Will athletics be like this one day?

Professional sports are constantly trying to adapt to new forms of fun and entertainment to reach new markets and improve their presence in existing ones. If we think that television coverage of sports has already reached its limits, in recent years more and more amazing excitement of events has given rise to new forms of content that in some cases have had the effect of broadening interest.

This is the case with the series all or nothing From Amazon, which every year tracks a certain team from within – most recently Juventus – and above all campaign to survive, the series that led to the new year success enjoyed by Formula 1 in the world, especially in the United States, where it has been struggling to fit in so far. Major and more popular sports – football, North American, and motorsports in particular – are already exploiting these trends, while others are now making their first attempts, which have been slowed by their earlier stances.

This is the case of athletics, which every year manages to gain a large number of followers, but only in more or less short periods, and which still has to improve the methods of its use. However, athletics in itself has unique characteristics: it is developed in events that include many different disciplines, which together can satisfy all tastes, and the competitiveness is always high.

In this regard, recently Sean Engle he wrote In an article about guardian“Sports thrive on storytelling, competition and character. So it needs to adapt to current times and trends. However, his guardians often resist change, suspicious of outsiders and anyone who is not a “pure” supporter ».

In his article, Engel was referring specifically to athletics, which is going through a certain moment in England. The movement continues to benefit from the impetus provided by the 2012 London Olympics and has many high-profile athletes, following in the public and able to move economic interests. It is no coincidence that almost ten years ago in London a specially created event was held with the aim of “raising the standards of British athletics”, in particular running.

It is called “10,000m Night PB’S” and hosts races of different categories over a distance of 10,000m in a unique atmosphere. Held at Parliament Hill Athletics in Hampstead Heath, London, it offers a completely different experience from the classic meetings seen from the stadium stands. Organizers explain: “The racing atmosphere is fundamental to the performance, and its improvement has become the goal of the event. Over the years the environment has evolved with spectators on the field and in close proximity to the track, with the introduction of various forms of secondary entertainment, live music and refreshment services on a large scale.”

The races are also displayed differently. The main classes operate at night among lighting systems that help create an exciting environment for fans and athletes. The latter, when they talk about it, generally say that they are more motivated than usual when they run into Parliament House, precisely because of the atmosphere around them.

In this way, PB’s 10,000m night has become more important year after year, so much so that her races now count towards the British Championships. In the previous sessions in Hampstead Heath, the qualifiers for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics and the 2017 World Championships in Athletics were held. Italy’s Yaman Kripa also won the men’s competition in the last edition, which was held at the beginning of May. Thus he qualified for the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, and achieved the second best Italian time ever after the one he set for himself three years earlier.

The event is particularly pleased with the athletes who run there and proposals to expand it to other disciplines that follow each other. Dave Bedford, the famous British middle distance runner and world record holder in 1973, told Al guardian: “This could be the future and could apply to any event. Imagine watching some of the best runners in the world up close, or seeing the riders jump the equivalent of a double-decker bus from a few meters away.”

The innovations introduced by the 10,000m Night PB’s concern the live experience more than the television experience, which, however, if implemented can benefit equally, even creating new formats, as in the more famous cases already mentioned. “Events like this show that there is an appetite for track and field, but more can be done,” Ingle concludes in his article.

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