At 41, Dara Torres still pooling her talents

July 8, 2008

Last week, Dara Torres looked like all the other soccer moms. Now, she’s a legend.

Come August, the 41-year-old mother of a toddler will become the oldest American ever to swim at the Olympics - and she’s gunning for a medal.

“Age is just a number,” Torres said at a press conference before the U.S. Olympic Trials began on June 29. The nine-time Olympic medalist, who’s called “mom” by Michael Phelps and refers to her competition as “kids,” lived up to her mantra by winning the 100 meter freestyle in 53.78 seconds - just milliseconds shy of the American record.

Torres followed up her feat by breaking the U.S. record in the 50 meter freestyle during a July 5 semi-final heat, only to smash it again on July 6 in the final.

The world quickly took notice.

“This is a major statement,” said Torres pal Mark Spitz, who still holds the record for the most gold medals ever won in a single Olympic games. “She lived up to the premise that nothing is impossible without a lot of hard work.”

Evan Morgenstein, president of Premier Management Group, which represents the largest number of Olympic athletes in America, says he’s been inundated with interview requests, sponsorship offers and book deals for Torres.

“It’s insane how this story has impacted people,” Morgenstein said. “She has the same following as Steve Prefontaine at this point.”

Torres turned down “half a million in endorsement deals” before the trials to focus on her races, he said, adding, “When you take a risk like this, you take the risk that maybe it doesn’t go the way you wanted it. The risk is going to pay off in ways you can’t imagine.”

Torres first arrived on the scene when she set a new American record for the 50 meter freestyle at age 15. Two years later, Torres helped her team earn gold in the 4 x 100 meter freestyle relay at the 1984 Los Angeles Games.

But Torres is best known as swimming’s comeback kid. She retired from the sport at age 25 after winning four medals over three Olympic games. Her reason for throwing in the towel? Age. Torres returned to the pool in 1999, earning two golds and three bronze medals at the Sydney Olympics. She then retired again, only to return to competition in 2007.

Torres has battled through bouts of bulimia, two divorces and five knee surgeries to land where she is today - over the hill and in the best shape of her life.

“It does sort of blow your mind,” said Dr. Marj Snyder, chief program officer at the Women’s Sports Foundation. “She’s just pushed the edge out pretty far beyond where it was before, particularly in a sport like swimming where most athletes are … in their teens.”

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Lagat prevails in tactical 1500

July 7, 2008

EUGENE — Billed as the penultimate event of the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials, the men’s 1,500 meter final delivered a tactician’s dream if not living up to the hype on the clock.

Eight of the middle distance stars who toed the starting line took the lead at one point, but Bernard Lagat was the only one to do it when it mattered, finishing in 3 minutes, 40.37 seconds, well off his American record time.

Lagat, who reached stardom while running for his native Kenya before switching citizenship, led a 1-2-3 sweep of adopted nationals, with Mexican-born Leonel Manzano finishing in 3:40.9 and Sudanese-born Lopez Lomong in 3:41.

“America truly is a melting pot,” said Lagat, who was the meet’s only double winner, having taken the 5,000 on June 30. “To see the three of us who are going to Beijing, all coming from different backgrounds and different paths to America, it’s really magic.”

Meanwhile, American-born star Alan Webb was edged by Lomong and Oregon Track Clubber William Leer for fifth. After leading the second and third laps, former Stanford star Gabe Jennings faded to last.

While the field went out at a tentative pace into a strong headwind, Jen Stuczynsky stole the capacity crowd’s attention by breaking both the American and Olympic trials record in the pole vault at 16 feet, 1 3⁄4 inches.

“We had some height progressions in between and that jump I just went with it,” said Stuczynksy, who went under two attempts at the world record before opting out of the last. “I just tried to let my technique carry me through and it worked out.”

Previous trials and Hayward Field record holder Stacy Dragila finished in a disappointing tie for seventh place.

Lagat took his first lead at the bell lap and established himself wide of the first lane for position. Manzano made a strong push, but couldn’t overtake Lagat, 33, who will go for 1,500 and 5,000 gold medals in Beijing after grabbing a silver medal in Athens and Bronze in Atlanta.

“To me there’s not much strategy to the 5,000, but a lot can play out in the 1,500,” Lagat said. “It didn’t worry me that the pace was slow; I knew that it would be a mad kick at the end and I had faith in my training.”

That mad kick played out well for Lomong, the NCAA 1,500 champion for Northern Arizona.

“It’s kind of funny – with all of the backgrounds we come from, we all have something in common,” said Lomong, who fled the Sudanese Civil War in 1991. “The three of us will be running for the country that helped us out so much.”

In the women’s 200, Allyson Felix got some redemption for a failed bid in the 100 meters, winning the longer sprint in 21.82 seconds. 100-meter champ Muna Lee was second in 21.99. In the absence of Tyson Gay, who cramped up in Saturday’s 200 quarterfinals, Walter Dix edged Shawn Crawford by five one-thousandths of a second in 19.852.

Other winners on the final day of the trials were Ian Waltz in the discus (216-1), Aarik Wilson in the triple jump (57-2 1⁄4), Bobby Smith in the javelin (249-6), David Oliver in the 110 hurdles (12.95) and Lolo Jones in the 100 hurdles (12.29).

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Shawn Johnson Next U.S. Olympic Gymnastics Superstar?

January 26, 2008

Shawn Johnson is a name that is quickly becoming known around the world. She is a sophomore in Valley High School, which is located in West Des Moines, Iowa. Not only is she an excellent student but she is quickly becoming known as the next top gymnast for the United States. She has already appeared on “The Today Show” and even on “Ellen” after being ranked the world’s top female all- around gymnast, in addition to the 2007 U.S National All Around Champion. Read more

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Gatlin got in too deep; ban justified

January 2, 2008

Philip Hersh | On Olympic Sports: News, it turned out, that had arrived on the BlackBerry a few minutes earlier. So I read the story, first published in Tuesday’s Washington Post, and then plunged right into thinking what I might want to say. As well as plunging into the Caribbean off Grand Cayman, where I would have the time for some deep thoughts.The most germane hit me while watching a 1-inch-long, transparent fish called a pipe blenny vainly ram into a mirror the dive master had stuck into the sand 60 feet below the surface. Then it would duck back into a tiny hole in the sand. Read more

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Snowboard king Shaun White accused of spraying fire extinguisher (AP)

December 19, 2007

Olympic snowboarder Shaun White was cited for allegedly setting off a fire extinguisher at a ski resort and was questioned about a stolen car the same day, but authorities say he is not suspected of stealing the vehicle. Summit County sheriff’s deputies interviewed White about the stolen 2000 Audi on Friday “because he was in the vicinity of the car,” sheriff’s spokeswoman Paulette Horr said…

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Olympics lure brought Davenport out of retirement

December 18, 2007

Lindsay Davenport says her decision to return to the game after a year in retirement was largely motivated by the chance of competing at next year’s Olympics in Beijing.

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