International Capsules: Former U.S. Olympic skier's spirit shines through
The daredevil downhill skier in him still craves going fast even if his body no longer permits it.
Once helped into his motorized scooter, former Olympic champion Bill Johnson races through the halls of an assisted living facility in Gresham, Ore., hardly ever backing off the accelerator. Well, until he's ordered to SLOW DOWN by the nursing staff.
A series of strokes have all but immobilized the skier who once lived life on the edge, whose brash confidence, movie-star charisma and rebellious attitude made him a fan favorite at the 1984 Sarajevo Olympics, where he became the first American to capture the downhill crown.
In 2001, Johnson attempted to regain his glory and made a comeback at the U.S. championships at age 40, with grand visions of earning a spot on the squad for the 2002 Salt Lake City Games.
Only, Johnson wiped out during a practice run, suffering a traumatic brain injury that erased nearly a decade of memories. He also had to learn how to walk, talk and eat again.
He had made steady improvement over the years, even returning to the slopes for recreation. But Johnson's health has been slowly on the decline because of mini strokes. Then, nearly two years ago, he had a major stroke that stole the rest of his body.
Now, his speech is slurred, he can't sit up on his own, his left eyelid doesn't open and only his left hand is operational. That's his steering hand for his powered chair, enabling him to make those mad dashes down to the cafeteria for coffee.
He definitely misses the thrill of speed — any kind of speed. There are no reminders of his past hanging on the walls in his room, nor any trophies on the shelf. He prefers it that way. Most of those trinkets are neatly boxed up at his mom's house — waiting to be passed along to his children — along with his gold medal, which is tucked away in a safe.
Johnson still eagerly watches downhill races on television, perking up when Bode Miller flies out of the starting gate. Johnson will follow along, his eyes visualizing the moves as Miller carves his way through the course. Johnson used to ski a lot like Miller — with a gambler's mentality and a resolve to take risks that few others would.
Indeed, his mind still races, even if his body can't.
These days, Johnson, who turns 52 at the end of March, spends most of his time confined to his wheelchair or his bed, playing video games or watching game shows. His mom, D.B., frequently drops by to check on him. She used to care for her son at the family home, but his current health has made that impractical.
Johnson has stopped going to physical therapy, because he doesn't see any reason for it.
"He knows he's not improving," his mom said. "He doesn't like to be fussed over."
Communicating for Johnson has become a labored task. So much so that his mom frequently serves as his translator, especially when he can't vocalize his needs — like wanting a peanut butter and jelly sandwich from the kitchen — to the staff.
That's been frustrating. The personable Johnson has always enjoyed chatting, especially about skiing.
Does watching ski racing take him back to his glory days?
"Yes," he whispered in the background as his mother held the phone.
Enjoy watching Lindsey Vonn and Miller race?
"Yes," he softly said.
Were you the pioneer that opened up downhill skiing for the Americans? A pause. Then a chuckle.
"Yep," he answered.
That Olympic downhill run in Sarajevo nearly 28 years ago was electric as he effortlessly glided through the course, holding off the Austrians whom he had infuriated with his bravado leading up to the race.
"What he did that day was amazing at the time," said Bill Marolt, president and CEO of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association. "In retrospect, it's still amazing."
Same with his story. Always a gifted skier, Johnson had a wild streak that had him careening down the wrong path. Caught stealing cars as a teenager, the judge gave him a choice: Attend ski school or head to jail.
So he went to Mission Ridge Ski Academy in Washington, where he discovered that, when dedicated, he had potential. Lots of it, even, as he earned a Europa Cup crown.
Johnson made his first World Cup start in February 1983, taking sixth at a downhill in St. Anton, Austria. A year later in Wengen, Switzerland, he captured his first big-league race.
Despite his short time on the circuit, Johnson was one of the favorites heading into the Olympics — and he let everyone know it. He had a knack for getting under the skin of European skiers, maybe even a few coaches along the way, too.
Winning that day in Sarajevo was the pinnacle of his career. Johnson won twice more that season, but wouldn't step on the World Cup podium again.
And three years after his debut on the scene, he made his last World Cup appearance, finishing seventh in the downhill at Whistler.
Still, he became an iconic figure to many Americans.
"They related to Billy — that brash, throw-it-in-your-face type attitude," said Phil Mahre, who won the Olympic slalom in '84. "When you tell people you're going to go do something and then you go out and back it up like in Sarajevo, it's pretty impressive."
