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GREENE'S RESUME NOW GOLDEN.


Byline: PAUL OBERJUERGE

SYDNEY, Australia - Move over, Charlie Paddock Charles ("Charlie") William Paddock (August 11, 1900 – July 21, 1943) was an American athlete and two-fold Olympic champion.

After serving in World War I as a lieutenant of field artillery, Paddock - a native of Gainesville, Texas - studied at the University of
 and Jesse Owens. Make room, Jim Hines James Ray ("Jim") Hines (born September 10, 1946) is an American athlete who held the 100 m world record for 15 years. Biography
Born in Dumas, Arkansas, Hines was raised in Oakland, California and graduated from McClymonds High School in 1964.
, Carl Lewis and Donovan Bailey Donovan Bailey (born December 16, 1967) is a Canadian former athlete.

Born in Manchester, Jamaica, Bailey emigrated from Jamaica to Canada at age 13, and played basketball before his graduation at Queen Elizabeth Park High School in Oakville, Ontario.
.

Meet the new member of your exclusive fraternity. His name is Maurice Greene Maurice Greene may refer to:
  • Maurice Greene (composer) (1696–1755), English composer and organist;
  • Maurice Greene (athlete) (b. 1974), American athlete.
.

Greene secured the final character reference on his Sprint Immortals resume' Saturday, winning the gold medal gold medal

traditional first prize. [Western Cult: Misc.]

See : Prize
 in the 100-meter dash at the Sydney Olympics.

Olympic gold Olympic Gold is the official video game of the XXV Olympic Summer Games, hosted by Barcelona, Spain in 1992. It was released for the Sega consoles, Mega Drive/Genesis and Master System, and Sega's handheld, Game Gear.  puts Greene past the screening committee. Beyond all nitpicking nit·pick·ing  
n.
Minute, trivial, unnecessary, and unjustified criticism or faultfinding.

nitpicking nit (inf) nKleinigkeitskrämerei f 
 or second-guessing.

No more calls, please, we have a winner.

World-record holder, world champion, Olympic champion. Those are bonafides that brook no discussion about Greene's place in sprint history. He is running with fast company, indeed.

You don't have to set a world record or win a world championship to make the club. Though it helps. You must, however, be an Olympic champion, thereby gaining the appellation ap·pel·la·tion  
n.
1. A name, title, or designation.

2. A protected name under which a wine may be sold, indicating that the grapes used are of a specific kind from a specific district.

3. The act of naming.
 ``world's fastest human,'' to gain admission.

Greene turned heads when he began dominating the world sprint scene in 1997. Then he set the world record. Twice. And doubled in the 100 and 200 at the 1999 world championships, and anchored the gold medal-winning sprint-relay team.

But there were observers, such as Michael Johnson Michael Johnson or Mike Johnson may refer to:
  • Michael Johnson (singer) (born 1944)
  • Mike Johnson (guitarist) (born 1952)
  • Mike Johnson (bassist) (born 1965)
  • Michael Johnson (athlete) (born 1967), multiple Olympic and World Championship winner
 and Bailey - and even Greene himself - who suggested he couldn't be considered for the varsity until he went into the greatest arena of them all, the Olympics, and left with gold around his neck.

Mission accomplished.

Greene survived a mediocre start and powered past the opposition to win the 100 gold in 9.87 seconds, the second-fastest winning time in Olympic history.

``The kind of race Maurice ran tonight, we got destroyed,'' silver- medalist Ato Boldon said.

Greene was stuck in the pack when he shifted into what sprinters call the ``drive phase'' and pulled away from Boldon (9.99) and Obadele Thompson (10.04). And the rest of the field.

Greene's .12-second margin of victory was the widest in the Olympics 100 final since Lewis won by .20 in 1984.

Greene reacted with emotion and humility. He clapped his hands on his shaved head after he crossed the line, in a sort of ``I did what?'' expression. He crouched and appeared to pray just past the finish line. He hugged Boldon. He threw his shoes in the stands. He took a lap of the stadium draped drape  
v. draped, drap·ing, drapes

v.tr.
1. To cover, dress, or hang with or as if with cloth in loose folds: draped the coffin with a flag; a robe that draped her figure.
 in an American flag.

On the victory stand, he was a bundle of nerves. ``Actually, I was trying not to cry,'' he said.

``I was just overwhelmed with excitement,'' he said. ``Ato was behind me saying, 'Don't cry, don't cry. Not yet.' It felt great being up there on the medal stand hearing the United States national anthem.''

Thus, his post-race activities, a sort of catalog of ``sensitive male'' behavior, stand in stark contrast to the popular image of Maurice Greene. The image he seems to cultivate in the run-up to big events.

Trash-talker. Cock-of-the-walker. Chest-beating, self-promoting tough guy. Characteristics that sometimes don't endear en·dear  
tr.v. en·deared, en·dear·ing, en·dears
To make beloved or very sympathetic: a couple whose kindness endeared them to friends.
 him to competitors. Or casual observers.

Greene carries that image right into the starting blocks.

In the moments before a race, he jumps, he dances. He rolls his shoulders. He bobs his head and claps his hands. He sticks out his tongue and talks to himself and grimaces.

He looks rather like a football player preparing himself to make a bone-jarring hit on the opening kickoff. Or a welterweight about to climb into the ring with the world championship at stake.

His prerace antics are more about the way he reacts to pressure. ``When I get nervous, my tongue comes out of my mouth, and I start biting my lips,'' he said.

It's not about trying to look fierce.

Could have fooled us.

There is no mistaking, however, what Greene has accomplished.

``When the world is watching,'' teammate Jon Drummond said, ``he's impossible to beat.''

They know it on the European tour. They know it at the world championships. And now they know it at the Olympic Games.

Congratulations, Maurice. Welcome to the club.

CAPTION(S):

photo

Photo: Maurice Greene, foreground, powers away from the field to win the Olympic 100-meter.

Eric Draper/Associated Press
COPYRIGHT 2000 Daily News
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2000, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

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Article Details
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Title Annotation:Sports
Publication:Daily News (Los Angeles, CA)
Article Type:Statistical Data Included
Date:Sep 24, 2000
Words:675
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