They're Sweet 16 And Deserve A Kiss

That's all Doris remembers of the race. She ran the last two laps blacked out. She doesn't remember Debbie passing her on the final lap, or the roar of the crowd as the teen-ager took off after Pangelova, passed her with 20 yards to go and won in an indoor-world-record 4:38.5.

Debbie tried to figure out how she had won, but after a few moments she gave up and laughed. "When I went past the Russian off the turn, it seemed like they were moving the tape and I was running in place. When I finally reached it, it was the greatest."

The clincher was left to Kathy Hammond, only 20 but a seasoned internationalist and one of the U.S.'s top quarter-milers. She was in the 600 and she was worried that the distance might be too long. The race had been planned as a 500, but the Russians don't like short races and they insisted it be 600. Kathy has run 500 yards in 1:06.3, the indoor world record. "I don't like the idea of that extra distance," she said. "But after the way those two kids ran, how can I let them down. I'll just go out fast and hope I can hold on." Streaking into the lead from the start, Kathy won in 1:20.5 for the U.S. girls' second world record.

That gave them a 44-22 lead, and while there were still three events to go, there weren't enough points left for the Russians to catch up. Although the U.S.S.R. swept the shot, the high jump and the two-mile relay, the U.S. girls' final margin was 52-43. And with the men winning 79-69, the U.S. wound up with its third overall title.

As the crowd filed from the Coliseum, Wendy Koenig set off in search of Debbie Heald. The two teen-agers had decided to celebrate with a bottle of Coke. If they could find one anywhere in Richmond.