Reynolds Shatters 400 Record; Lewis Defeats Johnson : Evans’ 43.86, Set in 1968, Falls in a Blistering 43.29

Pursuing one of the two longest-standing records in track and field, Butch Reynolds of Ohio chased it down Wednesday night, setting the world 400-meter record in 43.29 seconds at a Grand Prix track meet.

Reynolds, who took a year off from Ohio State to concentrate on the Seoul Olympics, Sept. 17-Oct. 2, broke Lee Evans’ mark, which stood for nearly 20 years, by more than half a second. Evans ran 43.86 at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, a record set at high altitude.

Bob Beamon set a long-jump record--29 feet 2 1/2 inches--that same day, Oct. 18, in Mexico City.

Reynolds, who turned 24 last week, had recorded the fastest 400 at sea level (43.93) at the U.S. Olympic trials last June, but he has only been a world-class runner for the past two years.

At the Zurich meet, held at Letzigrund Stadium, he was helped by a sizzling early pace set by Innocent Egbunike of Nigeria, the 1984 Olympic silver medal winner in the 400.

“Innocent got out fast,” Reynolds told reporters. “I knew it would be a world-record pace. I figured I had the record 10 meters from the tape.”

Egbunike faded on the final turn and finished sixth.

U.S. runners took the top four places as Reynolds was followed by Danny Everett (44.20), Steve Lewis (44.26) and Andrew Valmon (44.55). The United States also will be a heavy favorite to win the 1,600-meter relay at Seoul.

“We’ll bring home two golds. I’ll bring home a gold. The team will win a gold,” Reynolds said.

The crowd repeatedly chanted “Reynolds, Reynolds,” after the race. Reynolds embraced his brother, Jeff, who ran the 400 meters in an earlier race.

“It took a long time, but I did it,” Reynolds said. “They can’t take it from me. This is it. No wind-aided, no altitude. It’s done and it’s history now.”

Joe Vigil, U.S. Olympic assistant track and field coach, said Reynolds’ performance will give the U.S. team a boost heading into the Seoul Games.

“Well, I think Butch has been toying around with that world record for a couple years now,” Vigil told The Times from the U.S. training camp at UC Santa Barbara. “I think it just proves he is a world-record performer. I think they (U.S. athletes) are picking up a head of steam heading over into Seoul.”

Reynolds’ thoughts turned to Evans, who for the last several years has been coaching in Africa, most recently as a Fulbright professor of sports in Camaroon.

“I want to meet him,” Reynolds said. “I want to share this with him.”

Reynolds has been sharing his desire to break Evans’ record for the past year. He put up a homemade sign near his bedroom door at Columbus, Ohio, that read: “HARRY REYNOLDS, WORLD RECORD: 43.81.”

Pursuing world records, however, hasn’t always been Reynolds’ goal.

He failed to make his seventh-grade track and field team. He couldn’t make his college freshman track team. Before 1986, when he first came into prominence, he had to take out a loan to pay his way to Ohio State.

Reynolds, who grew up in Akron, Ohio, had an offer from West Virginia to play basketball and offers from the University of Akron and Miami (Ohio) to play football. But he had no offers to run track.

“Well, let’s just say we didn’t see enough of him,” Frank Zubovich, Ohio State track coach, said last year. “His, uh, name never really came up.”

Reynolds once said, “My story is all about having the worst luck at the worst times.”

He often injured himself during training and was unable to run well during meets. But coaches began to take better care of him, and the results have been dramatic.

Said Reynolds: “I’ve learned to listen to my body, do the right things at the right times.”

And nothing could have been more right than Wednesday night’s run into the record book.

MEN’S 400-METER WORLD-RECORD PROGRESSION

Time Name Country Year 45.8 George Rhoden Jamaica 1950 45.4 Lou Jones United States 1955 45.2 Lou Jones United States 1956 44.9 Otis Davis United States 1960 44.9 Carl Kaufmann West Germany 1960 44.9y Adolph Plummer United States 1963 44.9 Mike Larrabee United States 1964 44.5 Tommie Smith United States 1967 44.4* Vince Matthews United States 1968 44.0** Lee Evans United States 1968 44.19 Larry James United States 1968 43.86 Lee Evans United States 1968 43.29 Butch Reynolds United States 1988

y--race run in yards.

*--record never submitted.

**--record disallowed because of use of brush spikes