I noticed a few things while watching the Olympics.
To exit the stadium after racing in the heat and humidity, the runners are required to walk up 3 flights of stairs to the waiting media. If you have ever run a marathon, or for whatever reason done some all-out sprints, you will know the last thing you want to do are stairs. But, at least they give them water.
Sprinters are automatically disqualified if they jump the gun and get a head start. They used to have one mulligan years back, but now it’s one strike and you’re out. No one is trying to cheat (we hope), but when a race comes down to 100ths of a second, you don’t want to waste any time after the gun is fired.
There is no countdown, and the starter can hold the runners as long as they want, so being able to anticipate the start can prove to be the difference. Nerves are heightened, and it’s easy to get jumpy with so much on the line, so I think you should be allowed one false start.
Have you noticed anything that makes you say, “That’s just mean.”?
-Leon
Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella trilogy, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.
Lines by Leon 