Michael
Johnson targets own 400m Record
Bert Rosenthal (AP)
3 March 2000 - Atlanta, Georgia USA - As Michael Johnson crossed the finish line of the 200 meters at the 1996 Olympics, his golden shoes glistening in the darkness, he had run an astonishing 19.32 seconds.
Johnson had cut a remarkable .34 seconds off his world record and completed an unprecedented 200-400 Olympic double. He was completely satisfied.
As he crossed the finish line of the 400 meters at the 1999 World Championships in Seville, Spain, again wearing his golden shoes, he had run another golden race, breaking the world 400 record at 43.18. The time was .11 seconds under the previous record, but he was not totally satisfied.
"I would like to run 42 for the 400," Johnson said Friday. "I think I'm capable of running that. I don't think much about records in the 200 anymore. I don't think I broke the 400 by enough. I think I can do better."
Johnson will get his first opportunity at the 400 record shortly when he competes in a race in Cape Town, South Africa. But it's too early in the season to expect a record, and the competition will not be severe.
The race will be the culmination of a three-race tour of South Africa. His first two appearances will be in 200s at Pietersburg and Johannesburg.
Johnson has been training toward another Olympic double since November, and his South African races "are a good way to break up the monotony," he said.
He realizes there will be tremendous pressure to repeat that sprint sweep, but he is confident he can be the first male or female to win both races at the Olympics twice.
"I feel great about my chances of winning both again," he said. "I've been training very hard, the training's been going well and I'm healthy. But there's a lot of pressure, even if you're doing it for the first time. The advantage I'll have is that I've done it before."
He also is aware that if he doesn't win both gold medals, his reverential image could be affected.
"Being in the sport this long, I don't let others expectations affect me," he said. "I'm used to winning races, but I know if I win by only .02 seconds, they'll say, 'Michael is dead.' If I don't win the 200 and 400 at Sydney, it (the adulation) won't be the same as before. They come back, though, as soon as I break a world record."
Before going to Sydney, Australia, for the Olympics, Johnson will have to make the U.S. team at the Olympic trials in Sacramento, Calif., in July. There, he will have to run only three races each in the 200 and 400 as opposed to four apiece at the games.
"The trials will be a lot easier," Johnson said.
As Johnson has done for the past four years, he has skipped the indoor season, including the USA Championships at the Georgia Dome this weekend.
"I don't like running indoors," said Johnson, 32, who set the world indoor 400 record of 44.63 at the 1995 championships. "I've had to make adjustments as I've gotten older. Running indoors took time away from my training (for outdoors). Also, when you don't run indoors, you can keep working on things. You don't have to interrupt your training. And it wasn't financially worth it."
Johnson dismissed the challenge of Maurice Greene, the world record-holder at 100 meters, who has lobbied for a match race at 200 meters.
"Maurice Greene will get his opportunity if he makes the Olympic team," Johnson said. "I can't single out one person who might be a challenger when he has to beat out a lot of other challengers."
Johnson was in Atlanta to launch a program to help develop the next generation of U.S. Olympic hopefuls through a $300,000 contribution from Samsung Telecommunications America to the Olympic Community Development Program. The money is being distributed to programs in Atlanta, Minneapolis, Salt Lake City and San Antonio.