Johnson went through knee and back injuries that curtailed his career and prevented him from defending his title at the 1988 Calgary Olympics.
"It would've been great if he would've kept the charge going," Mahre said. "I think it all came too quickly, it all came too easily. Then it left just as quickly and just as easily."
Soon after, Johnson's life began to unravel. He lost his first son, Ryan, at 13 months old in a hot tub accident and went through a divorce a few years later. He drifted, not really sure what to do next.
Then, inspiration hit. A way to get his life back on track the only way he knew how — make the Olympic team.
"He loved the downhill," his mom said. "That was his life. That's the reason he went back. He was going to try to do it again. He could've done it."
At the U.S. championships near Whitefish, Mont., Johnson was speeding down the course at close to 60 mph when he entered a twisting section. He lost his balance, did the splits and slammed face first into the snow, biting off a chunk of his tongue as he flew through two sets of safety netting.
He needed a breathing tube at the mountain and then was quickly transported to a hospital by helicopter.
"The doctors didn't think he was going to make it," said attorney and good friend Harold Burbank, who oversees the Bill Johnson special needs trust project which raise money for his care.
He did, bucking long odds. But he sustained permanent brain damage.
For three years after the accident, Johnson stayed with his mom as he recovered. Then, he moved into a trailer home to regain some of his independence. He even returned to the slopes — for fun.
In January 2008, he slowly started losing the use of his right side. He was having mini strokes, the doctors eventually concluded.
Then, he had an even more debilitating stroke, all but immobilizing him.
"Some days are really good days," his mom said. "Some days are not so good."
The good days are when his sons, Nick, 19, and Tyler, 17, stop by for a visit.
"That lights him up," his mom said.
So does conversing about skiing, his mom close by to relay his words.
You had a unique way of attacking a course, huh?
"Yes," he said.
What do you want people to remember about Bill Johnson?
"Best American skier," he said.
Anything people can do for you?
A pause. Then a chuckle.
"Send candy," he said.
Sochi Olympics downhill course gets high marks
KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia (AP) — Didier Cuche called it "magnificent." Bode Miller was highly critical. Aksel Lund Svindal said the course for the 2014 Sochi Olympics was "what downhill is all about."
Racers mainly gave high marks to the Rosa Khutor slope after the opening World Cup training session was held under clear sunshine and good snow conditions.
"It's a magnificent course," said Cuche, the four-time winner of the World Cup downhill title, who finished second to Austria's Hannes Reichelt on Wednesday. "Perhaps a little bit too turning, it could be adapted a little bit to change that. The first 40 seconds or so it resembles more a super-G than a downhill, albeit a very fast super-G.
"It's not like any other run on the circuit," said Cuche, who plans to retire after this season. "It's a really interesting run. They have managed to shape the course around the mountain in a really nice way."
However, Miller said the constant turns on the upper section are too much like super-G.
"I don't really believe it embodies anything that a true World Cup downhill should be," said the 34-year-old American, who would compete in his fifth Olympics.
Training sessions are scheduled for Thursday and Friday before a World Cup downhill on Saturday and a super-combined race on Sunday — the first major test events for the Sochi Games.
At 2.2 miles, the course is one of the longer layouts that skiers have faced, although the constant turns mean little time in the tuck position. Therefore, it's not one of the most physically demanding tests.
"If they ran that as the Olympic super-G it would be an epic super-G, because it's not that tiring, even for the amount of time that you're on the course," said Miller, who cruised down in 32nd place. "It's just cranking turns the whole way on that good, hard snow."
Miller lamented the lack of gliding sections, where he usually excels.
"There's not one place where you're not going hard edge-to-edge except for this road just before this second-to-last jump into the finish," he said. "Because you're so tall and you're legs are long, you're not tucking at all."
The upper half of the course contains a series of technical, narrow and steep turns before easing out toward the end, although there are large jumps all the way down, including one into the finish.
"It's a tough course," said Svindal, the two-time overall World Cup winner from Norway. "I think a lot of guys were surprised at inspection this morning.
"It's kind of what downhill is all about — the mountain kind of sets the pace," Svindal added. "If this was gliding from the top then we would kill ourselves after 20 seconds, so I'm glad they put some turns in there."
Svindal thought organizers injected too much water to make the upper portion of the course harder.
"It's a tough course — that's the bottom line — but the course preparation really makes a (difference)," said the Norwegian, who placed 21st. "I think they overdid it with the water this time. They'll probably use less water for the Olympics."
