The world’s fastest champions

Press, 18 February 1989, Page 27

The world’s fastest champions

The Fastest Men on Earth: The 100 m Olympic champions. By Neil Duncanson. Collins, 1988. 191 pp. $26.95 (paperback). (Reviewed by Rod Dew) To most of us, 10 seconds is the mere blink of an eye, but to an Olympic 100 m champion this is all the time it takes to change his life, irrevocably. Some have profited, greatly from winning a gold medal; others have not been able to handle the fame (or the. fortune) and have suffered dreadfully. There is, however, something special about being labelled “the fastest man on earth” — the title which goes to each winner of the Olympic 100 m crown. This book contains the story of these fast men, from the days of the professionals in the nineteenth century, through the dawn of the modem "amateur” Olympic movement, and into the very false amateurism of the 1980 s. In the buildup to the Seoul Olympic Games, the Los Angeles gold medalist, Carl Lewis (United States), and the new holder of the world record, Ben Johnson (Canada), were reputed to command appearance money of $75,000 each for a race. For one race on the European circuit they received

a mind-boggling $llO,OOO each. These are the new “professionals,” who leave the original professionals well in the financial shade.

In the buildup to the Seoul Olympic Games, the Los Angeles gold medalist, Carl Lewis (United Staes), and the new holder of the world record, Ben .Johnson (Canada), were reputed to command appearance money of $75,000 each for a race. For one race on the European circuit they received a mind-boggling $llO,OOO each. These are the new “professionals,” who leave the original professionals well in the financial shade. “The Fastest Men on Earth” was written before the Seoul Olympics, so the drama of Johnson’s win and subsequent disqualification after a positive drugs test is not included. The book is, however, a very detailed and interesting account of the life and times of the 20 men who had won the Olympic crown up to that point. It is, actually, a spin-off from a Thames Television series, “The Fastest Men on Earth.” Duncanson, an assistant producer for Thames Television, interviewed athletic veterans and contemporary track stars throughout the world for the series, and he has since used his writing skills

to produce this excellent book. Tom Burk (1896), Harold Abrahams (1924), Jesse Owens (1936), Bobby Morrow (1956), Armin Hary (1960), Bob Hayes (1964), and those of more recent times, Valeri Borzov (1972), Hasely Crawford (1976), Allan Wells (1980), and Lewis (1984) are among the famous names included. But while the champions remain in the limelight, there are other lesser sprinters who help fill out the stories. There is the tale of an Australian sprinter, James Carlton, who ran 20.6 s for 220 yds in Sydney in January, 1932, only to have his performance ruled out because of a following wind. Carlton maintained there was no wind, an opinion backed up by eyewitnesses. And he was so incensed by the decision that he promptly quit athletics, did not go to the Los Angeles Games, that year, and instead became a monk and entered a monastery. Had he taken a different course, he might have become an Olympic champion. The book is nicely illustrated, and provides a splendid record for track enthusiasts seeking fine detail. It is also written in a manner which holds the attention, which puts it a little ahead of other publications of this type.