Comparable feats

Stars in line for US-Jamaica meet

BEIJING - The world saw Jamaican sprint dominance coupled with American failures in signature events during the 10-day track and field competition at the National Stadium.

New USA Track & Field CEO Doug Logan saw a marketing opportunity.

How about a US-Jamaica dual meet?

"It'd bring some attention to the sport and actually be fun," said Olympic 400-meter champion LaShawn Merritt. "I'd probably participate if everything was right. The Jamaicans have been running well. The US has been running well. They've had their events in these Games. We've had our events. It would be interesting."

Imagine a healthy Tyson Gay challenging Usain Bolt and Asafa Powell. Consider the drawing power of races between Allyson Felix and Veronica Campbell-Brown in the 100 and 200. And don't forget showdowns between the men's and women's 4 x 100-meter relays. That would be something the nightly stadium crowds of 91,000 never saw because of dropped batons by the US entries.

"How about that?" said Logan. "Particularly a meet that maybe is focused just on middle distances and below. And make it a 1 1/2-to-two-hour event. And maybe a home-and-home series is something that would be very, very attractive in the coming months. I'm sure you're going to see us take a look at that."

American officials, coaches, and athletes have taken a long look at the numbers behind disappointing showings by the men's and women's teams. Members of the US delegation - particularly men's coach Bubba Thornton and women's coach Jeanette Bolden - take exception to their Games being labeled a failure. They point to Team USA having the most track medals (23) and the most golds (7), as well as the breadth of the accomplishments: women's golds in discus and 100 hurdles; a bronze in the women's 10,000; medal sweeps in the men's 400 and 400 hurdles; gold in the decathlon; and silver in men's shot put.

While winning medals in myriad events is significant, it doesn't make as many headlines as the results of the signature sprints, especially considering the United States has dominated those events in recent years. But the Americans did not win gold in the 100, 200, or 4 x 100 relay in Beijing, while Jamaica collected five of its six gold medals in those events.

Additionally, a number of American favorites in the sprints faltered. The women were swept in the 100 and did not finish in the top three at a fully attended Olympics for the first time since 1976. The Americans failed to win a medal in the 4 x 100 relay for the first time since the event debuted in 1912. And Jamaican victory after Jamaican victory left a more lasting impression than a gold in the discus or bronze in the 10,000.

"For people to characterize these Games as a failure is intellectually dishonest," said Logan, though the US men claimed its fewest gold medals (4) in Olympic history.

"The medal count is up there. We've had some terrific performances in a wide variety of events. And they're choosing to focus on only a very narrow number of issues. It is understandable. There are signature events and there's a great symbolism to it.

"We cannot deny the glorious performances of the Jamaicans. We now have some very intense competition in what are our signature events. That's a great marketing opportunity among other things. What we have to do now is see where we are, show up the next time and show up in a big way. That next time I'm sure will be something short of the next four years."

When Bolt set a world record in the 100 on the second day of competition, Jamaica started a national celebration that hasn't stopped. When the sprinting phenom claimed his second gold with a world record in the 200, Jamaican broadcaster Patrick Anderson could be heard shouting to countrymen in the mixed zone.

"I'm still stupefied by Bolt," said Anderson.

Track followers may have been astonished by the Jamaican team, which supplanted the United States as the world's track superpower during these Games. Not only did the small island nation nearly equal the Americans' gold-medal tally, Jamaica won with style. When Bolt's postrace celebrations were criticized, Powell reminded folks that "the US was doing it years and years and nobody was saying anything."

"When [conductor] Arturo Toscanini came to the States, he said of Marian Anderson that a voice like that comes once every 100 years," said Jamaican team doctor Herb Elliott. "A guy like Usain comes every 100 years."

In addition to immense natural talent, Bolt, who added a third gold in the 4 x 100 relay, has the natural personality and name to transcend the sport.

When asked about a nickname, there was a smile in his voice as he slowly said, "They call me Lightning Bolt."

It was just another example of how his ascendancy to track megastar at the Games could not have been more perfect. Except from the US perspective, when his accomplishments distracted the track world from what the Americans achieved.

Led by Bolt's dominance, Jamaica appeared the top team at the meet; but the title still belongs to the United States.

There were plenty of could've, should've, would've moments for the US team, even without its two dropped batons in the 400 relay.

Gay not reaching the final in the 100. Felix not winning the 200, Sanya Richards fading to bronze in the 400. Adam Nelson and Reece Hoffa failing to medal in the shot put, where there were thoughts of an American sweep. Deena Kastor breaking her foot in the marathon. Bernard Lagat going home without any medals from the 1,500 or 5,000. Brad Walker missing the final in the pole vault.

And despite it all, the Americans performance in Beijing stacks up favorably with past Olympics.

The 23 medals exceed the tally from the 2000 Sydney Olympics (17) and match the count from the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, but fall short of the 25 won at the 2004 Athens Games and the 26 claimed at last year's world championships in Osaka, Japan.

Russia ranked second on the track medal table with 18 (6 gold, 5 silver, 7 bronze), Kenya stood third with 14 (5 gold, 5 silver, 4 bronze), and Jamaica finished in fourth with 11 (6 gold, 3 silver, 2 bronze).

The good news for the Americans and the rest of the world on the Jamaican front?

As Elliott said, "We're too damn lazy to run distance."

While the reggae plays and the rum flows in Jamaica, US track and field is already busy working on ways to improve at the 2012 London Olympics.

Shortly after he returns from Beijing, Logan will commission a panel to analyze US track and field in a "very dispassionate, objective way."

Despite the medal numbers, Logan conceded there "may be some problems that may be systemic in the way that we choose and prepare and coach our athletes." He expects to have a report from the panel in 60-90 days.

"The biggest concern that I have is what everybody is talking about - two dropped batons," said Logan. "That to me is symptomatic of a larger issue. And that is that we're not getting peak annual performance out of a lot of our athletes, much less personal bests. For some reason, what has traditionally been a competition that is what everybody peaks for, we're not getting that level of peak performances. It occurred either earlier in the year or at other times in people's careers, but it's not occurring here in Beijing during this two-week period of time."

In the signature individual non-distant events (100, 200, 400), where weather conditions have the least impact, US athletes posted four personal bests and one seasonal bests. In comparison, the Jamaicans ran six personal bests, including the 100 and 200 world records by Bolt and the fastest women's 200 time in a decade by Campbell-Brown. Meanwhile, the list of 2007 US world champions who failed to earn gold in Beijing includes Gay, Felix, Lagat, Hoffa, Walker, and Kerron Clement (though he was part of an American sweep in the 400 hurdles).

"We got a punch in the nose and we're going to show up the next time," said Logan.

Shira Springer can be reached at springer@globe.com.