tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4016153509286067146.post5198867708241143353..comments2024-02-04T02:20:32.389-06:00Comments on Villanova Running: Dave Patrick and the 1968 Olympic Trials ControversyBChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08048630932291123672noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4016153509286067146.post-76495742524721681322022-12-23T15:30:26.453-06:002022-12-23T15:30:26.453-06:00Thanks so much for that story. Great insight.Thanks so much for that story. Great insight.BChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08048630932291123672noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4016153509286067146.post-61074405379852271572020-03-22T09:11:31.964-05:002020-03-22T09:11:31.964-05:00I watched the 880 indoor final after just missing ...I watched the 880 indoor final after just missing to qualify for the mile finals. Dave went out so fast that many, including me, thought he would not sustain the lead over Ryan; but, he ran with great courage and, in winning, set the world record. No one can really know that Ryan would have won if he hadn't run the mile trial and nothing should diminish this win by Dave.<br />There were quite a number of athletes, including Dave Patrick, robbed of their Olympic spot by a system that had two qualifying trials without clear selection criteria. Admitting a mistake is one thing but you can't undo the pain inflicted on these athletes.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05210827518324467477noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4016153509286067146.post-33096785177298985082017-07-29T20:04:25.233-05:002017-07-29T20:04:25.233-05:00I'm so glad to have found your post. I've ...I'm so glad to have found your post. I've been looking for information on the same type of incident that happened in the marathon. The Atlantic City Marathon Olympic trials seem to been thrown out from history. Only the Colorado trials are ever listed. It is unfair and callus to ignore all of the marathon runners that trained for the trials in Atlantic City. I hope more articles like this will arise.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14750938430805595516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4016153509286067146.post-87243211124834246902016-12-28T21:31:22.138-06:002016-12-28T21:31:22.138-06:00I went to VU with Dave. He was a great runner and ...I went to VU with Dave. He was a great runner and a great guy. He was a true Olympian and would have won a medal. He knows that and they can never fix that.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00507568188192383987noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4016153509286067146.post-48795646648556181412016-02-10T13:56:48.880-06:002016-02-10T13:56:48.880-06:00Actually, the track at Cobo Hall was 11 laps to th...Actually, the track at Cobo Hall was 11 laps to the mile and 5-1/2 laps for an 880. Patrick's time was considered nearly unbeatable by those of us who ran in the NCAA's in Detroit in the early 1970s. (I ran a two-mile relay leg in 1:51.5 in 1974 and was proud of the effort!)<br /><br />However, Spiro is correct in that the 880 final was Ryan's third race of that day, but even that should not take away from Patrick's performance, which really was phenomenal for that era. I also saw Patrick win the NCAA 1500 in Berkeley later that year. He was a great runner and I hated to see him not on the Olympic team.William L. Andersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01802990642236807359noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4016153509286067146.post-71352185310101754162016-01-29T18:56:03.106-06:002016-01-29T18:56:03.106-06:00Wish I had seen this earlier. It should be noted t...Wish I had seen this earlier. It should be noted that Ryun's loss to Patrick in the NCAA indoor 880 was Ryun's third race of the night. Ryun had run an 880 heat (as did Patrick) but then Ryun ran a heat in the mile and then was back on the track a short while later to run the 880 final. Patrick might have been able to beat Ryun anyway, but based on Ryun running a time earlier that season on a crummy 12 laps to the mile track that was a just a couple of ticks off Patrick's time at the NCAA makes one think that Patrick was lucky that Ryun's head coach loved overworking his runners. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00735949584183666979noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4016153509286067146.post-19378580859851023332013-08-07T22:03:55.056-05:002013-08-07T22:03:55.056-05:00I grew up in the Philly area and graduated from co...I grew up in the Philly area and graduated from college at exactly the time this incident took place. It was a crime and a travesty then, is still now, and always will be. Dave Patrick was a true champion, and knowledgeable track fans know he deserved to be on that team.IBDGM96https://www.blogger.com/profile/13755129697092187128noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4016153509286067146.post-9970793481306961432013-06-11T17:22:23.006-05:002013-06-11T17:22:23.006-05:00Dave Patrick was a phenomenal runner. And in view...Dave Patrick was a phenomenal runner. And in view of current thinking regarding Olympic Trials fitness (going from heats to finals, with no semi, and definitely only one trial), it is clear that Dave was cheated. So sorry that you had to endure this memory, Dave. You deserved better. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04741312005730718310noreply@blogger.com