“LiveStrong” doesn’t add up to “run fast,” at least for one high school official in Virginia.
More than two dozen high school track athletes were disqualified from an Oct. 6 event in Virginia Beach, Va., after an administrator ruled Lance Armstrong’s popular “LiveStrong” wristbands amounted to jewelry, banned under district rules.
Some 26 athletes were wearing the yellow plastic bans and were subsequently disqualified from the track event, according to a report in the *The Virginia Pilot *newspaper.
“It’s the stupidest rule I’ve ever heard,” said Lanny Doan, one of the high school coaches. “We’re talking about a rubber band. It’s not going to harm anyone.”
Some 12 million of the wrist bands have been sold nationwide to raise money for the Lance Armstrong Foundation. The wrist bands have become a cultural phenomenon, with big-time sports stars and even presidential candidates sporting the plastic bands.
The wrist bands, however, fell afoul with school officials in Virginia who have banned all except religious or medical jewelry from high school track events. *The Virginia Pilot *reported high officials notified coaches by e-mailed prior to Wednesday’s with reminders that the rule would be enforced.
Several athletes won their heats but were later disqualified after wearing the wrist bands. One of the school’s girl’s squad lost out on the team competition because of the ruling.
“Basically, we lost because of a cancer-support bracelet,” Ocean Lakes coach Mike Nestor told the newspaper. “This is a friendly sport. I’d rather be told kids had to take them off before they run than told ‘gotcha’ afterward.”
i believe it. i ran track and xc in high school. we were never allowed to wear jewelry of any kind. no earrings, no necklaces, no bracelets. while i do think it is retarded that they got dq’d it’s a common rule that has always been enforced (at least in PA) and it’s really not that hard to follow. shame on them for ignoring the rules…
Eh. The “no jewelry” rules have been on the National Federation (high school) books since at least the mid 80s, with extremely limited exceptions to that rule- wedding bands, medic alert discs, and religous insignia. You weren’t even allowed to wear hard things in your hair- no barettes or hair clips, only soft scrunchies and elastics.
Coach was an idiot for not knowing that- it’s clear as day in the track & field and cross country rule book, and sooner or later, a runner will get DQed for that infraction. It’s his responsibility to educate his athletes on the rules of competition. And when meet management specifically tells coaches that they’re going to strictly enforce those rules and a coach doesn’t get his kids to take the bracelets off, coach is a whining dumbass.
it’s apalling no matter what their rules are. those bands aren’t jewelry. and not being allowed to wear hair clips? it’s (sad but) no wonder why some people still believe Saddam had anything to do with 9/11 - people aren’t being taught to THINK!!!
The no jewelry rule has been around for a very long time in high school sports. Those items that are allowed, medical or religious, must be taped to the body. Swimmers can even be DQ’d for an elastic hair band if left on the wrist. All high school coaches receive a rule book and prior to events, officials will remind coaches of the most common violations. I feel badly for the kids who got DQ’d, but the coach(es) should be ashamed of themselves for not enforcing the rules prior to the start of the meet.
*And don’t let your kids watch professional athletes on television who wear the wristbands in the Olympics, etc…because your local high school federation knows more about appropriate rules of participation than national governing bodies do.