The World Athletics Championships Oregon22 were a tremendous success in Eugene, Oregon, this summer. Elite track-and-field athletes descended on the reimagined and incredibly state-of-the-art Hayward Field at the University of Oregon.

Kristin Ihle Helledy enjoyed her time sprinting down memory lane and creating new memories.

“It was just exciting, from the actual forum itself — the meet, and the care for the athletes and event overall. All of the efforts allowed you to take in all of the exciting events. It was incredible to see so many national events set, as well as world records. It was amazing. It was just quite enjoyable to watch,” said the six-time collegiate All-American runner.

The unmistakable global experience celebrated diversity, potential, and extraordinary athletic competition. The crowd was electric.

“The spirit and the energy was the same as way back in the day when I was competing. I can recall being on the backstretch – you just couldn’t even hear yourself think, couldn’t hear feet striking because the crowd was so loud on the backstretch,” said the six-time Team USA competitor.

The venue left Kristin Ihle Helledy in awe.

“I imagine this was probably a 20-year vision in the making from Phil Knight. I don’t know that to be a fact, but I imagine his vision has been a long time coming. The facilities were just second to none from a fan experience, coaching experience, athlete experience.”

False starts factored into the festivities. Devon Allen was disqualified from the men’s 110-meter. He was punished for having a freakish reaction time: There are sensors in the starting blocks, and his reaction out of the block was 1/1000th of a second too soon.

Kristin Ihle Helledy believes that the starting block technology fell victim to human limitations.

“My assumption is probably when that technology was built, some folks sat around and said, ‘Well, that’s not humanly possible. We’ll set the threshold at 0.10 [second] because no one could have a reaction time like that.’ And it turns out Devon Allen does. It’s probably why he’s so successful as a wide receiver in the NFL. So the controversy is that the starting block sensors assessed that threshold that he left 0.099 seconds too soon,” she said.

The runner turned executive coach doesn’t blame the officials. It’s their job to enforce the rules. If the technology reads a certain way, that’s the policy.

“It’s the same argument that everybody makes when they get pulled over for a speeding ticket and they say, ‘Hey, how long ago was your radar gun calibrated,’ right? You just don’t know. While you trust there is a process, you hope that perhaps they skipped a scheduled calibration so you can wiggle out of the ticket.” she said.

The regulations and policy are never a surprise to the athletes. Those competing get adequate time to review the rules and learn how they apply.

“Every piece of equipment used in a track meet has a review process, including sensors in starting blocks. If someone’s in the discus event, it’ll be very clear that prior to your event, your implement must be inspected. This includes other aspects of equipment, such as the calibration process for the blocks and the embedded sensors. It’s all standardized.” she added.

“What’s not a surprise and I’ve known forever is that all of the field implements are regulated and regulated for a reason, because if you and I are going to go compete against each other in the shot put, it’d be great If I can bring in a 2-pound shot put, and you have to throw a 5-pound shot put, then that’s good for me.”

There were also shoe regulations for the World Championships. Just like NASCAR has regulations for cars, the track-and-field governing body published an 18-page PDF on shoes in late 2021.

“Certain elements about shoes were regulated when I competed. For example, you couldn’t wear 3-inch spikes in a cross-country meet. There was a specific length it could be. Now there is information about the type of shoe (lift) you can have related to your specific event.” said Kristin Ihle Helledy.

“They’re trying to level the playing field. So if they put limits in thickness [i.e. the lift], then it just means that we all are going to have the same thickness and whatever technology can fit in there.”