If athletes are talented enough to land a coveted spot in the Millrose Games, the elite annual indoor track meet taking place Saturday in Manhattan, they are participating in a relic from a golden era of track and field — one when top athletes were knighted, runners were timed by tuxedo-clad men with gold timepieces and thousands of spectators cheered them on.
But these days, the meet can be as much about traditional prestige as about modern indignities. It is no longer broadcast long into the night to audiences across the country, but, rather, is staged in the afternoon.