History Shows Global Medalists Can Be Great At Both World Indoors And The Summer Olympics

By David Woods for DyeStat

RunnerSpace archives

If you are ready in March, you can’t be ready in August.

So goes the thinking of some coaches and athletes in an Olympic year. Those who know and love track and field assert there is more to our sport than the Olympics. But in a cluttered entertainment marketplace, there is no denying that to most fans, the Olympics are all there is.

Those in other sports must look upon track and field with bewilderment or scorn. Including the postseason, Major League Baseball teams play up to 180 games, the NBA more than 100, the NFL up to 21.

Moreover, not only can you be ready in March and again in August, history has shown it is desirable.

The 2024 edition of the World Indoor Championships runs from Friday through Sunday at Glasgow, Scotland. Athletics at the Paris Olympics are from Aug. 2-11.

Most recent year in which indoor worlds coincided with an Olympics was 2016 at Portland, Ore., and Rio de Janeiro, respectively.

Fully half of the women who medaled in individual events at Portland – 18 of 36 – also earned medals at Rio.  Men who won gold in both were Matthew Centrowitz in the 1,500 meters, Omar McLeod of Jamaica in the hurdles and Ashton Eaton in combined events.

Indeed, in all four years in which indoor worlds and Olympics were together, the winter heptathlon champion won decathlon gold.

Such data perhaps did not influence 1,500-meter world champion Josh Kerr to enter indoor Worlds, but he is running – at 3,000 meters in front of his Scottish fans. He is coming off the Feb. 11 2-mile in which he set a world indoor record of 8:00.67 at the 116th Millrose Games.

Team USA’s roster features most of its male stars, including sprinter Noah Lyles, shot putter Ryan Crouser, hurdler Grant Holloway, miler Yared Nuguse (in the 3,000) and pole vaulter Chris Nilsen. There are notable omissions on the women’s side: Sha’Carri Richardson, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Athing Mu, Gabby Thomas, Anna Hall.

In some 2016 events, the principals were almost identical at indoor worlds and Olympics.

For instance, in the men’s 60-meter hurdles and pole vault, the three indoor medalists all finished in the top four at Rio. Centrowitz and Nick Willis won gold and bronze, respectively, in both 1,500s.

Even indoor medalists who didn’t make it to Rio weren’t obviously disadvantaged. Marquis Dendy, world indoor champion in the long jump, was fourth at Olympic Trials. In the 800 meters, bronze medalist Erik Sowinski – now better known as a pacesetter – was fifth at trials. In the 5,000, the indoor silver medalist, Ryan Hill, was sixth at trials.

In other words, all could as easily have made the Olympics as missed it.

In six of 12 women’s events, at least two indoor medalists won individual medals at the Olympics.

The entire shot put podium – Michelle Carter, Hungary’s Anita Marton, New Zealand’s Valerie Adams – was the same (with Marton and Adams flipping spots). In the pole vault, Sandi Morris took two silvers and indoor bronze medalist Katerina Stefanidi of Greece won Olympic gold. In the hurdles, Nia Ali and Brianna Rollins were one-two indoors and two-one at the Olympics, respectively.

Correlation between indoor worlds and Olympics is not confined to 2016. In previous years:

>> 2012. To improve his speed, hurdler Aries Merrit went all in indoors. He won gold in Istanbul, then finished first at Olympic Trials and the London Olympics. One month after that, he set a world record of 12.80 that still stands.

>> 2008. Bryan Clay, who has overtaken by Roman Sebrle of the Czech Republic at both 2004 indoor heptathlon and Athens Olympics, prefaced decathlon gold in Beijing with indoor gold in Valencia. Silver medalist at both was Andrei Krauchanka of Belarus. Sebrle had beaten an ailing Clay to win decathlon gold at the 2007 World Championships.

>> 2004. A 20-year-old Meseret Defar of Ethiopia outkicked 10K world champion Berhane Adere to win indoor gold in the 3,000. At Athens, she won Olympic gold at 5,000. Tellingly, only three Athens finalists had run at indoor Worlds, and all finished in the top five. Two Russians, high jumper Yelena Slesarenko and vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva, won their first global titles indoors and followed those with Olympic golds.

Portland Indoor Worlds vs. Rio Olympics

How world indoor medalists fared at 2016 Rio Olympics

dnc – did not compete. dnf – did not finish.

Men

60 – 1, Trayvon Bromell, USA (eighth 100m; injured 4x100 relay); 2, Asafa Powell, Jamaica (GOLD, 4x100 relay); 3, Ramon Gittens, Barbados (heats of 100m).

