Victory Over Germany But A Loss To The Aau

"We're having a hard time getting Cassell to talk to us," said Pennel. "He's not very helpful."

Cassell asked the Swiss federation to look at Hoffmann's books. Hoffmann refused to show them. Somewhat reluctantly Cassell gave up the witch hunt. He ordered the athletes to sign three sets of papers stating that they had never accepted money. Then he lifted the suspensions. They all took off for a meet in Mainz, Germany. "Your AAU is stupid," a German athlete said.

That crisis past, the U.S. team turned its full attention to the Germans. The meet went pretty much according to form. The American women lost 82-53; the American men won 122-100. The highlight of the meet—and a shock for the Germans, who were heavily favored to sweep the event—was the 800 meters. On the way to the stadium, Mark Winzenried and Ken Swenson of the U.S. had a talk. "I'll just go like a bat out of hell and run them off the track," said Winzenried. Which he did, running the first 400 in 51.6 and knocking off Franz-Josef Kemper, the No. 1 German. Winzenried held the incredible pace until the final turn. Then he faltered. Walter Adams passed him on the inside, a few yards ahead of Swenson. "That last 100 was tough," said Swenson. "I was so tired I didn't even think about catching him. I just ran." He caught Adams 50 yards from the finish, passed him and won in 1:44.8, lowering Jim Ryun's American record by 1/10th of a second. Said Stan Wright, one of the men's team managers, "You've got to admit that the German win was a hell of a victory for a Mickey Mouse team."

So now only Russia—and, presumably, the AAU—stand between the U.S. and a European sweep.