Jacob Riley OLY

Track and Field is a sport that tears down the mental and physical health of its athletes without compensating them enough to give their family generational wealth. I didn’t grow up with money so when I made the decision to stop running in College it wasn’t about money, but it was the best decision I ever made. Football has taken care of my family and future family. The massive difference between track and football is in football you can only play the sport if you get drafted or signed to a team. That is your only opportunity. In track and field, you can run with or without a team as long as you get a lane. I want track athletes to be able to run for 5-10 years and never have to work another day in their life if they don’t want to. Right now, MOST track and field athletes HAVE TO work after they are done running, or HAVE TO work while they are running professionally because the sport doesn’t support them enough. Not everyone in track and field can be Usain Bolt and make generational money through track by being the fastest man in the world. I want Track and Field to get the spotlight it deserves in America. To do that, the Sport needs new presentation and the best running against the best. In football, basketball and baseball there is 1 dominant league and the best ALWAYS face each other. It draws in the viewer and allows the broadcast to tell stories about the top athletes that draws the viewer in. Building storylines about the favorites, creating bonafide rivalries and the cinderella stories are clearly defined. Imagine Fred Kerley, Trayvon Bromell, Marvin Bracy, Noah Lyles, Christian Coleman, Michael Norman, Kenny Bednarek and Erriyon Knighton facing off in the same race 5-7 times a year in the 100m dash on American soil. The track and field world would EAT IT UP, but so would the casual fan. Track needs that in America. Then and only then will the sacrifices of Track and Field athletes not be overlooked and the sacrifices will be measured in dollars that make sense.