JFIFC    $ &%# #"(-90(*6+"#2D26;=@@@&0FKE>J9?@=C  =)#)==================================================" }!1AQa"q2#BR$3br %&'()*456789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz w!1AQaq"2B #3Rbr $4%&'()*56789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz ?(4QEQEQERp>v}2X^s(IMRO6FFH5i(5bK)Ü?JoDWiWVpU'0']&kFqԙ$b N4R CE@u4u}"mb ]Wݱ`As\$gJNPMQL(EPλ0$zѼR}B Ğ\LF 1YBI7rVD2J7lzsQS8k˵3/OJlWG(9VIO{uf%>WtYu+{$0acU-sӦj;"251*U_)zSc:QAҊ %.(EMqw=[YSG^y|!BycQޝ_?xM&RR((;9!4QiʤP| QJEZ }(%bi3N@$€.j$fؽxlfko YɡI{3Y6@ƤxΓ͘ή'>閖ya4|0A+)L]NbVڇ.sd#*9\m夶W Lk::LKisʊ$=;޸x^ɸLyNAzha:#Om˞tB<+e @wcJ0ēuEQ_d6mFi̴\NJ|mui$ cj8RڧTmn|,M 2f+oĖ-w2#?֬J싺%ga(KILAJ e\ߕ9?[+茬IS 릏4Heb9۞xC H}s '$ܔ`H^gk$6BPBfѥ.Ґ2^3ӹ%WGRʱ1ڊ\@A<6|=hq^NP Fwdʼ\٢F )UlkEƞ4RmghPqhj^Դhۏ¡}Wyql.g8nu8]3#뻋Q|=[Y)@k2 F"r2\GݍGS,@5Kc}B7ȻT]z:1RO3\KC2}1z:%x?ۿnjN$o"󜡬;RXbkh!Vw);2 y$.%2(laٮ+"Wϛ+uQ]l08Wr+]Vb`kJvǮwSq޻`Ii?bHkiUOoN:$}:TMm1xdDAZC0E+NݭU=cLG)I MFw-n$ڼ[HTIa?ax坙] f9>n x <ϧҽ EXH,< 5 ][⥍G夓g;F} wc9]ldDJ@5x`}8IV''[tC#Hj}.Hn$OYH QU}mB:=-0t<+Dd*~n=+ƣqkl!P;d0Fk[U=,n!*RJӴCw92}痢aHkV zdrl[sb=\l97r?;})>hOmg&vD-.y?is8sRTVkDΥTۓ4x020jӧC\Oxx-myA݇ӏκ('@涑FP*uzזe;`g fSėzM'il Iz<9Þ)ǧE]I&՞ŋ Mxmb9nȰLHd?Ly⫸t?]Tf{E|j3js/#g; IطEK/`G0M}(y\m@鯥Ђ*)1hxi~fwW#ad)<^"8sW{#"{v824bagOoʭi?g.S~G_#*AUc抋Cռ.-L}\ev+O;+l[*zZCw.?sд8L4@!撝␌PKQ4P> BJT,ks%O U=gUHЯ/ ){w&Ejy=xIyo[Nσ<^[Vu;.X1f&as{He?iA⾟^d+濇V|iIԭmU5\O_a|G2^yBrÁv%#8]]Ro݌}>V@˽8I>R|JOw7^#[ &z,2 {8ɼe]K LqKMt,{5TrGUlKxY9=^T3N#ݍ1z#Ib ֌*ǣ C BE vxj3➯.K/vcq_85&k7NDi{yzs޻HdH=+kC޻2rc $etwJM5Z HZPP>¹KxYGbjjJF4)MDGbwUqn+Zn<\T#*-{t{.Pq<&ugkd+ ((]hT'Q,EۘK SĂ6Ag3MƧx$YTc3l]89cQa#A%X+o+D.1$7cַuÎ6,&?]OR6)}HTn_=-~-PԵ(pF~SR}( Mps:Q@̏\42>l0 3w?t)!28aޛ@|0 9xjZpxW/Һ Ofqi t]ΗI-w=ڈ8t=vexu2&}0񏋯Ex6oEh דzԛztVSZI,e7FBF)GUxp ƦDz&+u?ccsW@o(,dq^ofYS]>x92=GL#HYvOU>Ƽ^<<߆w\ۑGWyqF̒hhȮCştm>H4ۣ}4T,|MnyEVIl3VVڹPݫ Ͽ@?¼_MZ"?>ʹ tGs!> sSK:__ekyp98pfe#Q#smw]iRIղFkJ(`*+k`=r ǵFh=jaLڜ}ޝPߚ ';##q@Ƒ{PzSӎ~4Qf-XKwnR;6+>/t(/޾Wd2Һ| j54^ERcEۖm#t“V[V[9;Ds> qU#ѻ@MZXԫpFҊ(/je/хh]/Z(@Ex=;zEHʤtX{?J<٫kܩ8Hi\VqI&H.?wƜ!<#4QPޯ??7r?(5U3 v1 n?EEZCOȿ#4kMƊ()UVoG)gݟW.o9.B ֪--ɒob?ikǨ1Rp*ݜ8z'v8!7gL0HJF[$iJ'(3Br8'8)zqڐƑcҁӜ)IM8h嵔Io#!AcҐ'c[p KMB7O;ֱV97'p u{l捬:1T@mF"&7 h)$G~sB ~T9\d23.N01ǯjk#G8aӦi! mpH`]/SeK-& yYjchaA Y +p2)q7c}(B 2 USz]NCHQr=@}jN֓h xɧ"(N1A^1SCc sԛ ߯8;x3c.0HqA0iQnqңO{ 8?PjWOv4VQHb#BEt-Ĥv\nh`s)Sr=5m[NP+2 }ԟqRj6zJ.cmt!e$x]9{K{Hf4Js>hkS/ӯP&?VSj1_Z(1~?E#v) Ҋ(AXTSG7ցxȍU#KTK io EAQ$E9$\UhJ+;28 XB:즬H{B@ϡjrݡ<{~upMuzU=G;HrǓrθߩ-:qA/&zdfwCUbIaR ʞ \ZْỞ3Qd : ͌14BxTJZOcZ@a }諶l- ,{?mT鶢 }h{`t7^N#a<:gҢ-s6ɜ&0>QOҷoD0nCTbYf<'$Eqɶ{E`H#tۘ緜}ݨI91ފ+j [8J" $C1fE6xT`f) c *?ld never do it again.