JFIFC    $ &%# #"(-90(*6+"#2D26;=@@@&0FKE>J9?@=C  =)#)==================================================" }!1AQa"q2#BR$3br %&'()*456789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz w!1AQaq"2B #3Rbr $4%&'()*56789:CDEFGHIJSTUVWXYZcdefghijstuvwxyz ?(!EPINRPE (J( (AEPQ(AT]VGELڮWCSңZJS׏jM\qWvg]mssp SEybL+G^k;;%SRRPIKI@ŠJ((QEr 0̛ͅ0Xw_53m4JF\:tmT64vˌ8>,FhzsKGy-ׁ_8ȷ=?6m-ųso:iLEɁ1oqѵ߸vzܒCf)2 rCFks(QE%Q@Q@J(l-!ZXinڣeƜѬ ">ޣ5[AC~і+($:N1PAiŶh'nGCW^? ΓIcgj Q] =UR9orx?+c 4F:ַ )T -kJC泐yO ׹dz\7ĝMiESUͩ;; r[N\6C]-x6K$|;+⹄%PGufL5VE%QEQE% JSI@Q@a5/Idiqˣ0nV?+K֧GM[;,3RLRdVI'~ P|FOƣ(|9® g]%\7>÷֟oI0[cDyخrl[ռY9G"!tXz5+kG23+9!:Ġ-V%Π!|ۉBCҊBVӴl|d0@8zWOmXEa{kKmqqLw&=6mR[;֒#[5 ˱x^>fP%k&/ B`yVVvn]n1µ~c\.?uA7&Z]ꋰ)QG,ET{Br> \U~C[9][,wǭr[֯Y^,3ݼWM2"@vy^=#"HǏj'&p&sՎ=+FORPE zDP빔⹠vgMVn4SN泘GS0sVJۿrHrN9+Hw;W_\fV "Fj[PHT:*{{f6Y{ڭ}⏷Z>g❓ZItSzSIueu䁓5 y7à<6"V#npqҜ4؇Um7aKO3Mֶ 8n!mrPzB` $R^2#:sCǻdx8E\{iц c%vpY{E%"f\W9")(P@8O~NұViyVr nj[nY-]Ic4G_(Gr:ʱխlmUx(X@23uM37cǮkug&,pK BڳVKqn3`VDKyHN_pSdbNd"x#f#U3XOYb0PAo[r^`uF#tOz\G8jdžT!:akHѾh71t* d#YmnA푊o@nlT 1b18q\\y;P k-an9]7 ([kr;StHJ ֦[}.pT IGi6'YJp2y I4芫=p+c[ӠYm1!S P-$y#vn8iR.ʅJ 99x {PA1Ecqoj+eLmH*[]\奼>ș68!X2`pIh?kOId؎Xp>Ҥ:L$w8&6kQŮ`G綊 %xF]LazS}Y3Iu$aA*K#H|1R2IWQϖȠۮ3ʹT,lnɕU˚"fF zY/)Z02c\mJ^D{?Cl|0Č9iDD t$ֺR  j%-S 0B3Jhm]$\Kz2DїfvB9LU* #6qH >m\ridkܥюX @iro2|Qr׻G c[6p3Y眒,P-(3OzKH\sT޶D7WSZ T0p@3X"+T[iVIdrO'z~hc8iT{VE2_e'1oXDr  0FyCEq?U¶eF\1decided he wanted to be a decathlete.<br><br> Milt Campbell was one of my mentors, says Dan about the former decathlon gold medalist.  There is so much history in the sport; so much dedication and pride in it. I love the story about Jim Thorpe, how after he won the first decathlon, the king of Sweden shook his hand and said,  Sir, you are the world s greatest athlete. When I heard that story I knew that what I wanted<br>to be wasn t just a great athlete, but the world s greatest athlete. <br><br>In 1991 Dan s goal came within reach when he became the Decathlon World Champion.<br><br>The No-Heighter<br><br>With the 1992 Olympics looming, Reebok saw tremendous marketing potential in two of the U.S. s top contenders for the decathlon: Dave Johnson and Dan O Brien. The  Dan or Dave ad campaign was launched on Super Bowl Sunday, and<br>overnight the pair became celebrities. Who would win in the showdown at Barcelona Dan or Dave? was the question the advertising campaign centered upon.<br><br>The only problem was Dan never made it on the Olympic team for Barcelona.<br><br> I will never know exactly what went wrong that day, says Dan in quiet<br>resignation, shaking his head and obviously waiting for the interview to move ahead.  I just don t know. <br>What happened was Dan missed all three pole vault attempts at the Olympic trials. His  no-heighter cost him his place on the U.S. team. Thanks to the publicity machine at Reebok, Dan s no-heighter was the most publicized athletic failure of the year, or perhaps decade.<br><br>For Dan, the public humiliation was tremendous. Sportswriters said he lacked the heart and guts of a true competitor, and that he was a much ballyhooed athlete with no discipline. Reebok dropped him like a hot potato. In a few minutes, Dan went from feeling on top of the world to the depths of depression. But while the media questioned Dan s true talent and potential, Dan knew that the no-heighter was a fluke. He had never done it before, and now he was determined that he would 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 friends, 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 neede