Lizzie Bird In The Amazing Race

TigerBlog was walking in Jadwin Gym the other day when he ran into Mike Poller, the associate head coach of the women's soccer team. 

As they said hi, TB mentioned how crazy it is that Poller's team has a game in two weeks. Poller corrected him to say that it was closer to three, but hey, it's still almost time for the 2024-25 athletic year. 

The women's soccer team opens its season — its actual regular season — by hosting Miami (Fla.) on Saturday, Aug. 24. It also dawns on TB that a month from today he'll be in Louisville, where the field hockey team will be in between its opening games against Louisville (Aug. 6) and North Carolina (Aug. 8).

It'll all be here soon enough.

The football team begins its season Sept. 21 at Lehigh, with kickoff at noon. TB loves to watch games at Goodman Stadium, especially when it's opening day for the Tigers. 

Princeton, by the way, was picked fourth in the Ivy League's preseason football poll. There will be plenty of time to dive into that later.

For now, though, it's the final few days for #PrincetonInParis at the 2024 Summer Olympic Games. 

By the way, did TB hear the announcers correctly during the women's 400 hurdles semifinals? Does Sydney McLaughlin-Leverone run that event faster than any of the runners in the 400 do without the hurdles?  

By the way, TB thinks the field events should change the way they award medals. It shouldn't be just the top throw. It should be total between the top three throws, or at least top two. Someone get on that.

As TB has been watching the track and field, he's decided he loves the way the athletes are introduced. Each one's name is called, and then it's up to each man or woman to decide what his or her specific entrance will look like. It's a bit like when Princeton's athletes are on video in the preseason for content for social media. 

As such, TB was curious as to what Lizzie Bird would do yesterday prior to the final of the 3,000-meter steeplechase, for which the 2017 Princeton grad had qualified for the second straight Games after her ninth-place finish in Tokyo. In between, by the way, she finished law school at the University of Colorado in 2.5 years. 

And then they didn't even show it for the steeplechase. Grrrr. Oh well. 

TigerBlog was asked an interesting question the other day, for which he had no answer. If there's only one steeplechase event, why do they call it the 3,000-meter steeplechase? Why not just the steeplechase? 

He had never considered that before. Wouldn't that be the same as calling it the 26.2 mile marathon? 

Meanwhile, as for the race itself, it turned out to be one of the greatest women's steeplechase runs of all time. And when the dust had settled, Lizzie Bird had finished seventh with a Great Britain record of 9:04.35 (which broke her own record, but still).

Her time would have won her a silver medal in 2021 in Tokyo. It would have also won silver in Rio in 2016. It would have won gold — by four seconds — in 2012 in her native England. It would also have been silver in 2008, the first time the event was run by women in the Olympics.

That's how ridiculous this race was.

The winner was Winfred Yavi of Bahrain, who set the Olympic record in 8:52.76. The old record was nearly 8:59. It was obvious from the beginning that the old record had no chance of making it.

In all, the race featured a European record for France's Alice Finot (8:58.67), four national records and nine personal bests. TB isn't the most trained eye when it comes to track and field, but he could tell early on that this wasn't a race of tactics, more of a race of pure speed.

For the most part, there were five runners in the first group. As the British announcer said: "five doesn't go into three," meaning two wouldn't win medals. At the end, Finot made a run at them, passing two of the runners who had set the pace to grab fourth. 

And then there was Bird. You had the five who were in control the whole way and Finot, and then suddenly there was Bird. 

Yes, she didn't win a medal. 

Yes, she was an amazing part of an amazing race. It was one of the great moments for a Princeton athlete in track and field in Olympic history. 

Tomorrow? Ashleigh Johnson wills the U.S. into the women's water polo semifinals in another ridiculous performance.