It’s a Nice Start for Sprinters

Will they or won’t they?

Kept apart by injuries, illnesses and acts of nature, sprinters Maurice Greene and Tim Montgomery haven’t competed against each other since they ran the 100-meter dash at the 2002 U.S. outdoor championships, which Greene won by a hundredth of a second.

They have come close to creating what would be a dream rematch between Greene, the Sydney 100-meter gold medalist, three-time world champion and former world-record holder, and Montgomery, who broke Greene’s world record with a time of 9.78 seconds at the Grand Prix Final in Paris on Sept. 14, 2002.

Both were supposed to run the 100 at the Athletissima meet in Lausanne, Switzerland, in July. But the early birth of Montgomery’s son with five-time Sydney medalist Marion Jones sent Montgomery winging home to North Carolina to be with Jones and the son they have nicknamed Monty.

However, Greene and Montgomery finally might meet again Sunday at the Mt. San Antonio College Relays in Walnut, igniting dreams of world records and an Olympic showdown in Athens.

Then again, they might be in the same stadium Sunday -- but in different races.

Greene, who will make his outdoor debut in the 100 after warming up in the 400-meter relay at the Texas Relays and the Stanford Invitational, is entered in the invitational field Sunday with standouts Justin Gatlin, J.J. Johnson and Kaaron Conwright. His race is scheduled to go off at 4:05 p.m.

As of Thursday, Montgomery was entered in a section of the university/open race, scheduled to go off at 3:55 p.m., with a group that includes former junior college standout Tyson Gay of Arkansas and Sayon Cooper of Abilene Christian and Liberia.

Jones, who had originally planned to run the 400 and enter the long jump, switched to the 200 and was not entered in the long jump Thursday.

However, entries often change at the last minute, meaning a race between Greene and Montgomery could happen.

On one level, Greene seems intrigued by the possibility of letting their legs and hearts settle what their words have turned into a strong dislike. On another level, he’s intent on his own priorities, which include not aggravating the troublesome right hamstring that forced him to withdraw from the finals of the 60-meter dash at the U.S. indoor championships in February.

“I won’t find out who I’m running against until I’m at the starting line,” Greene said this week. “He can come and run. It’ll be a lot of fun.

“I’m not sure he wants to do that, and I’m focusing just on myself, anyway.”

Greene, who will be 30 in July, has been the dominant sprinter of his era, even though he’s ranked 16th in the world by the International Assn. of Athletics Federations and didn’t win a U.S. or world title last year. He won only one 100-meter race, at the inaugural Home Depot Invitational in Carson, in a time of 9.94 seconds. It turned out to be the second-fastest 100 time of the year, beaten only by a 9.93 by Australia’s Patrick Johnson. He also won the 200 at Mt. SAC in 20.16 seconds.

Greene didn’t run the 100 at the U.S. championships because he had a bye to the world championships as the defending champion, and he skipped the 200 final because of a sore knee. He finished eighth in his semifinal at the world championships in Paris and didn’t advance to the final. Montgomery, running in different qualifying heats, reached the final and finished fifth.

In 2002, beset by the deaths of several people close to him, Greene had slipped from the No. 1 ranking in the world to No. 3. One of his most significant victories was in the U.S. championships, where he defeated Montgomery in a wind-aided 9.88 seconds.

“You look at everything, and there were some good things that happened and some bad things that happened,” Greene said. “You just have to learn and build on that.

“The last two years, I have not had my best seasons, because of injuries and other things. But I’m 100% healthy. I have no nagging injuries, no knick-knack injuries and I’m feeling great.

“This is an important year and I’m looking forward to it. Mt. SAC is a good meet, a good warmup, a chance to see where you are and where you need to go before you start getting into races.”

Montgomery, 29, has had a tumultuous few years, starting with his world record and continuing through fatherhood, two coaching switches -- from Trevor Graham to the controversial Charlie Francis and then to Dan Pfaff -- and his grand jury testimony in November regarding his connections to BALCO, a Northern California company that makes nutritional supplements.

BALCO’s founder, Victor Conte, has been accused of distributing performance-enhancing drugs to baseball and football players and Olympic athletes. Montgomery and Jones have said they knew Conte slightly but have denied taking illegal drugs. Neither has tested positive for illegal substances.

Montgomery didn’t approach his world-record time last season. Bothered intermittently by Achilles’ tendinitis, he finished second to Bernard Williams at the U.S. outdoor championships in 10.15 seconds. His season-best time was 10.04 seconds, which he ran several times. He’s ranked 11th in the world.

One of Montgomery’s representatives said he was not available for comment Thursday.

Greene’s outdoor schedule will take him to Martinique for a 200-meter race as well as Osaka and Carson to defend his title at the Home Depot Invitational on May 22. He will limit himself to the 100 at the U.S. Olympic trials in July but said he’s not consumed with reclaiming the title of the world’s fastest man.

“The world record will come back home when it wants to,” he said.

And if bringing it “back home” involves defeating Montgomery, so much the better.

“I say, ‘Bring him on,’ ” Greene said. “I say we do it. I would like it, but it’s up to him.

“I don’t run from anyone. I take on all challenges.’

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The Facts

Mt. San Antonio College Relays

at Walnut

* Today: 4-11 p.m., University/Open events, invitational distance carnival, high school invitational

* Saturday: High school invitational 7:45 a.m.-6 p.m., middle distance carnival 6-10 p.m.

* Sunday: Munchkin kids’ race 9-9:40 a.m., University/Open and invitational events 9:50 a.m.-6 p.m.