MAKING GOOD AFTER TEARING IT UP : INJURY PUSHES BUENA GRAD IN RIGHT DIRECTION.

Byline: Tim McClain Daily News Staff Writer

Sharon Hanson isn't convinced her troublesome right knee, which has required six different operations, hasn't helped her track and field career as much as it has hindered it.

It was, after all, her first knee injury back in high school that kept a promising hurdler and long jumper from competing in her specialties and forced her to try a few new events during track season.

Hanson discovered she could do those other things pretty well - so well that she'll be doing them against some of the world's best athletes in the Olympic Games' heptathlon competition in Atlanta.

That's probably not the conclusion she could realistically envision after suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her senior year at Buena High in Ventura.

``I couldn't even run for some time,'' Hanson said. ``I gained weight, then decided to take up the shot put. I think the injury also made me more determined to do the things I'd always dreamed about.''

The 30-year-old Hanson, who resides in Fairfax Station, Va., didn't let continued problems with the knee prevent her from steadily progressing in the sport. She finished 10th at the U.S. Olympic Trials in 1988 and fifth in '92 before making the U.S. team with a third-place finish last month.

She feels perfectly prepared for a run at a gold medal, crediting the coaches at George Mason University, where she also works as a volunteer assistant, with improving her technique, speed and strength.

Hanson feels healthier than ever, partly because she finally has control of exercise-induced asthma that has troubled her for years but wasn't diagnosed until this past February.

And her knee feels as sound as ever, thanks in part to the presence of her husband Jeff, an orthopedic surgeon who performed Hanson's last operation.

She's still flying high from a career-best 6,352-point performance in Atlanta, when she surprised herself in the high jump (clearing 5 feet, 8 inches), posted a 100-hurdles time (13.07 seconds) that would have qualified for the open event final and survived fouls on the first two of her three tries in the long jump.

``I feel very positive, even though I'll be competing against the best women in the world,'' Hanson said. ``I'm at the best of my physical abilities right now. And to know the whole world will be watching, with your whole country rooting for you, makes it such an incredible thrill.''

The cheers could be the loudest in Ventura, where Hanson's followers fully understand the physical problems that have impacted her career.

``She came back and ran about eight months after her first surgery,'' said Gary Coyner, who coached Hanson at Buena High and for six years with the Ventura Tigres Youth Track Club.

``She probably shouldn't have been running so soon, but that's how determined she is. I've never really looked at anybody 9 or 10 years old and thought they were going to the Olympics. But it didn't surprise me at all when Sharon made it.''

PROFILE Age: 30

Schools: Buena High School, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo 

Fast fact: Is involved in the Olympic Jobs Oppotunites program.

HEPTATHLON In 1984 the five-event pentathlon (80-meter hurdles, shot put, high jump, long jump and 200-meter dash) was replaced by the seven-event heptathlon (100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, 200-meter dash, long jump, javelin and 800-meter run).

Points are scored according to a set of tables approved by the International Amateur Athletic Federation. Strategy and pacing are especially important for heptathletes, since no one is great in every event. Competitors focus on marks they need rather than on winning individual events.

Since the athletes each have different strengths, it's not unusual for the lead to change several times. Rules are the same as in the individual events, except that three false starts and just three longs jumps and throws are allowed.

WHEN TO WATCH July 27: 100 hurdles, 6:15 a.m., High jump 7:30 a.m., Shot put 2:30 p.m., 200 meters 5:15 p.m.

July 28: Long jump 7 a.m., Javelin throw 3:25 p.m., 800 meters 7 p.m.

CAPTION(S):

5 Photos, 3 Boxes

Photo: (1) SHARON HANSON

(2-4) 1980: Becomes fi rst girl in history of Ventura junior track league to break 60 seconds in 440-yard dash.

1983: State qualifier in the 100-meter hurdles as a high school sophomore.

1988: Places 10th at U.S. Olympic Trials.

1990: Breaks 6,000-point barrier in heptathlon for first time.

1991: Wins silver medal at Pan-Am Games in Havana.

1992: Wins gold medal at Olympic Sports Festival in St. Louis and finishes fifth in U.S. Olympic Trials.

1996: Hanson, third from left, celebrates qualifying for the Olympics in Atlanta with Kelly Blair, left, and Jackie Joyner-Kersee.

(5) Sharon Hanson surprised herself with a personal-best score of 6,352 in the heptathlon at the U.S. Olympic Trials. She finished third to qualify for her first Olympics.

Allsport

Box: (1) Profile (see text)

(2) When to watch (see text)

(3) Heptathlon (see text)