When Going For It Goes Wrong

What we can learn from the 2018 NCAA championship.

When Houston’s Brian Berazza toed the starting line of this weekend’s NCAA Steeplechase final he was arguably the favorite to win with a pr of 8:32, followed closely by Minnesota’s Obsa Ali with a pr of 8:36 — but in a championship race anything can happen. So, when Berazza jolted out to an early lead it was apparent that he was trying to break the field. The field let him go… and that would end up being a decision that paid dividends for Ali.

You can’t fault Berazza for going for broke though, it’s a championship race where anything can happen… sit back and risk Ali outsprinting you over the final barrier or try to break the field early.

So this is the outcome.

Maybe it’s our Prefontaine complex or Track & Field’s excitement problem but Barraza’s glory from spectacularly crashing and burning seems to still be shining brighter than Obsa Ali’s shine from winning the NCAA title.