Svindal's biggest complaint was about the poorly organized charter planes that the International Ski Federation (FIS) used to transport athletes to Russia. He and other skiers said they were given no food or water for six hours from the time they began their trip from Zurich on Tuesday.
"If we knew, we would have brought something, but information was limited," Svindal said.
The U.S. Ski Team avoided the charter route and flew from Europe by private jet, part of a training arrangement with the Russian ski federation.
"It was cool to be able to fly here in style," said giant slalom world champion Ted Ligety.
Construction is everywhere, all the way up to the ski course finish area, which is located halfway up the mountain and requires two gondolas and a windy chairlift for fans and media.
The skiers and the FIS officials seem pleased, so far.
"This is the training of the test event, so this is Round 1, Day 1 — we're as green as green gets," said men's World Cup finish area director Mike Kertesz. "I don't mean to pat our own backs, but with all the work we've done so far, things are running according to the way they should, or even better than I've seen a brand new organizer do before."
-- Andrew Dampf
Reichelt tops first DH training on Sochi 2014 course
KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia (AP) — Hannes Reichelt of Austria led the opening World Cup training session on the 2014 Sochi Olympics downhill course on Wednesday.
With bright sunshine and good, hard snow conditions, Reichelt clocked 2 minutes, 12.91 seconds down the steep and technical Rosa Khutor slope.
Skiers said the course requires allaround skills because it was so technical, with few gliding sections. That fits Reichelt, who has won four World Cup super-Gs and one giant slalom, plus posted three podium results in downhill.
Swiss standout Didier Cuche, who has announced he will retire at the end of this season, was second, 0.25 seconds behind, and Benjamin Thomsen of Canada was third, 0.69 behind.
More training sessions are scheduled before before racing begins on Saturday.
Olympics
Rio 2016 adds Nissan as local Olympic sponsor
SAO PAULO (AP) — Rio Olympic organizers added Nissan as the fifth top-tier sponsor for the 2016 Games. Organizers didn't disclose financial details, but said Wednesday the deal with the car maker for the Olympic and Paralympic Games exceeded "the requirements from Rio 2016 for the category."
The committee said Nissan will provide 4,500 vehicles to transport athletes, officials and journalists during the games.
Nissan is the sixth domestic sponsor for the games. The others are Bradesco, Bradesco Seguros, Claro and Embratel. The sole tier-two sponsor is Ernst & Young Terco.
Rio 2016 Olympic committee president Carlos Nuzman said during a news conference in Rio that the games have surpassed the initial goal of $570 million in sponsors. The mark had already been surpassed before the Nissan deal, according to the committee.
The current worldwide Olympic partners for the 2016 games are Coca-Cola, Atos, Dow, GE, McDonald's, Omega, Panasonic, Procter & Gamble, Samsung and Visa.
"This partnership demonstrates the value of the Rio 2016 brand and the strength and attractiveness of the Brazilian consumer market," Nuzman said. "After six months of negotiations that also involved other applicants, Nissan submitted a proposal that ensures a consistent mix of products, services and financial backing, proving to be the ideal automotive partner."
Nissan said it has a plan to support local organizers' goals, including a program to support young athletes, promote the games' legacy and marketing ideas "to spread the Olympic experience."
"Our multiple connections with Brazil are deep," Nissan President and Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn said in a statement. "As a showcase for the energy and vision of Brazil, the Olympic Games are a natural fit for Nissan."
Organizing committee CEO Leonardo Gryner said the deal with Nissan will help the city "tackle operational challenges in a vital area such as transport."
The 2016 Games in Rio will be the first in South America.
-- Tales Azzoni
Chair of Olympics legacy company to step down
LONDON (AP) — The chair of Olympic Park Legacy Company says she'll be stepping down after the games. Margaret Ford, who is in charge of securing the economic future of the Olympic Park, says the next phase of development will require much attention to detail, and that she won't have enough time.
She says she'll step down after the July 27-Aug. 12 event. Her decision comes only weeks before the company will be transformed into a development corporation, which will answer directly to Mayor Boris Johnson.
Ford will act as interim chair of the new body, and oversee the transition.
Cycling
Officials: Longo's husband arrested over EPO buy
PARIS (AP) — French police raided the home of cycling great Jeannie Longo on Wednesday and arrested her husband on suspicion that he bought doses of the banned performance-enhancer EPO.
