The third World Track and Field Championships ended on a star-spangled note, even if the United States` banner day was a little tattered by a rare defeat in the men`s 4 x 400-meter relay.
The U.S., which accounted for all the world records in the eight-day competition, produced the third one Sunday when the 4 x 100-meter relay of Andre Cason, Leroy Burrell, Dennis Mitchell and Carl Lewis clocked 37.50 seconds. That was .17 better than the record Lewis, Burrell, Mitchell and Mike Marsh had set a month ago and the 14th time in modern track history that a U.S. team has set a world record in the sprint relay.
But the mile relay of Andrew Valmon, Quincy Watts, Danny Everett and Antonio Pettigrew lost to Great Britain by six inches and .04 seconds. It was the first time the British have defeated the U.S. in this relay, and they needed a European record of 2:57.53 to do it. That time was also the fourth best in history, behind those of three U.S. teams.
Sunday`s otherwise strong U.S. finish included gold and bronze medals from Charles Austin and Hollis Conway, in the high jump, a surprise silver by the women`s 4 x 400 relay and an even more surprising bronze by Steve Spence in the men`s marathon.
The U.S. topped the gold medal count 10-9 over the Soviet Union, although it finished second to the Soviets in total medals, 28-26. The 20 medals and six golds won by the U.S. men were easily their highest totals in three World Championships.
Algeria won only three medals, but its second gold gave it a unique distinction.
When Noureddine Morceli won the men`s 1,500 meters in 3:32.84 Sunday, Algeria became the first country to win both the men`s and women`s metric miles in the Olympics or World Championships. Hassiba Boulmerka won the women`s 1,500 Saturday, when she became the first African woman to win a World Championships gold.
The U.S. had led the overall medal count at the 1983 World Championships and finished second to East Germany in 1987. With the dismemberment of the East German sports system after reunification, the Soviet Union claimed many of the medals formerly won by East Germans.
”Our concern shouldn`t be losing the 1,600-meter relay by six inches,”
said U.S. men`s head coach Tom Tellez. ”Our concern should be over the other events, like the throws, where the U.S. isn`t doing as well as it should.”
The relay defeat nevertheless revived debate about how the U.S. chooses its relay teams, since Michael Johnson, the world`s best 400-meter runner in 1990 and 1991, watched the race from his Texas home.
Because of the machinations that surrounded relay selection at the 1988 Olympics, where U.S. coaches with potentially conflicting interests as agents were accused of favoring certain athletes, the U.S. track federation changed to an inflexible system. The top four men and women in the 100 and 400 meters at the U.S. championships would run the relays, with the next two acting as alternates.
Forced to choose between the 200 and 400 because of the events`
schedules, Johnson selected the shorter race and went on to win the world title but couldn`t be on a relay.
”I believe in the athletes choosing themselves for the team,” Tellez said. ”It might not be the best system, but in our country, it`s a fair system.”
Even the Johnson debate should have been unnecessary. After all, the U.S. had put itself in perfect position to win, getting the baton to world 400-meter champion Pettigrew with a slight lead.
All Pettigrew needed to do was run faster than Kriss Kezie Uche Chukwu Duru-Akabasi, the Nigerian-born, 31-year-old intermediate hurdler who was on the anchor for Great Britain. Despite the benefit of a flying relay start, Pettigrew ran some .3 slower than his 44.57 while winning the open 400 Thursday.
Nothing short of the forecast typhoon that never arrived could have slowed the sprint relay`s run to the gold.
Once Lewis, Burrell and Mitchell swept the medals in last Sunday`s open 100, with the top two beating the previous world record and Mitchell only a few ticks behind, it was considered a virtual certainty the relay would set a world record. They won by .37 seconds over the French team that had taken the world record from the U.S. last year.
”There was a lot of pressure on them,” Tellez insisted. ”When you`re running where you have to win, you are a little cautious instead of letting it go. I think they could have run faster.”
High jumper Austin, 23, faced no such great expectations, even after setting a U.S. record of 7 feet 10 1/2 inches a month ago. As a neophyte on the international circuit who was noted mainly for being coached by a woman, Sue Humphrey, he was a decided underdog to world record-holder Javier Sotomayor of Cuba.
Austin won Sunday with a jump of 7-9 3/4 when Sotomayor, who had cleared 7-8 3/4, dropped out after missing his first attempt at 7-10 1/2. Chronic pain in the Cuban`s takeoff foot was the reason.
Conway, `88 Olympic silver medalist who has been injured most of this year, claimed the bronze at 7-8 3/4.
”I feel good about winning, but if Hollis and Javier had been at their best, I would have felt even happier,” said Austin.
The U.S. could have said the same for its performance, but for the 4 x 400 relay.
