The Games: a Scorecard

The 1996 Summer Olympics will be remembered for the athletes, the greatest number ever; for the mind-numbing heat, and, sadly and probably most vividly, for the pipe bomb explosion in Atlanta’s Centennial Park. Seventeen days of drama, triumph, controversy and sometimes tedium.

When Sydney welcomes the world to its Olympics four years from now, organizers should benefit from the unfortunate lessons of Atlanta regarding security, a pokey and inaccurate results computer system, transportation hassles and, perhaps the most egregious problem, over-commercialization ranging from the tacky souvenir stands to the exclusive label prominence of “official” sponsors.

To be fair, however, the challenges were monumental. Atlanta depended primarily on private support rather than government subsidy to finance the $1.7-billion sports festival. Juan Antonio Samaranch, president of the International Olympic Committee, wants future hosts to depend more on government. He was less than diplomatic in criticizing Atlanta at a press conference there, then flatly damned the organizers in an interview with German media.

Whatever the problems in Atlanta, Samaranch was out of line. The city and its Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games deserve credit for hosting 10,600 athletes from 197 countries, making this the largest and most diverse Olympic competition.

NBC too can learn from these Olympics. Its coverage was jingoistic and narrow in terms of events. In Sydney, the network promises, use of cable channels will provide “wall-to-wall” coverage, which is what an event of this magnitude deserves.

Atlanta 1996 might be acclaimed the Year of the Women Athletes. Their heroics sent an encouraging message to girls with high hopes: There is absolutely nothing wrong with some muscle and a lot of athletic ability.

On the vault, U.S. gymnast Kerri Strug personified courage; she played hurt and put her team ahead of her individual aspirations. In the pool, Ireland’s Michelle Smith, at 26 an ancient mariner in international swimming competitions, racked up three gold medals. Colorado’s Amy Van Dyken became the first American woman to win four gold medals in a single Olympics. On the track, France’s Marie-Jose Perec, who trains in Westwood, prevailed in the 200- and 400-meter races. Later Michael Johnson won gold medals in the 400 and 200, shattering his own world record in the 200, set in the U.S. Olympic trials. On the basketball court, American women showed up the desultory Dream Team (both won gold), and U.S. women also won gold in soccer and softball.

Southern California was well-represented among the gold medalists, ranging from archer Justin Huish of Simi Valley to trapshooter Josh Lakatos of Pasadena. Again women were prominent in gold: basketball center Lisa Leslie, who played for USC; home run hitter Dr. Dot Richardson of County-USC Hospital; tennis star Lindsay Davenport of Newport Beach; trapshooter Kim Rhode of El Monte, and top-rank runners Gail Devers of Mission Hills and Inger Miller, a former Pasadena Rose Parade princess.

The centennial Summer Games also provided some last hurrahs. World champions Janet Evans, Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Carl Lewis are not likely to answer the call at Sydney. The millennium will welcome a new generation of athletes.