a long career, and Pettigrew is again our best 400 runner. Hmmm.
Gertrude Stein coined the term, "the Lost Generation," and while she probably wasn't thinking about quarter-milers at the time, the line works here. Where has the talent gone? Leonard Byrd and Jerome Young both failed to make the final in Edmonton, despite having respectable credentials.
And these are our best. I can only wonder if the long years of Johnson's domination somehow lowered expectations in this event for U.S. runners, rather than heightened them. Running under 45-seconds used to be the minimum requirement for U.S. 400 men. Now it is a rarity.
Did the presence of an unbeatable one cause his rivals not to try anymore? That seemed to be the case in the latter stages of Johnson's great career. Somehow the young lions lost their hunger.
I only wonder how long it will take for them to gain it back. There is no dominant quarter-miler in the world right now. The prize is ripe for the taking. Do any Americans care to reach for it?
Jeff Hollobaugh, former managing editor of Track and Field News, is a regular contributor to ESPN.com. He can be reached by e-mail at michtrack@aol.com.
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