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With ease Greene, Jones advance; Finland's Harju wins shot put
SYDNEY, Australia (AP) -- Marion Jones and Maurice Greene finally became more than mere Olympic spectators. Now they're going for spectacular. Jones and Greene, both of whom were in the stands at the 1996 Atlanta Games, strolled to early-round victories in the 100 meters as track and field events began Friday at the Sydney Olympics. So did Michael Johnson and Cathy Freeman in the 400. However, Donovan Bailey's dream of repeating as 100-meter champ ended when he finished ninth in the second round. Jones began her quest for five gold medals with a leisurely win in 11.20 seconds in her first-round heat. A few hours later, she was much more intense as she moved into the semifinals Saturday night (Saturday morning EDT) by winning her second-round heat in 10.83 seconds. "Perhaps if our semis tomorrow were a bit earlier, I would have laid back a little bit,'" she said. "We have all day tomorrow to kind of rest and relax. That's why I decided tonight, 'Aw, put one out there.'" Greene moved into the semifinals by winning his second-round heat in 10.10 seconds. Arsi Harju of Finland won gold in the men's shot put with a toss of 69 feet, 10 1/4 inches. The other two medals were taken by Americans -- Adam Nelson was second with a throw of 69-7 and 1996 silver medalist John Godina won bronze with 69-6 3/4.
Godina was a late replacement for U.S. teammate C.J. Hunter, the reigning world champion. Hunter dropped out after arthroscopic knee surgery. Freeman, seeking to become the first Aborigine to win an individual Olympic gold medal, received thunderous applause from her fellow Australians in the 110,000-seat Olympic Stadium. Freeman won her heat in 51.63 seconds. She has not lost a 400-meter race in three years and is even more of a favorite at the Sydney Games now that two-time defending champion Marie-Jose Perec has fled the Olympics. Also advancing to the second round of the women's 400 were Americans LaTasha Colander-Richardson and Monique Hennagan. There was an empty spot in lane three of the fifth heat of the 400. That spot would have been taken by Perec, who left Sydney a day earlier after claiming she was threatened in her hotel room by an unidentified man. Joining Jones in the semifinals of the women's 100 was U.S. teammate Chryste Gaines. But Torri Edwards, a late replacement for the injured Inger Miller, was fifth in her second-round heat and failed to advance. Also reaching the semifinals was Merlene Ottey, a seven-time Olympic medalist who substituted at the last minute for teammate Peta-Gaye Dowdie -- leading to protests by some Jamaican team members. Jones qualified for U.S. relay teams for the 1992 Barcelona Games, but decided not to go. A broken bone in her foot ended her hopes of competing at Atlanta four years ago. "I feel great, I feel great. You know, it's been a long time. I was just waiting and watching. But it's here now, so no more excuses,'' Jones said. "I'm having a ball. I'm 24 years old, I'm in Sydney, I'm running great.'' Greene began his quest for a men's 100-meter gold with a celebratory smile. He breezed to an easy victory in 10.31 seconds in his first-round heat, slowing significantly toward the end, then strutted and waved to the crowd. Greene, who holds the world record of 9.79 seconds, failed to qualify for the 1996 Olympics and drove 18 hours from his home in Kansas City to Atlanta to see the games. During the 100 final, he sat in the stands and cried uncontrollably. "I'm just happy to get the show started and eager to keep it going,'' he said. "You just want to get through the first round as easy as possible.'' Also advancing to the second round were Americans Curtis Johnson and Jon Drummond. Ato Boldon, the 1996 bronze medalist from Trinidad & Tobago, won his heat in 10.04 seconds. In the first-round heat of the men's 400, Johnson glanced to his left several times down the closing stretch to see if anyone was close behind. He didn't need to bother. He cruised to an easy victory in 45.25 seconds. Johnson is an overwhelming favorite to become the first man to win the event in consecutive Olympics. Joining Johnson in Saturday's second round were U.S. teammates Alvin Harrison and Antonio Pettigrew, who also won their heats. Harrison, wearing a full body suit and long sleeves on a hot, sunny day, had the fastest qualifying time of 44.96. The Clark clan had a good day in the women's 800 meters. Joetta Clark-Diggs, her kid sister, Hazel Clark, and their sister-in-law, Jearl Miles-Clark, all easily advanced to the semifinals. The first track medal of the games was mired in controversy. Mexico's Bernardo Segura crossed the finish line first in the 20-kilometer walk, but later was disqualified for breaking contact with the ground.
That gave the gold medal to Poland's Robert Korzeniowski, with Noe Hernandez of Mexico second and Vladimir Andreyev of Russia third.
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