TRACK : Former Football Player Has World at His Feet

Notions of competing in the World Championships were never on Jeff Williams’ mind as a senior at Washington High in 1982. Neither was track.

But Williams, a converted football player who did not start running track until his sophomore year in college, is headed to Sweden for the World Championships after placing third in the 200 meters in the USA/Mobil Outdoor championships at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento on June 18.

Williams, 30, ran a wind-aided 20.19 seconds to earn the final spot on the U.S. team. Michael Johnson won in 19.83, the world’s fastest time this year under all conditions. Kevin Little was second in 20.16 in the race, which also included 1992 Olympic champion Mike Marsh. The top three earned berths for the World Championships in Gothenburg in August.

“Except for Michael Johnson, I’ve traded wins with the others,” said Williams, who was ranked fifth in the world in the 200 in 1994. “It’s not a matter of who’s done this or done that. It all comes down to the final. Making the team was the first step. I’m one of the three. It’s a relief it’s over.”

Williams’ showing in the 200 also avenged a bad start in the 100-meter final, where he finished eighth in 10.40 after equaling his personal best of 10.19 in the semifinals.

“It was a mental breakdown, but it didn’t mean I couldn’t run a good 200,” Williams said.

Williams was making tackles as a defensive back on the football field before he started running track at age 20 at Prairie View A&M; in 1985. He ran a wind-aided 20.86 in 1986, qualifying for the NCAA championships.

A fixture on the European track circuit for the past eight years, Williams was self-coached until 1982 when he came under the tutelage of USC Coach Barbara Edmonson, the 1968 silver medalist in the women’s 100 meters and former co-world-record-holder.

“I knew I was fast, but I didn’t take track seriously,” Williams said. “Since working with Barbara, it’s been a change of attitude. How can you not be motivated with what she’s accomplished? It’s taken me to a whole new level.”

The five-day competition at Sacramento City College was also a breakthrough meet for Marsha Guialdo. The NCAA Division II 100-meter low hurdles champion at Cal State L.A. in 1983 placed second in 12.98 behind American record-holder Gail Devers (12.77).

For Michael Granville, the meet was a learning experience. The Bell Gardens High junior finished fifth in his semifinal heat in 1:49.92, almost two seconds off his best of 1:47.96, and did not advance to the final.

Granville, the lone high school runner in the 800, advanced to the semifinals after preliminary heats the previous day were canceled shortly before race time because of late scratches.

“It was like teasing you, pretending to give you something and then taking it away,” Granville said about the delay. “I was ready to run, but I should have saved that anger and adrenaline the next day to be more tenacious and attack the 800. It was weird. I should have been up there.”