Lewis and Johnson Meet but Don’t Speak

World-class sprinters Ben Johnson and Carl Lewis had their first showdown since the Seoul Olympics Thursday, with Lewis upstaging his rival in an unlikely setting--a Capitol Hill news conference.

Johnson, the Canadian runner stripped of the 100-meter gold medal in last year’s Olympics after he tested positive for steroids, was in Washington supporting the introduction of legislation to impose new restrictions on performance-enhancing drugs.

Lewis, the American sprinter who was awarded the gold medal upon Johnson’s disqualification, said he was in town doing research for a soon-to-be-completed autobiography and dropped in on the gathering to lend his support.

But the American stole the show when California Rep. Mel Levine (D-Los Angeles) was summoned to a vote on the House floor and had Johnson whisked from the room until he could return. The crowd then turned to Lewis, who sat through the event virtually unnoticed until Johnson’s departure.

“I don’t understand why Ben Johnson is here,” said Lewis, a noted champion of stricter regulations on steroids, in response to a question. “But if he wants to speak out against drugs, that’s fine. . . . There’s no question my support is behind this 100%.”

When Johnson and Levine returned five minutes later, they reclaimed the audience’s attention. Johnson, 27, said that he started taking the drugs when he was 19 because he believed he would need them to compete at a world-class level.

“But I’m here to point out that it’s wrong to take (steroids),” said the Jamaican-born athlete. “Anybody who gets caught taking it is going to be punished. I paid my price and I’m here to come forward and to say that I won’t make the same mistake again.”

Asked later about the stricter punishments proposed by the measure, Johnson said that they would not have deterred him from using steroids, synthetic hormones that promote muscle bulk and increased strength and speed.

Despite recent rumors about a Johnson-Lewis match race and a longstanding media feud that has intensified in the year since the Seoul Olympics, the track stars never exchanged words--only momentary glances.

The steroid legislation, introduced by Levine and co-sponsored by Reps. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles) and Benjamin J. Gilman (R-N.Y.), would place a list of steroids on Schedule II of the Controlled Substances Act along with street drugs such as cocaine.

Schedule II drugs are subject to the most stringent governmental controls imposed on drugs with recognized medical uses.

The legislation provides for a maximum 20-year prison term for illegal distribution of steroids, along with a maximum of one year for possession.

“These are stiff sentences,” Levine said. “But they are clearly justified by the dangers that these drugs pose to the health of the young people in this country.”

Gary Wadler, co-author of “Drugs and the Athlete” and the chief physician of the U.S. Open tennis championships, said that steroid use can trigger several serious side effects, such as heart and liver damage, sterility, violent mood shifts and hair loss.

Several groups already have voiced support for the measure, including the U.S. Olympic Committee, the National Football League, the National Federation of State High School Assns. and the International Federation of Bodybuilders.