OMEN
03-23-2006, 09:18 AM
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Flag bearer ... Steffensen enjoys his moment in the sun.
BEFORE the Commonwealth Games opened in Melbourne, we were told they weren't the Olympics, but Australia's John Steffensen, with one lap of sensational sprinting last night, provided a moment worthy of such great sporting occasion.
His victory in the men's 400m final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground should arguably already be the most significant moment of the Games.
The West Australian is only 23 years of age, but already he appears to have an acute sense of history.
His sense of creating it is arguably even finer tuned.
Steffensen's victory is the first in the one-lap event at the Games since Darren Clark took gold in 1990 at Auckland. His Olympic silver medal in the 4x400m relay in Athens was the first since 1956. No doubt, this young man is on a fast track to greatness before our very eyes. Only he can stop him now.
Michael Johnson, the world record holder and unbeatable giant of the long sprints, was in Melbourne last night to see what we all saw - Steffensen's undeniable promise.
Steffensen's time - a personal best of 44.73sec - was nothing close to what Johnson was capable of in his pomp, but it was a huge step on the road to perhaps one day being remembered in the same vein.
Five years on this progression, and perhaps Steffensen will stand as tall as "MJ" once did.
Such talk is speculative, of course, but just occasionally, you see something that makes you think. Calling Steffensen a future great of athletics seems a big call now, but watch the race over, and you might be convinced.
He ran the third fastest time in history by an Australian - only Clark (44.38sec) and Miles Murphy (44.71sec) have run faster - which is a worthy if not staggering achievement. But it was more the manner of Steffensen's victory that took the breath away.
Coming into the meet, he unloaded brash, confident sound bites on an adoring media that soaked them up like a sponge before squeezing the ink back out and colouring the public's perception of this athlete.
Steffensen, as a result, had much to live up to. But it didn't faze him, He always knew he could. As he danced a victory lap last night, he looked into the eyes of the crowd, blowing kisses and saying: "I told you so. I told you."
"You've just got to believe in yourself and everything else will pan out," he said when the euphoria of his win had died down.
But he is hoping it lingers long enough to pull this country out of an athletics slump that is more inexplicable than any other sporting inadequacy known to man.
Why Australia is not a giant of this sport has always been a mystery, and Steffensen won’t be afraid to make that public.
"Anybody can do it. We are just as powerful in track and field as any nation," he said last night.
That's not the case just yet, but the sport that has cried out for a role model since the anti-climatic retirement of Cathy Freeman may have now found its mojo in Steffensen.
He's got a lot going for him - good looks, funky hair, lip, personality, but most importantly, a winning mentality. He's a jester off the track, but on it, as he proved so emphatically last night, he's a consummate professional.
"I said (before the race), 'It's my office. I know what I'm doing. I've done this before'. Then I put my head down and let me write my own path," he said.
By pronouncing his victory before it had come, Steffensen heaped pressure upon himself.
Once racing, there was more to deal with, not least when Bahamas bolter Christopher Brown burst through the first 200 metres like his life was at stake.
Steffensen was measured through the first 100 metres, despite Brown's furious charge, and rather than panic, the Australian remained cool, keeping his head and his form. Once he hit the last 200, he opened up with wonderful efficiency.
He'd shaken Brown within 20 metres, lengthening his raking stride as they left the apex into the home straight. By then, Steffensen was clear, and no one was about to catch him.
Silver medal winner Alleyne Francique of Grenada was the only one that might have. He clocked 45.09sec pushing for home, but there's no match for a man who knows his destiny.
Brown paid for his death or glory ride when Jermaine Gonzales, of Jamaica, took third in 45.16sec, but Steffensen was already celebrating by then.
Steffensen was eighth in the world championships final last year, but will now go into next year's championship with a medal well within his sights.
His progression has been remarkable. In 2002, his best was 47.14sec. Twelve months on, he was a second quicker, and at the beginning of this year, he was hitting low 45s.
Now he's under that, and becomes a serious competitor as a result.
What dreams might come his way in Beijing at the 2008 Olympic Games, only he will be able to fulfil.
