TV REVIEW : Barcelona Olympics Revisited

If the seemingly endless days of TV coverage of the 1992 Summer Olympics weren’t quite enough for you, tune in Sunday to “Barcelona ‘92: 16 Days of Glory,” airing at 9 p.m. on the Disney Channel.

Writer-director-producer Bud Greenspan--who’s been on the Olympic beat for more than 40 years--has turned in a seemingly endless tribute (132.02 minutes long) but more or less makes it work by focusing on a core group of athletes who, in the words of the press handout, “left a lasting impression on the world stage.” A note of caution: Some were more lasting than others.

Greenspan is shameless about tugging at heartstrings to the point of diluting the legitimacy and poignancy of the athletes’ tales: the cyclist who wins Estonia’s first medal as an independent nation in 60 years, the runner who forced himself to finish a heat despite his pulled hamstring, the rower who came back from severe injury just two months before the Games, the over-the-hill swimmer who takes his first gold during his comeback.

The stories are set up well and give the needed historical, political or sociological background information as well as offer intriguing glimpses into the competitor’s psyche. Also of some interest are the interviews with friends, family and coaches, some of which manage to get beyond the sports clichespeak we are all afflicted with thanks to having Curt Gowdy imprinted on our brains at an early age.

Another plus: There is no mention of the basketball Dream Team.