02/24/2002
Black brakemen break out
PARK CITY, Utah – They didn't become the first African-American men to
earn Winter Olympic gold medals, but brakemen Randy Jones and Garrett
Hines were elated all the same.
Both have been in the U.S. bobsled program for 10 years. Both had
near-misses in past Winter Olympics with driver Brian Shimer. And when
they broke through with a silver Saturday night as part of Todd Hays'
crew, the years and effort finally were worthwhile.
And, along with the gold medal earned by African American bobsledder
Vonetta Flowers last week, they hope a trend is beginning.
"All sports are starting to become more diverse," said Hines. "This is
what our country is about. It's a melting pot of everybody.
"It's a lot different from going to Germany where there's only Germans
there. Hey, we've got Germans here. We've got Swiss here. We have
everything. I think it's a great representation of the people we have in
this country."
Defending champion
Langen withdraws
Defending Olympic four-man bobsled champion Christoph Langen withdrew
prior to Saturday's third run because of a partly torn muscle in his
left foot.
Langen, who was bidding for his fifth Olympic medal, was in seventh
place after two runs.
Prince Albert uninjured
after crash on third run
Prince Albert of Monaco and his crew were in 24th place, but crashed
during their third run. Prince Albert's helmet struck a wall, but he was
unhurt. One of his crewmen suffered a cut lip.
Though his crew smiled and shook hands with fans following the crash,
Prince Albert, obviously not amused, walked straight ahead, eyes looking
down on the track. This was the fifth and perhaps last Olympics for the
43-year-old Prince Albert.