Louganis Enjoying Life Now : He’s Made a Splash in His Sport, but He Still Acts Naturally

Something has changed for Greg Louganis. Something major has changed in a significant way. He can feel it every time he laughs.

At last, Greg Louganis is having fun at the thing he does better than anyone else in the world--throwing himself off boards and platforms into pools of water.

It has taken Louganis 15 years to come to this. He has won medals in two Olympic Games and has been the champion of the world three times. It seemed enough, but Louganis was going so far so fast that he wasn’t sure if he even liked what he was doing.

“A lot of young athletes work so hard toward a goal that they forget to have fun along the way,” Louganis said after winning the three-meter springboard event at the Woodlands Athletic Center Thursday at the U.S. Olympic Festival.

Louganis, 26, is only now coming to appreciate his place in the history of the sport. He, like many athletes who cut their teeth on international competition, lack a perspective on their accomplishments. Tennis star John McEnroe, who took a six-month hiatus from the tour, has said that it was only when he is away from the sport that he can fully realize what he has accomplished in it.

Louganis feels much the same way.

“I think about all the people I used to compete against in 1976, Phil Boggs and people like that,” he said. “I really didn’t appreciate who they were. I knew they were good divers, but I didn’t know they were legends.

“I guess if you are fortunate to have fun at a very young age, it’s worth it. After the ’84 Olympics, there was talk about possible exhibitions and commercials, so I wanted to stay in shape. I found myself at the pool three times a week. I found that diving became my sanctuary. I didn’t have to worry about appearences or speaking engagements.”

For Louganis, two gold medals in Los Angeles were the realization of a dream, but he found the dream had fallen short. The plan was for Louganis to retire in glory after the Games, plunge headlong into his acting career, and bring out the gold medals for the commercials and cereal boxes.

“I had to make a living,” he said. “It’s tough to make diving a hobby at the world-class level. Right now, I’m diving six months a year. The difference is, I used to do it all year. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get bored with diving. What keeps me going is I have so many other things, too.”

The problem with the other things is that Louganis is a perfectionist. He has, with some regularity, achieved perfection in his diving, and he likes the taste of it. He knows that 10s won’t continue if screen tests take precedence over practice time. Thus, the 50-50 split he’s experimenting with this year is riskier for him than his most difficult dive.

“My schedule depends on the time of year,” he said. “In the fall and winter, that’s the only time I have to pursue my acting and also make a living for myself. The other six months of the year, from February to August, is completely devoted to diving.”

Louganis has been performing since he was 3 years old. “I’m glad to be getting back to performing and acting,” he said. “What I’ve been doing is going on readings. I have a really good record. All of the readings I have been going on, I have been called back. My name recognition from the Olympics will get the door open so that I can meet and read for the casting director. But that doesn’t guarantee me anything. No one has given me a script because of my Olympic exploits. I feel I am a much more serious actor than that.”

Since acting clearly is important to him--he recently finished one film, “Dirty Laundry” and will soon start a second--why not bow out now? He is arguably the best diver ever. What else is there?

Louganis said: “I find myself saying, ‘What the hell am I doing? Aren’t I wasting my time? Don’t I have to get on with my life?’ But the truth is, I still feel like I am improving. I have a commitment to see how far I can go.

“I am getting better and there are some goals that I have set for myself. They are going to be really difficult to obtain, but they are goals. I would like to break 800 (points) on the three-meter springboard, which is averaging 9.4 or 9.5 on every single dive, all 11 dives. I’d also like to break 700 on the 10-meter platform. I went 710 at the Olympics, but what I’d like to do is achieve that type of score with the Russians and the East Germans there.”

By winning here, Louganis will have a chance to go after those goals--he is on the U.S. team for the world championship meet next month in Madrid.

“I have a lot of goals out there. Now I can go after them in a relaxed way,” Louganis said. “I have put in my work, I have paid my dues. This won’t be my first world championships, it won’t be my first Olympic Games if I choose to go on to ’88. Now, I can enjoy it.”