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closeThe glory of Wednesday's Olympic finals in the 200 meter race belongs to Usain Bolt of Jamaica. For Shawn Crawford, only sour disappointment.
As the race first unfolded, Bolt, the tall phenomenon known as "Lightning" Bolt, won first and the gold medal with ease in a world-record time of 19.30 seconds. Finishing second, a half-second behind Bolt, was Churandy Martina of the Netherlands Antilles.
Crawford, a native of Van Wyck and a former track star at Indian Land High School, missed third by a hair, crossing the finish line at 19.96, just behind U.S. teammate Wallace Spearmon at 19.95.
Crawford, a gold-medalist in the 200 four years ago, had a respectable time. And, as he later attested, he "left everything" on the track. He no doubt would have been disappointed with a fourth-place finish but content that he had run the best race he could that day.
But this time, the full drama would take more than 20 seconds to unfold. About five minutes after the race, Spearmon was disqualified by track officials for running out of his lane, and Crawford became the recipient of Spearmon's bronze medal.
About an hour later, after a protest by Team USA officials, Martina was thrown out of the race for the same reason, giving Crawford the silver medal. But there was no joy in this belated move up the medal stand for the South Carolinian.
"I didn't cross the line in second," he said. "And if I don't cross the line in second, I don't care if people are disqualified or not. I didn't deserve the medal."
Crawford said he would have given the silver medal to Spearmon but was certain he wouldn't take it. The only thing he could give Spearmon was his sympathy, which he offered profusely.
We understand Crawford's dismay. Any Olympian would rather win on his or her own merits, not the misfortune of an opponent.
But, in an academic sense, Crawford certainly is entitled to his medal. The rules are written for a reason, and Crawford was able to stay in his lane while his two competitors weren't.
The rules are designed to ensure a fair competition. If judges were to ignore the infraction, the two runners might have enjoyed a slight advantage. Their wins would have been tainted.
We realize that is no real solace for Crawford. But he should take comfort in the fact that he did nothing wrong and behaved admirably during the confusion after the race.
Despite the muddled results, he remains one of the fastest men in the world. And he remains a hero to his many admirers back home.
Shawn Crawford is a true Olympian.
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