Lewis Wins as Three Jump Beyond 28 Feet

Everyone is aware that Carl Lewis is a superb athlete, which he has proven with his four gold medals in the 1984 Olympic Games, his sprinting prowess and his dominance in the long jump.

There is another characteristic. He is an outstanding competitor, who responds when challenged.

And Lewis was challenged Friday in the USA/Mobil outdoor track and field championships at San Jose City College.

Larry Myricks has spent a good portion of his career finishing second to Lewis in the long jump. But he applied the pressure when he went ahead of Lewis with a jump of 27 feet 11 inches.

Lewis, who had passed on two of the previous three rounds, then nailed a 28-4 1/2 jump to win the competition.

Myricks, who hasn’t always been at his best while competing against Lewis, came back with a wind-aided jump of 28-0 3/4 and then a legal 28-3 3/4 on his final effort.

Mike Conley, the world-class triple jumper and long jumper, who is always at his best in the late rounds, got off a wind-aided leap of 28-0 3/4 on his final attempt.

But Lewis’ mark held up, and so did a 50-meet winning streak that began in 1981. It was the first time that three long jumpers have ever surpassed 28 feet in one meet.

Lewis still had more business to attend to, though, such as winning the 200 meters. That was acccomplished when he beat Texas A&M;’s Floyd Heard, the defending champion.

Lewis set a stadium record with a time of 20.12 seconds. Heard, the two-time NCAA champion and ranked No. 1 in the world in 1986, fell back to finish fourth.

So it’s a vintage Lewis who is competing here. After pursuing commerical interests and suffering from leg injujries in 1985 and 1986, Lewis is now in championsip form.

And this is a championship season. The first three finishers here qualify for the World Championships Aug. 29-Sept. 6 at Rome.

Lewis won three gold medals--100, long jump and sprint relay--in the inaugural championships in 1983 at Helsinki, Finland. He might get four golds this summer.

Lewis has a modest schedule, for him, today. He’ll go after his third victory in this meet with only two races, the 100-meter semifinals and final.

“I was really nervous before the long jump competition because I had hyperextended my left knee while qualifying yesterday,” Lewis said. “For me to come back and win after they (Myricks and Conley) jumped so well, it just made it better. As for the injury, I just blocked it out.”

Lewis said that he wasn’t conscious of protecting his winning streak.

“I like to win all of my competitions in the long jump because it’s my dear event,” he said. “It’s more important than the streak per se. If I lose a competition I must give myself an opportunity to jump far. I’m not at the stage of my career where I would take two jumps and lose a meet jumping 27-8.”

Lewis has been a consistent 28-foot jumper throughout his career and is still in pursuit of Bob Beamon’s world record of 29-2 1/2 established at high altitude in the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City.

Lewis said that he and his coach, Tom Tellez, had planned for him to take three jumps. His third jump was a foul effort when he ran through the pit.

But Myricks, the last long jumper to beat Lewis, was pleased that he forced Lewis to try to beat him.

“I didn’t want to see him take one jump and sit down,” Myricks said. “I think the days of taking one jump and sitting out the rest of the competition are probably over.”

Myricks added that he was excited about his performance as he he established a personal best of 28-3 3/4 in second place. He had two previous 28-foot plus jumps in his career.

As for Conley, he seems destined to be denied victory when he gets off his longest jumps. Last year, at the national championship meet, Conley had a windaided jump of 28-3 3/4, only to finish second to Lewis at 28-5 1/2.

When someone asked Conley how it felt to finish third while jumping in the 28-foot range, he smiled and said:

‘I just came into the competition to make the team. I’ve long jumped only once the whole year. But once you get out there you get hung up in the comeptition and you want to win.”

Both Myricks and Conley wondered why Lewis is always jumping last in the order.

“It really surprised me because it’s supposedly a random draw and it’s surprising how he jumps last,” Myricks said. “I don’t think either one of us has jumped behind him in the past five or six years.”

A veteran at 31, Myricks said he expects to jump even farther this year.

Asked to comment on the recent 29-1 jump by the Soviet Union’s Robert Emmiyan, Myricks said:

“I’ve talked to some people who’ve seen it on film and they said it was the shortest 29 footer they’ve ever seen. I’m skeptical. He’ll make me a believer if he does it in Rome. If he does it then, he won’t be by himself. We have three serious jumpers we’re sending there.”

Myricks is apparently weary of answering questions about finishing second to Lewis.

“The only thing I care about is jumping far,” he said. “If I have to jump far to beat him on some occasion, fine. But I don’t base everything on beating Carl. I’m just really excited that I jumped well.”

Myricks said that he and Conley are friendly during a competition but that Lewis keeps to himself.

“Mike and I talk quite a bit,” Myricks said. “Carl would congratulate you when you got off a good mark. But other than that he kept pretty much to himself. I have nothing against him, that’s his nature.

“The rest of us are competitive but we’re friends. We don’t get off in a corner and stay away from each other.”

As for Conley, he’s philosophical about losing with 28-foot plus jumps.

“I hope to end it one day,” he said. “Right now maybe 28 feet is the best I can do. I just thank the Lord I can bring out my best when I need it. Maybe one day when 29 feet is my best, I can jump 29 feet all the time.”

But there was satisfaction that Lewis was challenged for a change.

“I like to see other people challenge him,” Myricks said. “ It would have made for a dead event if he put out a big one and nobody challenged him. We have to give people their money’s worth.”

Lewis certainly did that.

After winning the long jump, he came back in the 200. There was a false start after the automatic timing mechanism malfunctioned.

Then, Lewis ran a strong curve, was slightly out in front of the pack coming into the straightaway, held off a challenge from Heard and went on to win.

Wallace Spearmon was second in 20.33 and Calvin Smith, the 1983 world 200 champion, was third in 20.34.

UCLA’s Henry Thomas was seventh in 20.49. Thomas suffered a groin injury in earler semifinal race and may not be able to compete in the 100 today.

“I’ve learned to accelerate all the way through the turn,” Lewis said. “I was in the middle of the pack, but I came out of the turn in front. I didn’t run the final as well as I did the earlier heats and the false start might have had something to do with it.”

As usual, though, he ran well enough to win. That’s what he came here to do and that’s what he’s doing.