Run-Down Forums

[Guest]

I am a decathlete at a small private college in Ohio. I have fallen in love with the event and feel that I have good potential. I will never be world class, but I would like to be the best that I can be. I have one more year of competition in college, and I would love to have an amazing senior year. I never did field events in high school and find it highly frustrating that I struggle in field events. In order to go to school, I have to work during the summer and have little time to train for field events. I read a post from someone looking for sponsorship, and I also read your response, so I'm not doing a post looking for sponsorship, rather I'm asking if there is any way for an serious athlete to spend their summer training instead of working. Is there anything out there to sponsor athletes that are not world-class? Like I said before, I don't have the genetics of world-class athletes, but I know I could be much better than I am. Let me know if there's anything to be done or if this is just a pipe dream. Thanks.

[Anonymously Posted by: 'Jared Detter']

[Dan]

Hi Jared,

There are several athlete training/sponsorship programs, but I believe they are mostly aimed at national/world class athletes. The decathlete program (Visa, I believe) is actually the biggest of the bunch.

I'm not sure what to suggest in terms of finances, but you might have some luck looking up clubs in the area. Many running clubs are simply recreational groups, but others are competitive track & field types that might have someone for you to train with. Look through the Run-Down running clubs for your area.

Cheers,
Dan