Cuban Gold Leaves U.S. a Little Red-Faced : Overview: Of host country’s dominance, USOC President Helmick says, ‘We’re damned if we do and damned if we don’t.’

Here is the predicament as described by U.S. Olympic Committee President Robert Helmick: Even if the United States finishes first in the medal count, it cannot win at the Pan American Games.

“We’re damned if we do and damned if we don’t,” he said Sunday during a briefing for reporters from several U.S. newspapers. “If we bring all of our best athletes, we are criticized for beating up on Latin America. If we don’t, we’re criticized for not winning more medals.”

Helmick, a lawyer from Des Moines, Iowa, felt compelled to address the issue because it has never been raised before at the Pan American Games. Since the quadrennial, multisport competition for 39 North, South and Central American and Caribbean nations began in 1951, the United States has invariably dominated.

The XI Pan American Games, however, represent a new challenge. Since the early ‘60s, Cuba has emerged as the region’s second-most successful sporting nation, although a distant one. But this year, aided by the home-island advantage, the Cubans have won almost as many gold medals as all of the other countries combined.

Through Saturday, the United States led in total medals, but Cuba had won 28 more gold medals.

One person who spotted that trend developing even during the first afternoon of competition nine days ago was USOC Vice President George Steinbrenner, who, true to his nature, was outspoken.

“We’ve got to get our best athletes in the Pan American Games, and we’re going to see what we can do about it,” he said.

The assumption might have been that he was speaking on behalf of the USOC, but, upon further inquiry, it became apparent that he was speaking only for himself.

Evie Dennis, the superintendent of Denver schools who is serving as the head of the U.S. delegation here and in Santiago de Cuba, joked with him. “You can’t fire me,” she said. “I’m a volunteer.”

She also jabbed at him because some of the athletes from the Florida Clippers track club that he sponsors, most notably hurdler Tony Dees, did not compete here. Steinbrenner contends that Dees made a commitment to appear and has threatened to sue him for breach of contract.

Filing suit against an athlete is not exactly the image that the USOC would like to present of its officers to the public. When he learned of the threat, Helmick, according to more than one person close to him, was furious.

Asked about that Sunday, Helmick said, “No comment.”

Pause.

“No, I think I will comment on that.”

Pause.

“No, no comment.”

Helmick did say that he had spoken with all of the officers, including Steinbrenner, before the competition started and that it seemed to be understood by all that some sports federations send their best athletes to the Pan American Games and others do not.

“The Pan American Games are more important to Latin America than they are to us,” he said. “American athletes who are here are just as enthusiastic as Latin athletes . . . but the Pan American Games are not the competition by which the level of our sports system should be judged.”

Helmick said that the Pan American Games are as much a diplomatic mission as an athletic one for the USOC. “In 1986, we discussed if we should find a convenient way to get out of the Games,” he said. “We decided that we should compete, although the level of participation should be left up to each sport depending on its needs. But we felt that it was important to be represented in order to keep contact with our Latin American neighbors.”

That decision, he said, has paid off on numerous occasions, including Latin America’s support for Atlanta during last year’s vote by the International Olympic Committee to determine a site for the 1996 Summer Olympics.

Cuba’s agenda here clearly is to win medals, which it has achieved. But Helmick noted that the cost has been high because, while most citizens here wait in long lines during an economic crisis for food and clothing, even Cuban sports officials acknowledge that the athletes have not had to do without.

“The Cubans are very good in a number of sports, and we applaud their effort and the sacrifices (the people) have made so that the athletes can do well,” Helmick said. “The Cuban athletes are out-of-their-minds good.”