One Bold StrokeOn a day of swimming firsts, a medal-worthy gesture out of the pool stole the showby Gerry Callahan
She was the first American at the Centennial Olympics to take home a medal, but she never jumped in the pool. She never even qualified for the competition. All Trisha Henry did was drape a bronze medal around her neck, stand proudly before the world and embody all the best that the Summer Games have to offer.
In the 100 breaststroke final, Deburghgraeve wasn't up to his world-record time, but he was close.
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Henry, a 20-year-old collegiate swimmer from nearby Marietta, Ga., was working as a volunteer on the equipment crew last night at the Georgia Tech Aquatic Center and watched as her friend Angel Martino, a captain of the U.S. women's team and a fellow Georgian, finished third in the 100-meter freestyle. After the awards ceremony Martino sought out Henry and dramatically dragged her onto center stage. Then she gave Henry her medal and told her that she was a hero and an inspiration. On Valentine's Day, Henry was diagnosed with cancer of the ureter, for which she is undergoing chemotherapy.
"Angel just said, 'I want to give this to you,'" said a tearful Henry. "She said, 'I want you to know that I'm thinking of you. I think you're a hero. Keep fighting.'"
Henry has known Martino, 29, for years and as a child attended a local swim camp run by Martino's father, Kirt Myers. She swims at Illinois but keeps in touch with and roots hard for Martino. Henry, whose ureter and a kidney were removed as a result of the cancer, was in the hospital for treatment for three days and wasn't released until yesterday morning, but she vowed that nothing would keep her away from the first day of Olympic competition. "I got up and came to work," she said. "I've been a swimmer since I was 7-1/2. A lot of people burn out on it, but I love it."
Henry specializes in the same events as Martino, who won a bronze in the 50-meter freestyle and was part of a gold medal relay team at the '92 Olympics. Last night Martino was deprived of the gold by Le Jingyi, who salvaged some respect for a Chinese team that has fended off doping accusations since its strong showing at the Barcelona Games. Nineteen Chinese swimmers have tested positive for illegal substances since 1990, and all eyes were on the women when the competition began. Le's three teammates who swam in morning preliminaries were expected to advance to the finals, but Le was the only one to qualify.
Ironically, Le has never been suspended for use of a banned substance, while Martino cannot say the same. At the 1988 Olympic trials, Martino set American records in the 50- and 100-meter freestyles. But she lost both records and her spot on the Olympic team when she tested positive for anabolic steroids. All along Martino has claimed the substance was from a birth-control pill, and she has understandably grown weary of the subject. Last night, with one inspirational gesture, she added an uplifting chapter to her illustrious career.
After briefly analyzing the race for the media, Martino casually mentioned that she was no longer in possession of her medal. "I gave it to a friend who is fighting for her life," said Martino. "She is a great inspiration to me."
According to Henry, Martino gave no indication in advance of the race that she would make such a gesture. Henry was on the deck, fulfilling her duties with the equipment crew, when someone pulled her aside. She has always dreamed of winning an Olympic medal. She never imagined it would happen this way. "It totally took me by surprise," said Henry.
It was only the best of the surprises on the opening night of the swimming competition. Three swimmers won their countries' first-ever swimming gold medals. Ireland's Michelle Smith prevailed in the 400 individual medley, while New Zealand's Danyon Loader won the men's 200 freestyle. But it was Belgium's Fred DeBurghgraeve who turned in perhaps the most impressive performance, winning two races in the 100 breaststroke in the fastest two times ever posted.
In the morning heat, DeBurghgraeve won in a world-record 1:00.60, breaking the three-year-old mark set by Karoly Guttler of Hungary. And in his medal-winning victory, he was only .05 of a second off that record time but still better than Guttler's mark (1:00.95). Jeremy Linn of the U.S. won the silver.
The biggest upset of the night was Smith's triumph in the 400 IM, a race that was supposed to belong to defending Olympic champion Krisztina Egerszegi of Hungary. The silver went to Allison Wagner of the U.S. on the eve of her 19th birthday. While Smith admitted it was nice to win her country's first swimming medal, she said it was even more exciting to look up after the race and see her parents, Pat and Brian, among the crowd of almost 15,000.
"It's a lot of pressure when you see them sitting there and remember how much they put into it," she said. "All the mornings of getting up at five o'clock. When I finished, then I could look for them."
Smith, 26, is no stranger to the Southern heat, having graduated from Houston in 1992. Her husband, Erik de Bruin, is a former Dutch discus champion and a two-time Olympian, and the couple moved to Holland two years ago because Ireland has no 50-meter pools. De Bruin's competitive career essentially ended with a positive drug test three years ago, but he will stay busy during the Games. He is coaching two members of the Dutch track team, including his sister Corrie in the discus and shot. Asked about the drug test that cut short her husband's career, Smith echoed the sentiments of Martino. "That's old news," she said, literally brushing the question aside with a hand.
Like just about everyone else who visited the medal stand, she preferred to stick with the new news, the good news. "Even if I swim rubbish the rest of the week," said Smith, "I'm going home happy. I'm going home with a gold medal."
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