Changing of the guard

by Mike Powell, Yahoo! Sports

August 29, 2004

The track and field competition in Athens will be remembered as one full of surprises. An Olympics where many stars fell and lesser-known athletes stepped boldly into the spotlight.

The final event on the final day of competition at the 2004 Games was no exception.

Meb Keflezighi of the U.S. finished a surprising second in the men's marathon. Meb, who was born the African country of Eritrea is hardly a household name, but his victory brought the total medal output of the U.S. track and field team to 25 – the highest number the team has won since it took home 30 in 1992..

I hate to say, "I told you so", but I did write before the Games began that Team USA's success would not be affected by the BALCO drug scandal.

This team still had some of the most talented athletes in the world representing the sport.

The U.S. not only won the most track and field medals of any country, it also swept all three medals in two events and won two of the three medals in four others.

American athletes showed they could succeed despite the troubles of many of the top stars.

What we saw at these Games was a changing of the guard.

The youth of the sport is now set up for success in future Olympics.

Jeremy Wariner, Lauryn Williams, Allyson Felix, Justin Gatlin and Bryan Clay are just some of the younger track athletes who not only competed well, but also showed they can get better.

There is another group of athletes who you wouldn't consider young by track and field standards, but are either at their prime or close to it.

First time Olympic gold medalists such as Dwight Phillips, Joanna Hayes and Tim Mack will have the target are their backs for the next four years. They will be the standard to beat for the rest of the world, along with other 2004 U.S. medalists including John Moffitt, Melissa Morrison and Toby Stevenson.

Athens will also be remembered for some classic stumbles.

It was tough to see Gail Devers and Allen Johnson fall under hurdles in their quest for gold. And you have to feel bad for the injury that derailed world champion Tom Pappas in the decathlon and by untimely bad performances by Stacy Dragila and John Godina.

That said, I am proud of the way the U.S. track and field team performed at these Olympics. Across the board, American athletes made the finals in events where the U.S. has not been strong in recent years.

I have been a world record holder in the long jump for 13 years, but I never won a gold medal in the Olympics.

I ran into gold medalist Joanna Hayes the other night, and I told her to really appreciate what she has done. Their have been many great athletes who have come before her who have never had an Olympic gold medal placed around their neck. I'm reminded of it every four years.

There is no guarantee any of the athletes from Athens will be in Beijing in 2008. I hope they all leave the 2004 Games with some appreciation for their successes, whether it was finishing with a medal or just making the Olympic team.

World long-jump record-holder Mike Powell is Yahoo! Sports' Olympic track and field analyst. Send Mike a question or comment for potential use in a future column or webcast.

Updated on Sunday, Aug 29, 2004 11:39 pm, EDT

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