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Lead Stories: Sunday, November 23, 2008

Jon Rankin: Being Human
(Elite Athlete Blog Entry 20)

Posted November 7th, 2008 at 10:06 AM by Jon Rankin

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Elite Athlete Blogs, Jon Rankin

Welcome to the official blog of rising U.S. track & field star Jon Rankin; the inaugural member of The Final Sprint’s Elite Athlete Blog Series. Be sure to check back every other Wednesday for Jon’s latest entry at http://jonrankin.thefinalsprint.com/

The summer is now far behind us and as the fall quickly fades away I find joy in the coming and going of the seasons. I know I haven’t communicated much with the great Final Sprint audience but all of you haven’t been too far from my mind or heart. In fact, I’ve spent a great part of my summer reflecting upon the journey we went through together this past Olympic year and I realize we’ve had “conversations” of great depth: conversations about my fears and dreams, my triumphs and my failures. And as I now reflect upon those conversations I sit here feeling a profound sense of gratefulness for your ears and your kind words. As we move towards a new season of training and racing I look forward to picking up where we left off, only this time our journey will be bound for a destination in Europe–Berlin, Germany for the 2009 World Championships.
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Jon Rankin: Limitless
(Elite Athlete Blog Entry 18)

Posted August 24th, 2008 at 12:00 PM by Jon Rankin

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Elite Athlete Blogs, Jon Rankin

I believe the greatest feeling in the world is to know that we’re capable of more than we will ever realize in our lifetime. As I watched the men’s 100m final a few days ago there were a lot of things that went through my mind and my heart. I was in awe of the margin of victory and the ease with which the race was won. And I was inspired because the new world record was a testament to the fact that we’re capable of still going faster than we ever thought possible. Watching that performance motivates me to continue to set my sights high and never limit myself to a time. Such a performance warrants the thought of never being satisfied with my personal best until I stop competitively running. Until that day I must continue to push at the barriers that currently exist.
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Jon Rankin: Saying What Needs To Be Said
(Elite Athlete Blog Entry 17)

Posted August 1st, 2008 at 11:15 AM by Jon Rankin

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Elite Athlete Blogs, Jon Rankin

I have to admit that I stopped reading, listening or watching anything that related to track & field or running since 2005. It’s not because I don’t love to keep track of what’s going on in the world of running because I love running just as much as any other person who’s a fan of the sport. I stopped doing the latter things only because I didn’t want to be distracted by what was being written about my fellow competitors and I didn’t want to get caught up with myself if there were things, either positive or negative, being written about me. So I developed this habit so as to remain uninfluenced by anything other than what was happening internally, within my self.

So, why bring this up? I bring this up for one reason- my blog here on The Final Sprint. Until recently I had been writing my blogs (blindly) without ever reviewing the beautiful, kind and inspiring comments from you, the readers. My need to remain focused has isolated me from you during this entire process and has made what should be a unique interaction and fun two-sided conversation a one-sided conversation with me doing all the talking. How lame is that?
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Jon Rankin:
Without Fear or Hope
(Elite Athlete Blog Entry 16)

Posted July 24th, 2008 at 1:25 PM by Jon Rankin

Section: News & Results, Motivation, Track & Field, Olympics, Elite Athlete Blogs, Jon Rankin

I cried so much when it was over. . . . . . Sitting in 4th place with 30 meters or so to go, once I realized I wasn’t going to catch the guys in 1st, 2nd or 3rd I unintentionally let go. I didn’t even realize I did this until others told me they saw the look of focus slowly fade from my face moments before crossing the finish line. They could tell that I had stopped racing once I realized I was going to fall short of making the team . . . . And all I could do as I took off my spikes to replace them with my flats was cry.

I cried for many reasons that afternoon. I cried because I had been chasing a dream for over twelve years and was less than 1 second from making it come true. I cried because nothing hurts more than putting your whole heart into something and finally having it come to an end, favorably or not. I was so tired once it was all over.
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Video: Jon Rankin Training Segment Featured on NBC

Posted June 3rd, 2008 at 9:30 AM by Adam Jacobs

Section: News & Results, Announcements, Running & Training, Track & Field, Olympics

Jon Rankin small image The below video segment, entitled “Olympic Hopefuls Add Weights To Workouts”, was originally aired on NBC affiliate KCRA-3. It was filmed at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA and features rising American middle distance star and TFS Elite Athlete Bloggger Jon Rankin.

Learn more about Rankin as he gets ready to compete in the Bowerman Mile at this weekend’s Prefontaine Classic and continues his quest to become an Olympian by checking out his bi-weekly blog entries at: http://jonrakin.thefinalsprint.com