Jeneba Tarmoh vs. Allyson Felix - NEVERMIND

This afternoon, Jeneba Tarmoh withdrew from contention for one of the three positions on the US women's 100m team. Tonight at 8:00 Eastern, Tarmoh was supposed to compete in a winner-take-all runoff against Allyson Felix. The two women had tied for third place in the finals of the US Olympic Trials last weekend, each running the 100 meters in 11.068 seconds.

Many are disappointed in Tarmoh for not going for the win and for the Olympic berth. Others are disappointed with Felix, who already qualified for the 200m dash and is a gold medal favorite in London, not withdrawing since she is a lock to race in London and Tarmoh is not. I'm disappointed at the process, especially in one of the few Olympic events out there where there is no questioning who is the winner.


Jeneba Tarmoh was going to London. As soon as she crossed the finish line, her name appeared third on the list. As a top-three finisher, she had made the US Olympic team. She took a victory lap with an American flag in her hand, full of pride and excitement.


Then it went downhill when she found out (from reporters interviewing her) that she was NOT going to London...yet. She had tied with Felix as both recorded a 11.068 time. A photo finish was no help either (wow, technology not being conclusive, go figure...) and the tie remained. At that left the US Olympic Committee with a big decision.

...We'll get to that decision in a moment. Let's first look at each of the sprinter's scenarios and dissect what must have been going through each of their minds over the last week knowing that a runoff was inevitable unless one of them withdrew.

Let's start with Tarmoh. She said herself that she felt that she had earned the spot. She finished third, according to the immediate timing and scoring, and then later after receiving a medal and conducting a news conference she was informed that maybe she was not going to make the trip to London. From the highest of highs to the lowest of lows. Can you blame her for not wanting to race after all she has gone through in the past week? 

But in the same regard, let's think about it. She believes she earned her spot. Why not prove it? Go for it, race, win. Leave no doubt. ...I know, that's easier said than done, but to be the best and earn your spot you need to prove it, with or without technology.

Now, let's talk quickly about Felix. Of course she wants to race. She was shut out, but then is told she actually should have been able to take the victory lap as well. Can you blame her for wanting to race again?

But, c'mon Allyson, think about your training partner for the Olympic Trials, your FRIEND, who was just stripped of her guaranteed spot on the team. Two days ago, you qualified for the 200m race. She didn't. She is not guaranteed to run (and truly neither are you) on the 400m relay team. You don't have a good medal chance in the 100m, let your friend have a chance to run in the Olympics.

Neither athlete is in any condition to race after the week of qualifications. A runoff probably won't even show both at their best, so "may the best man (oops, woman) win" will not be the case.

But how can you make a decision as to who is the one who ought to back out? ...Oh, and the option of a coin flip? You can forget about that one.

Did Tarmoh make the right choice by withdrawing? Should Felix have done the same thing? Should both go? Should neither go?

You could argue any of these I'm sure. I'm not going to argue against any case. I'm going to argue that we shouldn't HAVE TO argue this point.

There should have been a tie-breaking procedure set up long ago for this scenario. Before technology was so strong (can only go to hundredths of a second instead of thousandths, or even back when it was just by the naked eye), there had to have been scenarios where races were too close to call. What was the decision then? If this had occurred in the Olympics themselves, both would move on to the next round, or both would have received the bronze medal had it been the finals.

Now, I understand that you can't advance both women TO the Olympics because each country is limited on the number of qualifiers per event. Could the Olympic Committee as a whole decide to allow both Felix and Tarmoh? Yes, but then all other countries would claim more ties or just claim foul, wanting to bring more contenders to London. That's understandable.

But back to the US Committee...you have no plan for this scenario? You make the ladies wait for so long before finally saying that they can race, flip a coin, or withdraw? Is there a better way to determine this besides having them race again? Probably not. But why wasn't that the case beforehand? Why did we have to wait so long? Why did you allow one woman's heart to soar and then get crushed?

That answer seems quite simple: Media time. Track and Field isn't exactly the most popular sport here in the US. But now there's a story, one that the sport can capitalize on. Prime time TV. A runoff. The sport is the winner, not Tarmoh or Felix. You are possibly sacrificing the health of these two ladies for a spectacle that you literally just conjured out of thin air. Neither is at their best, and Tarmoh said she "went to bed so happy..." and then woke up the next day to "do something I don't want to do at all."  That's just sad.

I don't know what the best decision would be. I'm certain this isn't it. It's a disappointing end to an exciting week of Olympic Trials.

The only good thing out of this debacle is that both Allyson Felix and Jeneba Tarboh will both travel to London and wear the red-white-and-blue. I am hopeful these two friends get the chance to run together on the 400m relay team. I hope. Because if Tarboh doesn't get the opportunity to run in the 2012 Olympic Games, there will be huge uproars. And there's enough controversy and disappointment already in the sport.