After Usain Bolt retired from the track and field world, the sport’s viewership significantly declined. In his career spanning more than a decade, Bolt used to compete in all major tournaments. However, there seems to be a change in that trend in today’s world of track and field. With hardly a few days to go for the World Championships in Budapest, major track stars are dropping out from the tournament, some due to injury and some are focusing on next year’s Paris Olympics. Earlier this month, Bobby Kersee, who is the coach of Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, announced that the 400m hurdle champion will not be participating in the upcoming event due to injury.

Reports also indicate that 800m Olympic champion Athing Mu, who also coached by Kersee, is still considering whether to run in Budapest. The latest addition to the stars who have opted out of the upcoming World Championships is reigning 400m world champion, Michael Norman. Taking to his social media, Norman announced he was no longer taking part in the championship.

Track and field world to miss some big names

With Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone out and Athing Mu still unsure, Michael Norman also exited the upcoming tournament. Norman, an American sprint sensation, has been grappling with injuries throughout the entirety of the 2023 season. In a social media post, Norman announced, “Unfortunately I will not be defending my title at the 2023 World champs. After an extremely frustrating season, I’ve decided to step away from track for the remainder of the 2023 season in order to refocus for the 2024 Paris Olympics.” Norman has had his fair share of successful runs. He was an instrumental part of Team USA’s triumph in the men’s 4×400 relay at the Tokyo 2020 Games, securing a gold medal.

Following this, his excellence carried over to the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, where he contributed to the gold-medal-winning 4x400m relay team. However, since then Norman has struggled to get back to his pace. Norman last raced at the U.S. Championships on July 6, which resulted in him finishing eighth in the first-round heat of the 100m. Earlier this year, Norman also rocked the track and field world when he switched coaches from Quincy Watts to John Smith. He also withdrew from the LA Grand Prix in May after securing the eighth spot in the 200m race at the Doha Diamond League meet. Fans of track and field have also expressed their dissatisfaction with the host of star absentees and they made it known on social media.

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Fans take to Twitter to voice their opinions

After a host of missing star names, fans took to Twitter and shared their opinions about athletes dropping out of the World Championships in order to prepare for the Olympics. A former NCAA Discuss Champion highlighted the number of athletes missing the event and wrote, “US athletes dropping like flies!”

Another user pointed to the short career of a track and field star and wrote, “it’s a short career .. missing a major champs when not injured may be something you regret. Hope he remains healthy & is in great shape next year.”

While one user asked a genuine question by tweeting, “So who’s going to be at world? Guess this one will be least competed since the Olympics is the next year.”

Another disgruntled fan displayed his dissatisfaction with the athletes and wrote, “This batch of American talent just burning the sport to the ground in their wake.”

While one user pointed out the planning behind the upcoming championship, “Holding the world champs this year was a terrible idea to begin with.”

Read more: “Made the Biggest Change of My Life”: US Track and Field Pro, Holding the World Record for 400M, Drops ‘Shocking’ Mid-Season Update

The World Championships are on the horizon and it remains to be seen if there are any other major changes to the athletes taking part. Once the competition starts, Michael Norman’s talent will surely be missed by all track fans as he aims to overcome his obstacles and resurface with renewed strength for the Paris Olympics in 2024.

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