Dateline Daegu: Part III

Through the closing ceremonies on September 4, Armory Track will be giving you the news and notes at the IAAF World Championships — the premier track event until the 2012 London Olympics.

Later today we will launch the first of a two-part quiz from Armory Director of Collegiate Track & Field Jack Pfeifer. The questions will definitely favor those who have followed the sport from the perspective of The Armory.

It's been 15 years since those memorable Michael Johnson tears on the awards podium at the Atlanta Olympics. So when is the next time the U.S. will host one of the huge track & field championships (Olympics or IAAF Worlds)? Parker Morse of Running Times doesn't see it happening any time soon. "Our country isn't short on stadia, including more than 100 with reported capacity higher than that of Helsinki's Olympic Stadium," he offers. "None of any significance, however, have tracks." For the record, Moscow (2013) and Beijing (2015) will hold the next two World Championships and it looks like London and Melbourne could be after that. Olympically speaking, London and Rio are up next and the U.S. won't be bidding on 2020.

There have been all kinds of reports about the future of Usain Bolt, some from himself. He might play soccer or trying to win a long jump gold medal. Maybe he'll go after the world record in the 400 someday. But he seemed to have a new focus on his career yesterday as Christopher Clarey of the New York Times quoted him:

A lot of people have said that I'm a legend, but I don't look at it like that at the moment, but in two years I'm working on it. A lot of people have won championships, a lot of people have broken records, but few people have repeated that year in and year out, especially in the sprints.

With the withdrawal of Asafa Powell, the suspension of Steve Mullings and the absence of Tyson Gay, most are ready to hand Daegu gold to Bolt. But his training partner Yohan Blake and American Walter Dix both say, "Not so fast."

The first startlists of the World Championships have been posted and a former New York City resident, Columbia graduate Lisa Stublic, is ready to represent Croatia in the women's marathon.

Representing New Balance, American 1,500-meter qualifier Jenny Simpson was recently featured by John Meyer in the Denver Post. She spoke about an oft-unspoken barrier to success — the inability to focus and relax:

I really do feel like I have the things I need to do well. Sometimes I think the job of someone in the position I'm in is just relaxing and saying, 'OK, I have to stop looking for more things.' Sometimes the pursuit of the perfect situation never ends for people. Sometimes you need to say, 'OK, I found it, now let's make it work.'

If you are a runner at Worlds and you aren't a huge fan of the press, your stroll back to solitude after your race in Daegu will be a bit uncomfortable. Take a look at the mix zone, brought to you by the globe-trotting Ryan Fenton of FloTrack: