Thursday, August 26, 1999
The University Daily Kansan
Section B·Page 7
Johnson healthy, eager to break record
The Associated Press
SEVILLE, Spain — There was a serious question about Michael Johnson's health early this year. There isn't now, and the American 400-meter runner thinks he can break the world record at the World Championships.
"I know I'm in shape to run faster than 43.28." Johnson said Tuesday night after blistering through the first 300 meters of his semifinal heat and advancing to tonight's final.
American Butch Reynolds set the record in 1988, and Johnson has been chasing it in frustration in recent years. He has come close three times, with clockings of 43.39, 43.44 and 43.49.
"I just have to make sure I don't make any major mistakes," Johnson said. "The pace should be no problem Thursday."
It wasn't Tuesday night.
Johnson blazed through the first 300 before shutting down three different times during the final 100.
"I shut down one gear on the end of the curve because I saw that I had a little lead, but I was still afraid of losing the lead," he said. "Then when I got to the straight, I shut down a little more because I knew I had a safe lead. I shut down a whole lot
with 60 to 70 meters left."
years. Johnson has been bothered by
Still, he finished in 43.95 seconds, only 0.03 seconds off his world-leading time this year.
This year, Johnson he imbalance in his hip and pelvic areas and was forced to reduce his schedule. He also pulled out of the USA Championships in June and stopped in midrace during a meet in Stockholm, Sweden, on July 30.
The world 200 record-holder and double Olympic gold medalist in 1996 has
injuries during the championships.
Johnson: Ready to break world record in 400 meters
"Michael is in better shape than he was in '96 in my opinion," said American Jerome Davis, who just missed making the 400 final. "He's running like a madman out there right now."
American Antonio Pettigrew, the 1991 world champion, is wondering how he's going to cope with Johnson in the final.
"You have to stay with him and stay in
contention when he comes off the turn, or you're going to be in trouble." Pettigrew said. "You can't let him get away or there's no way you're going to catch him."
While Johnson was speeding around the fast Olympic Stadium track, distance runners Hicham El Guerroj and Haile Gheseilas also were impressive.
El Guverrouj won his second straight 1,500 title in 3 minutes, 27.65 seconds, the fifth-fastest ever; and Gebelserlae took his fourth consecutive 10,000 title in 27:57.27.
Today's program includes finals in six events: men's 50-kilometer walk, triple jump, 110-meter hurdles and decathlon, and the women's shot and 400 hurdles.
In Tuesday's other finals, Anthony Washington of the United States won the men's disc on his final throw of 226 feet, 8 inches; Ludmila Formanova of the Czech Republic scored an upset victory in the women's 800 in 1:56.68; Greece's Paraskevi Tsiamita won the women's triple jump at 48-10; and Romania's Mihaela Melinte, the world record-holder in the women's hammer throw, posted her 26th consecutive victory, at 246-9.
The championships were hit by its first two drug cases. Nigerian sprinter Davidson Ezinwa tested positive for a banned hormone and faces a two-year suspension, the IAAF said. Somalian 1,500 runner Mohamed Ibrahim Aden tested positive for a stimulant and received a warning.
El Guerrouj and Gebrelassie also were uncatchable once they got away Tuesday night.
El Guerrouri stayed behind Moroccan teammate Adil Kauouch for 700 meters, then took control. His long, graceful strides carried him to an 10-yard victory ahead of Kenya's Noah Ngeny in the race in which the top five all broke 3:32. Spaniaries Reyes Estevez, 1992 Olympic champion Fermin Cacho and Andres Dias finished 3-4-5 before a roaring, capacity crowd of 50,810.
El Guerrouj, the world record-holder in the 1,500 and the mile, dedicated the victory to Mohamed VI, the new Moroccan king, and said the late King Hassan II, who died in July, "would have been very proud of me today."
Gebruselassie ran the final 15 laps of the 10,000 with badly blistered feet, the same problem that plagued him while winning the 1996 Olympic final.
"It was hot and I had problems right from the start with my feet from 10 laps out, but I couldn't do anything but carry on," Gebriselassie, the world record-holder in the 5,000 and 10,000, said after leading a 1-3-4 Ethiopian finish.
Russian hurdler beating opposition, fighting cancer
The Associated Press
SEVILLE, Spain
Among those most surprised by the success of hurdler Ludmila Enguist is the world and Olympic champion herself.
"I don't know how I got this far," the 35-year-old cancer patient said yesterday after winning one of six heats at the World Championships and posting the best time of the day.
Still, the Russian-born Swede thinks a demanding schedule of four races in five days and the searing Andalusian heat will take a
toll on her. The quarterfinals are today, with the semifinals tomorrow and the final Sunday.
"I am very realistic. I will try, but I don't think I can win." Enguigger said of her prospects for a gold medal. "I would just like to be on the podium."
Competing between chemotherapy treatments for breast cancer, the two-time world champion and 1996 Olympic gold medalist had the fastest time in heats for the 100-meter hurdles.
The cancer was diagnosed in late March, and
Engquist had surgery to remove her right breast on her birthday. April 21.
Doctors said it would be about six weeks before she could start exercising. But Engquist couldn't wait to return to her sanctuary — the track.
"Like my doctor said,
'You must lead your normal life,'" she said.
"Normal life for me is to train and compete, and I did it."
She continued to train through four chemotherapy sessions, and has two remaining—including one slated for next week.
American misses fastest mark in 200 butterfly by half-second
The Associated Press
SYDNEY, Australia — Denis Pankratov can rest easy because Tom Malchow couldn't in the hours before the his 200 butterfly yesterday at the Pan Pacific swim championships.
Malchow just missed the Russian's 4-year-old world record in Tuesday's semifinal — finishing in 1 minute, 55.76 seconds, a half-second slower than Pankratov's 1995 mark of 1:55.22.
g about breaking the record cut into Malchow's sleep time Tuesday night. Yesterday, the 23-year-old American lowered his time to 1:55.41 .19 off Pankratov's mark .to win the event. Too bad he didn't get a good night's sleep. "After my semi swim, a few people came
up to me and talked a bit about the record," Malchow said after posting the second-fastest time in the history of the event. "I thought, 'Wow, I could do this' and tossed and turned a bit through the night."
Malchow, from St. Paul, Minn., but living now in Ann Arbor, Mich., finished almost two seconds clear of Japan's Takashi Yamamoto. American Ugur Tanner was third.
"I don't know whether it made the difference — I supposed it could have. But I've done the best three swims of my life."
"It was close, but there's something to keep shooting for," Malchow said. "Hopefully, I will be back next year for the Olympics — maybe I'll be ready at that time to go that fast."
Executive from Utah sued by son of IOC official
The Associated Press
SOUILL, South Korea—The son of a powerful South Korean member of the International Olympic Committee filed a $100,000 defamation suit against a U.S. businessman yesterday.
It is the second legal case stemming from controversy about Salt Lake City's winning bid for the 2002 Winter Olympics.
In a suit filed with the Seoul District Civil Court, Kim Junghoon, 41, said his integrity was hurt by false testimony that Utah businessman David Simmons gave investigators, court officials said.
On Aug. 3, Simmons pleaded guilty in U.S. court to misdeanor tax evasion. It was the first criminal case developing from U.S. investigations of Salt Lake City's vote-buying scandal.
Simmons testified that he helped Kim obtain permanent U.S. resident status by setting up a sham job at his now-defunct communications company. Kim Jung-hoon is the son of South Korean IOC executive member Kim Un-yong.
Simmons said he used fake contracts and phony invoices to conceal the fact that the younger Kim's salary was paid by the Salt Lake City Olympic Bid Committee.
“Mr. Simmons has provided truthful information about Mr. Kim to the Department of Justice and will continue to do so,” said Simmops' attorney, James Holbrook. He declined further comment, saying he had not yet seen Kim's lawsuit.
Kim claimed that his deal with Simmons' company was purely business. Under the arrangement, Simmons visited South Korea several times to explore business opportunities in telecommunications.
Kim said he knew nothing of the salary arrangement between SLOC and Simmons' company, Keystone Communications.
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