Carl Lewis Positively Doesn’t Miss Beat, Even If He’s Out of Rhythm

Meet Carl Lewis. The new Lewis. The Lewis who loses. The Lewis who is not necessarily the fastest kid on the blocks anymore. The Lewis who chases, but cannot seem to catch, Ben Johnson’s shadow. The Lewis who has lived most of his life in the fast lane, only to suddenly discover that there is an even faster lane.

He is the Jesse Owens of our time, but time is marching on. Lewis got smoked Sunday in the 100-meter dash at the Mt. San Antonio College Relays in Walnut. Four guys, none of whom were Johnson, outran him. He had a good excuse--his starting block slipped--but even so, Lewis did not come beep-beeping from behind like a roadrunner. His chariot was not exactly on fire.

So, are these bad times in the life and clockings of Carl Lewis? No way, says Carl. These are good times. So he lost at the World Championships in Rome. No sweat. So he got shelled at Walnut. No problem. So the fastest human of the last Olympics won’t even be the favorite in the 100 at the next Olympics. No big deal, says Carl. He’s had a nice run. Nothing, except maybe “I Love Lucy,” runs forever.

“I’m not going to pressure myself to try to do anything,” Lewis said after Sunday’s semi-setback. “Emotionally and physically, I’ve had a great life up to now. I’ve made plenty of money. I’ve done things I set out to do. So, if nothing happens the rest of my life, I sure couldn’t be happier.”

Actually, this losing stuff should prove useful to Carl Lewis. It should inspire him to try harder. It should make him more aware than ever before that nothing comes easy. Most of all, it should change his image. Mr. Unbeatable is beatable. Superman has become Underdog. The countrymen of Carl Lewis will pull harder for their hero if he appeals to them as a vulnerable hero. Super-people attract awe, not sentiment. Carl Lewis could use a little sentiment on his side for a change.

He still feels he suffers from no serious image damage. “In ‘84, everything that was possibly negative was said by other athletes that I compete against,” Lewis said Sunday, surrounded during an interview at trackside by a mob of young admirers. “You know that’s where it all started. But, when people stepped back and really looked at me, instead of listening to what other athletes said, they saw a different person.”

“Tell it, Carl!” one of the eavesdroppers said.

Lewis went on. “You have people who have been bitter for so long, based on our competition experiences. I’ve won so many long jump competitions, so many races, that sometimes people become bitter. It’s up to the media to understand that, and then report what’s fair. I think if people got an overall picture, they’d have gotten to understand me a lot better, instead of trying to create an image out of what people who don’t care for me say.”

“Damn straight, man!” the same guy said.

Lewis gave him a look.

“My new manager,” he said.

Lewis still feeds off good vibrations. He still believes in positive thinking, still uses the word positive in his public speaking, as often as is positively possible. He knows that some people see him as part speed, part greed. He also knows that despite all the people who say naughty things behind his back, there are more people who say nice things to his face.

“I think the public looks at me, and they see what they want to see,” Lewis said. “Basically, people have always been very nice to me, always very positive. I don’t worry about it, because life has to go on. You have to do what’s right for you, and you have to accept the consequences. But, I would say as a ratio, everything in my life has been 95% positive, and that’s a very, very high ratio, because most people don’t have a ratio that high. They have to deal with pressures and work, while I’m able to run and relax and do the positive things I enjoy. I’m very fortunate.”

In his less positive moments, Lewis has come to believe that he ran a poor second at the World Championships last Aug. 30, when, in fact, he did nothing of the kind. He ran a good second. His 100-meter time of 9.93 seconds tied a world record that had held the top of the charts for four years. It wasn’t Carl’s fault that Ben Johnson picked the same millisecond of time and space to run a 9.83.

Lewis refers to his effort as a poor one, talks of injuries and bad starts, of not getting enough rehearsal hundreds under his belt before Rome. This might be his reflex mechanism working, since wherever he goes these days, so many of the questions put to him concern Johnson. When’s your rematch with Ben? Why’s Ben ducking you? Who’s the world’s fastest human, him or you?

“It can’t be avoided,” Lewis said. If not Paris in June, than Seoul in September. Set it up. He’ll be there.

“The last year or so, he’s been the one that’s been harder to get in a race with me, than the opposite,” was the way Lewis put it. “I’m always open to run. Last summer, after Rome, I was open to run in any race. I’ve never run away from anybody. I’ve never dodged anyone in any meets. I’ve always run against the best people.

“The main thing for me to do is to keep my own schedule, and if he wants to stay out of those races, that’s his business. He can do anything he wants to do. It really doesn’t matter whether I say he’s ducking, or he isn’t ducking. All that matters, what it comes down to, is who runs the best and wins the race when it does happen.”

Tell it, Carl.

“Talk is cheap,” Lewis said.

Damn straight, man.