Resilient
O'Brien strives for comeback
AFP
6 February 2001 – New York - Former decathlon world record holder Dan O'Brien plans a comeback at age 34 with a return set for June's United States outdoor athletics championships.
"I definitely think I still have a few good years left in me," O'Brien said. "I'm very confident I have the skills and ability to come back and fully intend to compete at a high level at the US nationals."
O'Brien will skip the indoor season and either qualify for August's World Championships at the US meet or settle for a spot at the Goodwill Games in Brisbane, Australia.
"The reason why I'm so optimistic is that after seeing the level of competition, I feel I can do great things and compete with those guys," O'Brien said.
O'Brien became the first American since Bruce Jenner in 1976 to break the world record in the decathlon in 1992 with a score of 8,891 points before Czech Tomas Dvorak boosted the mark to 8,994 in 1999.
O'Brien declared himself nearly recovered from nagging feet injuries that forced him to pull out of the US Olympic Trials last year.
"My feet are almost recovered," O'Brien said. "But I do still have a little bit of pain when I jump and run in spikes. I shouldn't worry about it too much. It will soon go away."
O'Brien was the world champion in 1993, 1993 and 1995 but considered quitting after his failure last year.
"I was strongly considering retiring," he said. "All my training was perfect. I was at 90 to 95 percent going into the US nationals when the injury hit me. It was an absolute shock."
O'Brien said he found a burning desire to prove he could still compete with the elite athletes and vows to become the first decathlete to break the 9000-point mark.
"The motivation is there," O'Brien said. "I still have a lot of pride in me to prove I can go out there, score 9,000 points and win a gold medal."
O'Brien, who overcame a 1994 drinking problem, dubbed the pole vault the key to his success.
"I've made progress in that field," O'Brien said. "If I do a good job at the vault, I should be OK."