<br><br> I can t explain what happened that day, but I realized I would have to be<br>totally prepared for any eventuality in the future, says Dan.  It took a few<br>weeks, and quite a few calls from frieds, family, coaches and other<br>athletes. Then I was back into training and totally focused. <br><br>Dan s effort 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 greatest athlete. But the public only remembered the no-heighter. To truly redeem himself, and earn the title he so fervently desired, Dan knew he needed the lympic 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 t worried in the least. It<br>was no longer an issue for me. I <br>wan t even worried about the trials.<br> I had one goal; that was the gold. Not the 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 deathlon, holding on to a steady point margin throughout each of the ten events. Dan became the first American to win the decathlon since Bruce Jenner in 1976. His only 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 Thrpe, cannot be ignored. Both were born of mixed races. Both have Irish surnames. Both came from small schoolsand towns. They have each enjoyed immense po our equipment, and all this has given Kevin and Jesseca the opportunities to accomplish what they have. Our athletes are able to travel to the meets and get the necessary national exposure.<br><br>BFS: With the WAC having expanded to 16 teams, how has this affected track and field?<br><br>LJ: The Rocky Mountain schools have always been traditionally good in the field events and the distance events because of the altitude, and the Texas schools have some of the best sprinters in the country. When you combine them you've got one of the toughest overall conferences in the country.<br><br>BFS: Are any of the WAC schools still recruiting elite-level track athletes from foreign countries?<br><br>LJ: You still see a little bit of it, and it makLuv?0?v`Q G̅-4O H:e@UTb-{ċO }#蟇Tm3RCuV$GPHbjiNxXuu!E? j%tOĄDZ;P`=nHA 0Pm@|Y_U IbfJ 4iz^G%zdEFYV4eTDY(o"# LgR,6CT8%Ug1G)%wC相geѡVfXWQOOWoOWFЮşgXG2H,k 8ž/)JD#g8pŌvyo5y|+ivR`B2\zWc|b4/t[X2O.=ƮFcX%}ai GEzou1j Z,A.G$6Χ O,9,d4Y!8 G%FfySP[z"V8y$ x\ol,2ƏB%́%_";+ {m"$d0 Vߕ8]Ԍwzui qjIk6c۴_(ͩ0Ƀ LjG59}5@PA|l@4/1Il-