The marathon course treated viewers to a sightseeing tour of Paris
ASKING THE QUESTION
C o l u m n
Outstanding Coverage
Competitively and performance-wise then , the Paris Olympics offered top notch times , and excitement right to the finish line , but that was only a portion of the Paris story . For those of us designated to watching behind a screen , the camera work , choice of view and production of views , scenery , and highly detailed replays and slow motion shots were incredible . A fully synchronised slow motion footfall of the leading four women is a clip that really stood out for me . The detail and definition were so great that I felt I could have untied the shoelaces to take that active chip off the shoes !
Putting on my technical hat , most of the footage was provided by well-positioned motorcycle-born cameras , which generally respected the clearance area a runner requires to compete at pace . Of course , there were a couple of times when the angles or positions may have impinged on the athletes , but generally it was really clean footage and camera work .
Equally impressive were the aerial views of Paris , with the Eifel tower , Louvre , and the myriads of tourist attractions , plus the long wide streets that carve their way through amazing architecture . Just as informative and attractive were the close ups of landmarks , and the crowds who had come out to cheer for each and every athlete , irrespective of where they came from or what time they were running , right down to the final runners .
Vision is one thing , but the importance and variation of commentary was a step or three higher than the usual offering from major marathons . Somehow , the commentary team managed to present a mix that linked the need for race information , including concise technical explanations for novices , with knowledge of athletes , Olympics and Paris landmarks . And all of this , coupled with the fact that both races were so exciting and medals unpredictable right to the end , meant that viewers would have been glued to their screens – even heading to the kitchen to make a quick cup of coffee was a tough decision ! And I ’ m sure many people were convinced to plan a Paris trip just from what they saw , and were informed of the city .
doing this . Why are we handicapping our athletes with last-minute route inspections , and on top of that , on the day before the race , when they should be resting ?
As noted by the commentators , some coaches walk the entire course to get a real feel for it , while other teams spend two to four days running the course in sections , then go away to adapt training and work towards their success . Do we really feel that we are able to do well without similar detailed preparation ?
Paris the Change
This Olympic Marathon , in my opinion , has changed the way the world will look at and approach championship-level marathons . No longer will the focus be on flat , fast courses – that will be left to World Athletics Label and major events . Paris has shown that the audience attention , and the return on investment , lies with tight , exciting head-to-head competition , and that best serves the host city with the opportunity to show off its features , even if it means adding a 16 % gradient to be climbed !
Men ’ s winner Tamirat Tola of Ethiopia comes home for a famous victory
Image : Mattia Ozbot / WorldAthletics , Christel Saneh / World Athletics
Meanwhile , the crowds lining the route may have been boosted by the Olympics , but it will have shown in the economic impact as 42km of spectators standing four to six deep no doubt purchased snacks and paid for transport around the route . The traditional Paris Marathon in April attracts its fair share of community and runner support , and now Paris has a second major marathon route , perhaps for use in August each year . All in all , the Paris Olympic Marathon course is very unlikely to find itself ‘ mothballed ,’ but rather could become an iconic event in futures years .
Missing Preparation
The one irritation I felt thanks to the commentary , particularly in the women ’ s race , was the regular reference to many of the athletes coming to inspect the course months before race-day , to learn about all these hills and drops and turns . I ’ m sure that is absolutely true , but my irritation was caused by hearing that our athletes only saw the course for the first time the day before the race !
Other countries had been sending their marathoners and support crew to view , analyse and prepare for various Olympic Marathon for well over two decades , but we are still not
About the Author
Norrie represented Scotland and Great Britain in numerous ultra-distance events , then represented South Africa in triathlon . He is a World Athleticsaccredited coach and course measurer , and travels all over the world to work on events , including the Olympics . He has been appointed by World Athletics as Technical Delegate to a number of the world ’ s leading Label events in Africa , Asia and the Middle East . He has authored two books on running , and counts 20 Comrades medals amongst his more than 150 ultra-marathon medals , as well as multiple wins at distances from 100km to 1000km . You can read more from him at www . coachnorrie . co . za .
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