Four medals in track/field, but none for injured Bubka (08/11/96)

Four medals in track/field, but none for injured Bubka

by Roman Woronowycz

ATLANTA - Ukraine took home four medals in Olympic track and field during 10 days of competition here - a successful effort. Only Sergey Bubka's withdrawal from the pole vault event took some of the luster off of the outcome.

Bubka, considered by most the greatest pole-vaulter ever, withdrew from Olympic competition just before the pole vault competition was to begin on July 31 due to an Achilles' tendon problem. He is the only person to clear 20 feet and holds both the indoor and outdoor world records. He vaulted the best in the world this year when he cleared 19 feet 9 inches on this same track in May and was considered the Olympic gold medal favorite.

After he withdrew he said he had been taking cortisone shots for the inflammation, and that had worked until now. He said that during his warm-ups before the qualification round he had felt the pain return. "It was painful jogging," said Bubka. "There was no chance for me. Normally I feel I am a good fighter, but this was a really dangerous situation. This is very painful in the local place and in the heart."

Valentyn Oganovsky, a representative of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, said Bubka had been having problems with his heel for awhile. "It became inflamed last April and has been bothering him on and off since then," he explained. Mr. Oganovsky said the Achilles' tendon had acted up again and this time Bubka opted to have it checked out, at which time, he said, doctors informed Bubka that the tendon needed three to four months of complete rest.

Bubka's unexpected withdrawal has caused some controversy and wild speculation. Fencer Serhiy Holubytsky said that evening at a party given for the Ukrainian athletes that he had heard Bubka had been caught in a battle between Donetske and Dnipropetrovske gangsters and it had been suggested that he not compete.

The next day a member of the Ukrainian press said that Bubka withdrew because he realized he could not pass a doping test. Thus far both rumors remain unsubstantiated.

What is known is that this is the second time Bubka has had major problems in the Olympics. In Barcelona, he was bothered by the swirling wind during preliminaries and failed to qualify. The 32-year-old, who has homes in Donetske and Monaco, won the gold in 1988 in Seoul.

In Bubka's absence, Jean Galfiore of France won the gold with a pole vault of 5.92 meters, followed by Igor Trandenkov of Russia. Okkert Brits of South Africa, another favorite, failed to qualify.

What was for Bubka a sad and frustrating day was for Inessa Kravets the day of her life. She won the only gold for Ukraine in track and field on July 31 with a come-from-behind win against primary rival, Russian Inna Laskovskaya.

After the qualifying round Kravets was only fourth, behind Laskovskaya, Bulgarian Iva Prandzheva and fellow Ukrainian Olena Hovorova. The world record holder would not be stopped in the finals, however, posting a 15.33 in her third attempt, which bested Laskovskaya by .35 meters. The jump is a new American record and was only .17 short of the world record Kravets set in August 1995 in Gothenburg, Sweden, which brought her to world attention.

She said that she thought of Gothenburg on her final attempt. "It inspired me a lot because I did it in one jump in Gothenburg," explained Kravets.

Until last week, Laskovskaya had been undefeated this year and had claim to the longest jump of the year.

Hovorova, Kravets' teammate, failed to continue her first-round effort, in which she had placed third, stepping over the board on her first jump and then getting no better than a 14.09 in her other two, which dropped her to 10th. Another Ukrainian, Olena Khlusovych, finished 12th.

After her triple jump victory Kravets withdrew from the long jump, in which she was a favorite, citing the short one-day interval between the triple jump and the long jump. "The triple jump is very difficult on your legs and feet - there is not enough time to recuperate," she said.

Ukraine's other track and field medalists are Inha Babakova, who took third in the high jump when she cleared the bar at 2.01 meters behind Stefka Kostadinova of Bulgaria and Niki Bagogianni of Greece; shotputter Oleksander Bahach; and hammer thrower Oleksiy Krykun, both bronze medalists (see last week's story).

| Home Page |