SAYS sport man says by MANFRED SEIDLER
SPORT MAN
SAYS sport man says by MANFRED SEIDLER
I
’ ll never forget the line from the Oscar-winning movie , Gladiator , where Russel Crowe as the Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius finds himself competing in the Colosseum . Unwilling to “ play ” the “ games “ of the Romans , Maximus makes quick work of his gladiatorial opponents in the arena and then has the temerity to shout at the spectators , “ Are you not entertained ?”
That is the crux of the matter . People will flock to events that entertain them . Thankfully , today our entertainment no longer involves or requires such bloodshed and the deaths of innocents , but the principle stays the same . Give the masses entertainment and you will fill stadiums . In that sense , athletics is no different .
Everyone loved to watch Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt . It wasn ’ t just his sheer speed , but also his domination over his rivals . Who can forget when he set his first 100m Word Record in Beijing , at the 2008 Olympics , winning by literal daylight and then beating his chest in victory ? The crowd lapped it up . And at the Rio Olympics in 2016 , the athletics stadium was only full on the days he competed . That was the power of entertainment . But it wasn ’ t only his athletic prowess that filled stadiums , it was his pre-race rituals and post-race celebrations that had the world riveted to their TV screens .
Love or Hate Him …
American sprinter Noah Lyles has taken it on himself to carry the mantle of entertainer in the sprints these days , and you either love his brashness , or you hate it ... but you watch , because you want to see him succeed . Or fail . That ’ s why the men ’ s 200m final at the recent 2024 Olympics in Paris was even more highly anticipated than the 100m men , as the brash
Lyles took on the quiet flyer from Botswana , Letsile Tebogo .
Lyles had already won the 100m title and was considered one of the favourites in the 200m alongside Tebogo , but the difference between the two ’ s entrance to the track could not have been greater . Tebogo calmly and quietly walked out and took his place in his lane . Lyles came sprinting out , jumping around , waving his arms , acting like he was already the winner … and for 150m of the race he looked like he was in with a chance of taking a second gold . Great was the “ schadenfreude ” when Tebogo destroyed Lyles , who faded in the final 50m and just hung on to the bronze medal position .
Lyles ’ antics pre-race had the tongues wagging , and put a lot of people off . He ’ s brash , he ’ s arrogant , he thinks he is the saviour of the sport … but he gets people talking about the sport . He gets people to watch . And that ’ s good for athletics .
100m to Settle All
That was the title of the exhibition race on 4 September between Sweden ’ s Mondo Du Plantis , the World Record-holder in the pole vault , and Norway ’ s Karsten ‘ Viking ’ Warholm , the World Record-holder in the 400m hurdles , as a precursor to the Weltklasse meeting in Zurich , Switzerland . And it really caught the imagination of the athletics world . I mean , who doesn ’ t want to see an epic duel between two World Record-holders in vastly different events , in an event that neither usually compete ins ?
The two athletes are actually great friends , but there was no holding back on the ‘ trash talk ’ in the build-up to this event . For almost a year , they were having a go at each other about who was the fastest athlete , and
Lights , Camera , Action !
Athletics is no longer just about pure sport , because it has to compete in the world of entertainment , from film and television to concerts , fashion shows and anything else that entertains , and thus it must keep evolving .
the result was a 100m race to settle it all . Red Bull , who sponsor both athletes , sponsored the race and even did a whole documentary on the duel !
In the end , Mondo won comfortably , getting out of the blocks slightly faster and maintaining his lead throughout , winning it 10.37 to 10.47 , but it was not so much his victory that was the talking point , but the sheer entertainment value . And because Warholm lost the friendly wager , he had to run in the colours of Sweden at the Weltklasse meet the following day .
Another Friendly Duel ?
But Duplantis isn ’ t done yet . After his race with Warholm , he posted on social media that he had an idea for another duel , this time against women ’ s 400m hurdles World Record-holder Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone : “ I can do something like this again . I heard that @ GoSydGo got kicked out of Brussels , so if she wants to race maybe a 400m , we ’ ll do an extra event . With one 400mH World Record-holder already taken down , @ mondohoss600 is ready to take on the next one !”
You see , it ’ s all about entertainment , and the sport of athletics does need to look at its entertainment value if it wants to compete with the other forms of entertainment available to the masses these days . These races may be exhibition gimmicks , but are you not entertained ?
About the Author
Manfred Seidler is a freelance sport journalist who has been in the industry since 1994 , in both print media and broadcasting , covering four Olympic Games for SABC Radio , and producing various athletics shows for the SABC . Follow him on X : @ sportmansa ; Facebook : Sport Man SA ; Instagram : sportman _ sa .
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