The Season in a Pandemic
That said, competition during a pandemic remains the overarching
storyline. Unlike in the fall, every
school system in the state is allowing competition to begin. How those
competitions look remains to be seen. Will there be a lane in between 100m dash
participants? Will the 800m be run in lanes? Are we going to require relay
participants to wear latex gloves or will a baton be present at all? I wouldn't
put it past some in charge to recommend for such restrictions but ultimately
after a year of data and studies some things should be pretty clear by now, one
of the safest places for a person to be during this pandemic is outside and one
of the best things a person can be doing while there is exercising. After
seeing images like the one below from Sanders Ferry in November, I'm confident
a State Track and Field Championship will occur this season in a format that is as close to normal as possible.
Who will be there remains to be seen. Every year there seems to be an athlete that wins a state title that seemingly comes out of no where. As we continue referencing back to 2019 one athlete that stands out is Blackman's Micaleous Elder. He led Blackman to a victory in the 4x100m relay, placed 3rd the 200m Dash, placed second in the 100m Dash, and had it not been a foul filled day at sectionals, likely wins the Long Jump as well. He ran track as a freshman and then again as a senior. Examples like this are all too common with football players. "You get them for a year" as most track coaches say. Their senior year is the only year they're free from the time commitments of spring football so they give track and try and hey... they're pretty good at it. My fear is that because of COVID and everyone reducing their circles of contact we won't see as many athletes cross over and out of their primary sport making their "specialization" more specialized than before.
Good luck as this season kicks off and feel free to reach
out by email at tnmilesplit@protonmail.com.