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Vm`c\  {i1򊊵\f#?(qx8 TPxcްZb1.#gD8՝R 1By)OnI+YvK@ NxS gCF">f``LXz<*r}EFwa(nYczSIaO'?šz9 "$yҜz}J.@ 22q=(7-٨8*QTK ThUkw:K*n,8 l]۟`?-iM^Gb-1 mͶ$#ۚ;W1m"QI3Yw8Sk"L?*8\]1$$槙3ɖf9&@+Zcrmc4xq?JRHA_Z'{T@0yǵ!!!g?i} E - =+-Wp;sЎWFi CnY@@$ <}Cw L㪞Fnweeks, and quite a few calls from friends, family, coaches and other<br>athletes. Then I was back into training and totally focused. <br><br>Dan s effrt paid off almost immediately. Although he didn t compete at<br>Barcelona, a few months later Dan entered the decathlon event in Talence, France. There he set a new world record 8,891 points a record that still stands today. For Dan, he had proven to himself that he had what it takes to be the world s geatest athlete. ut the public only remembere the no-heighter. To truly redeem himself, and earn the title he so fervently desired, Dan knew he needed the Olympic gold.<br><br>Dan went on to win two more world championships before the 1996 Olympic trials came around. Once again, all eyes were on Dan, and the event they watched most closely was the pole vault.<br><br> I knew it was a big deal, says Dan.  But I wasn tworried in the least. It<br>was no longer an issue for me. I <br>wasn t even worried about the trials.<br> I had one goal; that was the gold. Not he bronze, not the silver. I knew exactly what I wanted and was counting the days to Atlanta. <br><br>He sailed through the trials. In Atlanta, he sailed through the decathlon, holding on to a steady point margin throughout each of the ten events. Dan became the first American to win the decathlon sice Bruce Jenner in 1976. His nly disappointment was that he did not break his own world record. That is a goal he is still working on.<br><br>Historic Parallels<br><br>For those who follow the sport of decathlon, the parallels between Dan s life and that of the first gold medal decathlete, Jim Thorpe, cannot be ignored. Both were born of mixed races. Both have Irish surnames. Both came from small schools and towns. They have each enjoyed immense popularity and adulation, and also humiliation. For Thorpe, stripped of his medals after a controversial decision by the governing Olympic board, redemption and restoration of those medals would occur only after his death. Dan O Brien was able to set the record straight an place his own name for all time on the list of the World s Greatest Athletes. But his story is far from finished.<br><br>Dan feels strongly that his story is one that can help inspire and fuel<br>other young athletes.  I don t try to hide from the fact that I ve made<br>mistakes; we re all only human, says Dan.  There were a lot of things in my life that could have pulled me down. I had excues to fail but I <br>didn t let them take hold of my psyche. 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