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 | Planet Extras! | | Race Reports Observations from the 2005 Outdoor National Championships Jim White Shares His Post-Event Thoughts With the Planet (Part 2 of 3) Financing "A number of [USA Roller Sports has said it lacks the funds to send skaters to this summer's Inline World Championships and the World Games in Germany.] "The 32 skaters on the list have to put down $1500 by June 15th to hold their place on the team. "There will be some supplemental financing, but each skater will have to pay $3500 out of pocket or get the money from sponsors. "I know two members of the World Team who probably won't go because they can't afford it. And I think it's safe to say that a few others also probably won't go. "We are now forced to support ourselves. In a way, I think it's good for the sport. It forces us to be self sufficient. And there's a lot to say for doing things for yourself." Radios "Several skaters appeared to be using radios during the races to get information from their coaches. I noticed about four of them, and I asked another official about it, and he said it's all right because they use them at Worlds." Injuries "There were several injuries, but none that were really serious. One girl fell and apparently broke her leg, and an ambulance, a fire truck and a command car drove onto the race track and took her away to the hospital. ... I saw her the next day. It turned out she had a stress fracture and a bad sprain. "In the fall, three other girls went down. Brittany Bowe was one of them. She fell pretty hard. Her leg was torn up, and she came back the next day on crutches." [She did not skate the final event: the marathon.] Spectators "Unfortunately, there were very few spectators. "People are missing out on a great event. ... There's no charge to come and watch, and you get to hang out with the best skaters in the country and get real close to the action." (posted on June 10, 2005)
| Discuss Related Reading: • Full Results of the Outdoor Nationals (USA Roller Sports web site) | |||||||||
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... Copyright © 2005 by Robert Burnson | |||||||||||||
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