Brenner to Miss Olympics Again After Tearing Tendon

John Brenner said he had been in the best shape of his career. His coach, Art Venegas, said that Brenner had been ready to break the world shotput record.

Moreover, the one-time UCLA track and field star had the incentive in an Olympic year to throw farther than he had ever thrown before.

“Everything was together, my workouts, a specific diet. Everything was going perfectly,” Brenner said.

Yes, his regimen was going well until last Wednesday, when Brenner suffered an injury while participating in a routine workout in the UCLA weight room.

He was doing a bounding drill, jumping from the floor onto boxes ranging in height up to 54 inches, when he tore the patella tendon under the left kneecap. He underwent surgery Thursday and the prognosis is good for a complete recovery after rehabilitation. So, it is seemingly not a career-ending injury.

Even so, Brenner, the U.S. record-holder in the shotput at 73-feet 10 3/4-inches and bronze medalist in the World Championships last summer at Rome, will not compete for the rest of the year.

“It’s frustrating because I was in the best shape I’ve ever been in and I wanted to prove it,” said Brenner Monday from his room at the UCLA Medical Center. “I was throwing 72 and 73 feet in practice and I think I was ready to go 74, or 75 feet in a meet.”

Venegas was even more optimistic, saying: “John was in super condition and he was ready to bring the world record back to the United States. He was hoping to get it in the Olympic trials (July 15-23 at Indianapolis).”

East Germany’s Ulf Timmermann improved the world record to 75-8 last month and Venegas said that Brenner was capable of throwing from 74 feet to 76-6.

Brenner’s injury is not only a disappointment to him, but it also reduces the United States’ prospects of winning an Olympic medal in the shotput at Seoul next September.

Randy Barnes had an auspicious mark of 72-6 1/2 in April at the Mt. San Antonio Relays. He, however, is reportedly bothered by a lingering hand injury. Brenner said that he has heard that Augie Wolf, a 1984 Olympic competitor in the shotput, has a shoulder injury.

If so, U.S. shotput ranks are dwindling. Dave Laut, Greg Trafalis and Ron Backes have marks in the 68-foot range, which is far from Olympic medal contention.

Curiously, Laut, who once was a UCLA star and a 1984 Olympic bronze medalist, suffered a similar injury in 1986. But Laut tore patella tendons in both knees while pulling fire hoses in his training as an aspiring firefighter.

Brenner, who lives in Fullerton, said that Laut called him in his hospital room to offer encouragement.

“I want to come back as soon as possible and once I get back to 100%, I’ll decide then,” Brenner, 27, said of his future as a shotputter. “Waiting for a gold medal for four years is a long time to wait.”

Brenner knows all about waiting. In 1984, he finished fourth in the U.S. Olympic trials, barely missing making the team.