FOX SPORTS
Flag bearer ... Steffensen enjoys his moment in the sun.
BEFORE the Commonwealth Games opened in Melbourne, we were told they weren't the Olympics, but Australia's John Steffensen, with one lap of sensational sprinting last night, provided a moment worthy of such great sporting occasion.
His victory in the men's 400m final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground should arguably already be the most significant moment of the Games.
The West Australian is only 23 years of age, but already he appears to have an acute sense of history.
His sense of creating it is arguably even finer tuned.
Steffensen's victory is the first in the one-lap event at the Games since Darren Clark took gold in 1990 at Auckland. His Olympic silver medal in the 4x400m relay in Athens was the first since 1956. No doubt, this young man is on a fast track to greatness before our very eyes. Only he can stop him now.
Michael Johnson, the world record holder and unbeatable giant of the long sprints, was in Melbourne last night to see what we all saw - Steffensen's undeniable promise.
Steffensen's time - a personal best of 44.73sec - was nothing close to what Johnson was capable of in his pomp, but it was a huge step on the road to perhaps one day being remembered in the same vein.
Five years on this progression, and perhaps Steffensen will stand as tall as "MJ" once did.
Such talk is speculative, of course, but just occasionally, you see something that makes you think. Calling Steffensen a future great of athletics seems a big call now, but watch the race over, and you might be convinced.
He ran the third fastest time in history by an Australian - only Clark (44.38sec) and Miles Murphy (44.71sec) have run faster - which is a worthy if not staggering achievement. But it was more the manner of Steffensen's victory that took the breath away.
Coming into the meet, he unloaded brash, confident sound bites on an adoring media that soaked them up like a sponge before squeezing the ink back out and colouring the public's perception of this athlete.
Steffensen, as a result, had much to live up to. But it didn't faze him, He always knew he could. As he danced a victory lap last night, he looked into the eyes of the crowd, blowing kisses and saying: "I told you so. I told you."
"You've just got to believe in yourself and everything else will pan out," he said when the euphoria of his win had died down.
But he is hoping it lingers long enough to pull this country out of an athletics slump that is more inexplicable than any other sporting inadequacy known to man.
Why Australia is not a giant of this sport has always been a mystery, and Steffensen won’t be afraid to make that public.
"Anybody can do it. We are just as powerful in track and field as any nation," he said last night.
That's not the case just yet, but the sport that has cried out for a role model since the anti-climatic retirement of Cathy Freeman may have now found its mojo in Steffensen.
He's got a lot going for him - good looks, funky hair, lip, personality, but most importantly, a winning mentality. He's a jester off the track, but on it, as he proved so emphatically last night, he's a consummate professional.
"I said (before the race), 'It's my office. I know what I'm doing. I've done this before'. Then I put my head down and let me write my own path," he said.
By pronouncing his victory before it had come, Steffensen heaped pressure upon himself.
Once racing, there was more to deal with, not least when Bahamas bolter Christopher Brown burst through the first 200 metres like his life was at stake.
Steffensen was measured through the first 100 metres, despite Brown's furious charge, and rather than panic, the Australian remained cool, keeping his head and his form. Once he hit the last 200, he opened up with wonderful efficiency.
He'd shaken Brown within 20 metres, lengthening his raking stride as they left the apex into the home straight. By then, Steffensen was clear, and no one was about to catch him.
Silver medal winner Alleyne Francique of Grenada was the only one that might have. He clocked 45.09sec pushing for home, but there's no match for a man who knows his destiny.
Brown paid for his death or glory ride when Jermaine Gonzales, of Jamaica, took third in 45.16sec, but Steffensen was already celebrating by then.
Steffensen was eighth in the world championships final last year, but will now go into next year's championship with a medal well within his sights.
His progression has been remarkable. In 2002, his best was 47.14sec. Twelve months on, he was a second quicker, and at the beginning of this year, he was hitting low 45s.
Now he's under that, and becomes a serious competitor as a result.
What dreams might come his way in Beijing at the 2008 Olympic Games, only he will be able to fulfil.
FOX SPORTS