When you run between 12.40 and 12.60 week after week, for YEARS, and you're neck and neck with your competition, then your competition DISAPPEARS on you and starts running 12.8-12.9ish, are you left as AOY by default?
In my mind AOY involves not just head-to-head accomplishments, but usually also exploring 'new terrority', and Devers isn't yet exploring territory we (or she) hasn't visited before. I know in a non-WC, non-OG year, we probably won't see a spate of 52-second 400H races, or Jones attacking the 200 standard, so I guess AOY this year might not carry as much regal bearing with it as some other years... That either Devers or Radcliffe's accomplishments seem all that glorious might be simply because things are relatively quiet, as GH mentioned for the men's side as well. It's a blasé year. Hard to get stoked about AOY, thus far. RT On Thu, 01 Aug 2002 10:25:25 -0700 ghill <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Date: Thu, 01 Aug 2002 12:59:58 -0400 > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: RE: t-and-f: women's AOY > > If Radcliffe runs close to sub-30:00 in München and breaks 2:20 again in > Chicago she's gotta be AOY, unless Devers breaks the WR.>> Hmm... Radcliffe has trouble getting much credence from me for a fast 10K in Munich (even if she wins it) simply becuase it won't have any Africans; won't do anything to stamp her as world No. 1 (even if she ranks as that) in my eyes. Devers is beating up on the world's best week after week and not losing. Radcliffe is once in a while beating some of the world's mediocrities and sometimes losing. (in my own personal universe, going undefeated against major competition outweighs a WR any day of the week) gh (see, even T&FN guys can argue internally!)
