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Sport by Sport: Track & Field
Event Layout
Marion Jones' bid for a record five gold medals figures to be the most compelling story awaiting the 110,000 fans who attend the track-and-field competition at Sydney's Stadium Australia. It won't be the only one.
There also will be:
Michael Johnson's attempt for an unprecedented second 400-meter title. Johnson was the sensation of the 1996 Atlanta Games. Appropriately wearing gold shoes, he became the first man to sweep the 200 and 400, winning the 200 with an astonishing world record of 19.32 seconds.
Gabriela Szabo's try for a never-achieved women's 1,500-5,000 double. She's the first woman in track and field to surpass $1 million in earnings in one season and the IAAF female track athlete of the year last season.
Javier Sotomayor, the powerful Cuban who was suspended at last year's Pan American Games after testing positive for cocaine, then reinstated this year, will try to regain the Olympic high-jump title he won in 1992. He is the only high-jumper to clear 8 feet.
Merlene Ottey's sixth appearance in an Olympics. Ottey, also recently cleared of drug charges, has won seven Olympic medals, including silvers in the 100 and 200 in 1996, and five bronzes. The 40-year-old Jamaican was the last sprinter to beat Jones in a race, at 100 meters in 1997.
Hicham el Guerrouj's redemption in the 1,500. The world record-holder in the 1,500 and the mile, El Guerrouj appeared primed to win the 1,500 in Atlanta, but he clipped the heels of eventual gold medalist Noureddine Morceli of Algeria and fell, ultimately finishing last. Since then, el Guerrouj has run the three fastest times in history.
Maurice Greene's attempt to solidify his status as the world's fastest human in the 100. He holds the world record at 9.79.
Sergey Bubka, world record-holder and six-time world champion in the pole vault who has been plagued by Achilles tendon and back injuries, makes his final run at an Olympic gold medal at age 36. The Ukrainian's only Olympic victory was in 1988.
Marla Runyan, the first legally blind Olympic runner, will show she can compete with the world's best in the 1,500 meters.
Cathy Freeman's attempt to become the first Aborigine to win gold. She is the two-time world champion and 1996 Olympic silver medalist in the 400.
Gail Devers' third try at winning the 100 hurdles. The plucky Devers has overcome a serious physical problem to become one of the sport's all-time greats. After surviving life-threatening Graves' Disease 10 years ago, which required chemotherapy and radiation treatments, Devers has won three world titles in the 100-meter hurdles and two Olympic gold medals in the 100-meter dash.
Haile Gebrselassie's shot at a rare second straight 10,000 victory. Gebrselassie, the tactical-running Ethiopian who owns world records in the 5,000 and 10,000 and is unbeaten outdoors since 1996, won the 10,000 at the Atlanta Games.
Tomas Dvorak's golden opportunity for a record 9,000 points in the decathlon. Dvorak came tantalizingly close in July 1999, setting the world record with 8,994 points. The Czech also won his second straight world title last year and already has scored 8,900 points this season.
-- The Associated Press
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