Which are the events that often corner the biggest applause and loudest cheers in track and field competitions?
The unanimous answer would be the sprint events. All the other events pale in their comparison. The stands erupt to a Usain Bolt victory, and television viewership often reaches its peak during the sprints.
But spare a thought for the other lesser mortals, who too are shedding the same amount of sweat or more, putting in as much or more effort, at the same time in some other area of the stadium, but often escape the limelight or the attention of the crowd.
That’s an area the IAAF bigwigs have been thinking about for some time, on how to increase the interest and viewership of other track and field events like high jump, long jump, triple jump, decathlon, discus throw, shot put to name some, which are slowly losing their allure.
Not just athletics’ governing body, the athletes too have been enduring the pain of performing before indifferent crowds. American high-jumper Erik Kynard says they often get a feel of loneliness despite performing in a packed stadium.
“You clear a good height and there’s a big roar from the stands. You think that’s for you and then you realise it was actually for the start of a sprint event. It pinches, sometimes…”
he states.
What’s the remedy, then? “We need to think of ways to make the other disciplines more spectator-friendly.
“The high jump competitions are often held in the middle of the stadium while the sprints happen just in front of the stands. The crowds need to come closer to the scene of action.
“Perhaps they can think of erecting temporary stands in the middle of the stadium, near where high jump or long jump events take place,”
Kynard, who is in Doha for tomorrow’s season-opening Diamond League meeting, suggests.
Robert Grabarz, the promising high-jumper from Britain, says perhaps they could think of tweaking the format a bit. “It requires some brainstorming. Perhaps we can think of adding some glamour like music, light shows etc. The problem with track and field is that some many events take place simultaneously, so it’s difficult actually to draw the crowd’s focus to a particular area. But I agree with Erik, we do need to devise a way to bring the crowds close to the where the event takes place,” says Grabarz, who won the silver at the World Indoor Championships in Oregon in March with a 2.33m jump.
Canadian high-jumper Derek Drouin says he does feel ‘lost’ at times in the melee of so many events that happen at the same time.
“More often than not, the other events lose their sheen as the sprint events too happen at the same time as the jump competitions. The great thing about track and field is that it’s the purest form of sport, but that holds true for all disciplines. It does rankle sometimes, when we perform while the crowd is cheering for something else,” says the Canadian.
All three are opening their outdoor season with the Doha Diamond League, where they will face a feisty challenge from local hero Mutaz Barshim.
While Grabarz and Kynard have had a solid start to their competitive season when they took the silver and bronze, respectively, Drouin will be competing in his first event of the year after take some time off due to injuries.
“The first meet of the season is always tough. You are coming after a good break, and don’t know how your body will react. It takes two or three competitions to figure out where things stand. This being the Olympic year, the focus obviously will be on Rio, so we need to take it slowly, try to build consistency going into the Olympics. I am coming to Doha after three years and I remember the atmosphere was great and quite noisy. I am looking forward to it,” says Grabarz.
He added that he was looking at competing in all the Diamond League meetings leading up to the Olympics.
“I did pretty well at the World Indoors and then took a break. It helped me rejuvenate and start afresh and I feel ready to start the outdoor season. I plan to do all seven Diamond League meetings till the Olympics. The competitions are spread out quite nicely and it will be a great way to gear up for Rio,” the Briton added.
Kynard, who narrowly lost the silver to Grabarz on countback, too sounded confident. “I hadn’t jumped at too many indoor events in the build-up to Oregon, but I feel I put up a solid show there. But I haven’t been fortunate enough to take a break. I’ve been training almost non-stop since then. But I’m ready for the outdoor season,” he said.
Drouin, the reigning outdoor world champion, said he was slowly getting into the competitive spirit.
“I suffered from some injuries which prevented me from competing indoors. I’m excited about being in Doha because this is the first proper competition for me this year.
“I roughly know at what level I’m at, but it’s still exciting to finally have a go,” the Canadian said