Olympic Track and Field Trials Notes : Petranoff Plays a Mind Game and Wins a Berth In the Javelin

U.S. track and field officials announced Friday morning that Tom Petranoff, a former world record-holder, had scratched from the Olympic trials in the javelin competition.

But when qualifying began Saturday morning, Petranoff was on the field.

After advancing to today’s final with a throw of 255 feet 1 inch, the best of the day, Petranoff, who lives in Oceanside, explained that officials allowed him to enter Friday afternoon after he paid a $100 late fee.

“I didn’t read the fine print on the entry form,” he said. “I told them I can’t read. I’m just a dumb athlete.”

But not too dumb.

Petranoff said he actually entered late on purpose to psych out his competitors.

“All those rumors were flying around that I was hurt, that I was injured, that I was out of shape,” he said. “Actually, I’ve been here for a week, working out. The late entry was my game plan.

“It was worth $100 to put a frontal lobotomy on those guys when they saw me on the field.”

Petranoff, 30, admitted he has not thrown well this year but said he now feels better than ever.

“I like the situation,” he said. “In 1984, they handed me the gold medal on a silver platter, and I finished 10th. This year, I’m the old man, washed up. Everyone is writing that I can’t win. Keep writing that I can’t win.”

While Jackie Joyner-Kersee appeared to have a lock on the world heptathlon record after her performance in the first four events Friday, most of the drama Saturday centered on whether eight-time national champion Jane Frederick, 33, could hold off USC’s Wendy Brown, 22, for third place and a berth on the Olympic team.

It came down to the last of the seven events Saturday with Brown holding a 14-point lead over Frederick.

Frederick, who lives in Santa Barbara, needed to beat Brown by about one second in the 800 meters to move into third place.

Although Brown considers the 800 her worst event, she stayed on Frederick’s heels through much of the race and passed her in the final stretch. Brown ran 2:28.80 to finish with 6,079 points, while Frederick’s 2:30.12 gave her 6,048 points.

“Thank God I didn’t have to run any faster than I did,” Brown said.

There was controversy in the 20-kilometer race walk when Paul Schwartzberg was disqualified after receiving three red cards for violations, two for running (lifting) and one for not locking his knees (creeping).

Third place and a berth on the Olympic team were taken away from him and given to Carl Schueler, who was the fourth man to cross the finish line. But since Schueler already had qualified for the Olympic team by winning the 50-kilometer trials in April, he forfeited his place in the 20-kilometer event to Jim Heiring.

Schwartzberg called the violations against him “bogus.”

In one of the most interesting qualifying races, Edwin Moses beat Danny Harris in the semifinals of the 400-meter intermediate hurdles. Moses ran 48.34 seconds to Harris’ 48.74. The final is scheduled for today.

Harris broke Moses’ nine-year, nine-month, nine-day winning streak last year.

Jim Howard, who has a reputation for falling apart in important meets, redeemed himself by finishing first in the high jump competition, while Hollis Conway finished second and Brian Stanton third. Doug Nordquist of La Habra was fourth.