This past weekend, Western Michigan University track alumnus, Phil McMullen, missed making the Olympic team for a second time by just one place, taking fourth in the Olympic Trials in the decathlon. This time, he missed the team by 27 points, an almost immeasurable amount in an event that is scored in the thousands of points.

I can't help but think if WMU actually supported their track athletes instead of dropping the track program, that bit of support could have put a Western Michigan athlete on the 2004 Olympic team.

In contrast to the above, Eastern Michigan University alumni high jumper, James Nieto, won the Olympic Trials high jump, setting a Olympic Trials record of 7-7.75 in the event.

As the national TV cameras rolled, the broadcaster announced that Nieto is from Eastern Michigan University. Millions of viewers see the Olympian and heard the name, Eastern Michigan University. This form of FREE advertising is called marketing/public relations. It is a form of revenue for the university. If Western Michigan hired administrators who had the savvy to understand this, WMU would have Olympians getting the same kind of recognition for years to come, too. Instead, its last shot at national television recognition ended when Phil McMullen crossed the finish line in the decathlon 1500 meters.

Wake up, WMU president and Board of Trustees. Go ahead and keep throwing money at the football program. Track and field is a revenue sport. It is the very reason large corporations like Nike, Adidas, and others pay the very athletes that ran at your school big money to put a small logo on their running jerseys.

I pray that the embarassment of cutting mens' track and field has brought to the WMU president and trustees forces them out, like it did when similar bad decisions were made at EMU on a couple of occasions. Instead, it backfired on them because there were people smart enough to realize the importance of having athletes from their school on the Olympic team. Because of their foresight, Eastern will have all of the well-deserved recognition (and the alumni donations that go with it) for having Nieto become the most recent athlete to make the US team.

It is time that the MAC athletic directors and presidents have a round-table discussion to realize that revenue is generated in onon-revenue (ticket sales at the gate) sports. Olympic sports like and track and field bring other revenue in the alumni donations made by proud alums when athletes make a team.

If you think this is not the case, you're wrong. This year, Eastern Michigan University received a six-figure gift from a 92 year old EMU track alumnus. And, by the way, half of the money was earmarked for womens' track, so Title IXers beware. Cut more mon-revenue sports and risk not having revenue from passionate dependable alumni of the so-called non-revenue sports.

This viewpoint is to honor Phil McMullen, not to point out that he did not make an Olympic team. In fact, for every Olympic Trial when the whole world is watching, there are several other smaller meets, Phil ran in the last eight years that put WMU and the Mid-American Conference on TV and in print, showing what a champion he (and WMU) were. But with the word, "champion" therein lies the problem--Western Michigan University wants to win, it doesn't care about being a champion. Champions support one another, their teeammates, their university, and their conference.

Western Michigan has lost sight of the responsibilities of being a champion. So WMU president and athletic director, have fubn trying to be winners, because you will never be champions.

Get rid of the president and athletic director who made these terrible decisions tro ax track and get Bronco track on the Olympic team where it belongs. Football and basketball certainly aren't going to get you there.

Below, I list all my track accomplishments so some day a WMU track athlete can experience all the joy I did accomplishing this. Bring back track at WMU and it can, too. Please.

Gary Bastien resides in Saline, Michigan and while at Eastern Michigan University was four-time MAC decathlon champion, MAC record-holder in the decathlon until WMU Bronco Phil McMullen broke it, four time NCAA finalist, two-time NCAA All-American, 1978 Junior National Champion; USSR vs USA international champion; 1978 third highest American score; and 1983 all-time USA list.