400 – 1, Pavel Maslak, Czech (elim. in semifinals); 2, Abdelalelah Haroun, Qatar (elim. in semifinals); 3, Deon Lendore, Trinidad and Tobago (heats).

800 – 1, Boris Berian, USA (eighth); 2, Antoine Gakeme, Burundi (heats); 3, Erik Sowinski, USA (fifth at Olympic Trials).

1,500 – 1, Matthew Centrowitz, USA (GOLD); 2, Jakub Holusa, Czech (elim. in semifinals); 3, Nick Willis, New Zealand (BRONZE).

3,000 – 1, Yomif Kejelcha, Ethiopia (dnc at age 19); 2, Ryan Hill, USA (sixth at Olympic Trials); 3, Augustine Koprono Choge, Kenya (dnc).

60 hurdles – 1, Omar McLeod, Jamaica (GOLD); 2, Pascal Martinot-Lagarde, France (fourth); 3, Dmitri Bascou, France (BRONZE).

High jump – 1, Gianmarco Tamberi, Italy (injured); 2, Robert Grabarz, Britain (fourth); 3, Erik Kynard, USA (sixth).

Pole vault – 1, Renaud Lavillenie, France (SILVER); 2, Sam Kendricks, USA (BRONZE); 3, Piotr Lisek, Poland (fourth).

Long jump – 1, Marquis Dendy, USA (fourth at Olympic Trials); 2, Fabrice Lapierre, Australia (10th); 3, Changzhou Huang, China (11th).

Triple jump – 1, Dong Bin, China (BRONZE); 2, Max Hess, Germany (15th in qualifying); 3, Benjamin  Compaore, France (10th).

Shot put – 1, Tomas Walsh, New Zealand (BRONZE); 2, Andrei Gag, Romania (13th in qualifying); 3, Filip Mihaljevic, Croatia (21st in qualifying).

Heptathlon – 1, Ashton Eaton, USA (GOLD in decathlon); 2, Oleksiy Kasyanov, Ukraine (dnf); 3, Mathias Brugger, Germany (dnc).

Women

60 – 1, Barbara Pierre, USA (elim. in semifinals at Olympic Trials); 2, Dafne Schippers, Netherlands (fifth in 100m, SILVER in 200m); 3, Elaine Thompson, Jamaica (GOLD in 100m and 200m).

400 – 1, Kemi Adekoya, Britain (elim. in semifinals); 2, Ashley Spencer, USA (bronze in 400m hurdles); 3, Quanera Hayes, USA (eighth at Olympic Trials).

800 – 1, Francine Niyonsaba, Burundi (SILVER); 2, Ajee' Wilson, USA (elim. in semifinals); 3, Margaret Wambui, Kenya (BRONZE).

1,500 – 1, Sifan Hassan, Netherlands (fifth); 2, Dawit Seyaum, Ethiopia (eighth); 3, Gudaf Tsegay, Ethiopia (elim. in 800m semifinals).

3,000 – 1, Genzebe Dibaba, Ethiopia (SILVER in 1,500m) ; 2, Meseret Defar, Ethiopia (dnc); 3, Shannon Rowbury, USA (fourth in 1,500m).

60 hurdles – 1, Nia Ali, USA (SILVER); 2, Brianna Rollins, USA (GOLD); 3, Tiffany Porter, Great Britain (seventh).

High jump – 1, Vashti Cunningham, USA (13th); 2, Ruth Beitia, Spain (GOLD); 3, Kamila Licwinko, Poland (ninth).

Pole vault – 1, Jenn Suhr, USA (seventh – ill); 2, Sandi Morris, USA (SILVER); 3, Katerina Stefanidi, Greece (GOLD).

Long jump – 1, Brittney Reese, USA (SILVER); 2, Ivana Spanovic, Serbia (BRONZE); 3, Lorraine Ugen, Great Britain (11th).

Triple jump – 1, Yulimar Rojas, Venezuela (SILVER); 2, Kristin Gierisch, Germany (11th); 3, Paraskevi Papachristou, Greece (8th).

Shot put – 1, Michelle Carter; USA (GOLD); 2, Anita Marton, Hungary (BRONZE); 3, Valerie Adams, New Zealand (SILVER).

Pentathlon – 1, Brianne Theisen-Eaton, Canada (BRONZE in heptathlon); 2, Alina Fyodorova, Ukraine (28th); 3, Barbara Nwaba, USA (12th).

Contact David Woods at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007