The 53-year-old Longo was expected to be questioned following the arrest of her husband and coach, Patrice Ciprelli, at their home in Saint-Martin-le-Vinoux in the French Alps, said police officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the case.
Another French official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said Ciprelli was suspected of buying EPO over the Internet in the past two years.
His arrest came three months after the French Cycling Federation cleared Longo of breaching anti-doping rules in an embarrassing blow for France's anti-doping agency.
Prosecutors in the Alpine city of Grenoble are handling the case. France's police agency responsible for anti-doping investigations, OCLAESP, also was involved.
Calls to Longo's home went unanswered.
Ciprelli was suspended by the French cycling federation last September over allegations he bought EPO. That prompted Longo to pull out of last year's Road World Championships in Holte, Denmark.
Longo's list of titles covers nine pages in "Jeannie by Longo," her biography. Longo won gold at her fourth Olympics, at Atlanta in 1996. She also has two Olympic silvers and one bronze, 13 world titles, 58 French titles and world records.
In an AP interview in February 2011, Longo's response was ambiguous when asked whether doping might be part of her longevity in cycling. She explained that there are no level playing fields in sports "because we all do what we can to be better."
-- Jamey Keaten
Horner expected to compete in Tour of California
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Defending champion Chris Horner and three-time winner Levi Leipheimer are expected to be in the field for the 2012 Amgen Tour of California, which will include a 130-mile fourth stage that will make for the race's longest day.
The seventh annual race, scheduled May 13-20, is expected to include about 140 of cycling's top riders. The roughly 800-mile route, which was announced Wednesday, will begin in Santa Rosa, Calif., and take riders into the rolling hills of Sonoma County.
The fourth stage will take riders from Sonora to Clovis during the race's longest day. The concluding eighth stage begins on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills and finishes in downtown Los Angeles. Participating teams and individual riders will be announced in the weeks just prior to the race.
Boonen wins fourth stage, closer to fourth Qatar title
DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Tom Boonen edged closer to winning his fourth Tour of Qatar title when he grabbed the fourth stage ahead of Tom Veelers and Fabian Cancellara on Wednesday.
Riding under clear skies unlike the previous day, Boonen timed his sprint to perfection, winning the 90-mile stage at Madinat Al Shamal in the northern tip of Qatar. Boonen also won the second stage this week and has won 20 overall in Qatar.
Rowing
Women, men share billing in boat race on Thames
LONDON (AP) — Women will be given equal billing with men in the annual boat race between English universities Oxford and Cambridge, staging the women's race on the same day and the same course as the men's event starting in 2015.
Organizers said the races on the River Thames in London will give the women's race a higher profile and some much-needed funding.
The 4½-mile men's race from Putney to Mortlake, which was first staged in 1829, is broadcast to 200 countries. The 1.2-mile women's race gets little media attention and has been held further down the Thames in nearby Henley for the past 35 years.
The decision to grant parity between the sexes in funding and coverage follows the path set by tennis, where equal prize money is offered at the Grand Slam tournaments.
"I'm thrilled that the women's boat race will be given equal parity with the men's," said Annabel Vernon, a rower with Britain's national team. "This provides a massive opportunity to grow women's rowing in this country."
Four-time Olympic gold medalist Matthew Pinsent said its a major advance for equality in the sport.
"We have had women's events at the Henley Royal Regatta for 10 years or so now, but this is an important step for what is one of the pre-eminent rowing races in the world and pre-eminent sporting fixtures in the world," Pinsent said.
Female rowers have struggled in the shadows of the men for years, and were only allowed to race in Olympics starting in 1976.
"The women's boat club doesn't have nearly the same coaching or logistical infrastructure behind them — they cycle to training, they have to run their own cars to drive to a race, they have to buy their own kit and pay for their own entry fees," Pinsent said. "This comes at a good time because there has been all this discussion about women in sport — it's a good moment to be welcoming them."
Female crews will be asked to row a course nearly four times the length of their usual race, providing them with a huge challenge.
"We thought about — and quickly rejected — whether it should be in any way different from the men's race," said Robert Gillespie, chairman of the Boat Race Company. "It's everybody's intention that it should be exactly the same."
Helena Morrissey, the chief executive of women's race sponsor Newton Investment Management group, has been the driving force behind gaining equality in the event.
"It is exciting to have the opportunity to fund a program which is making a real difference to university and women's rowing, as well as women's sport more generally," said Morrissey, who was a cox when she studied at Cambridge.
This year's men's race will be held on April 7.
-- Steve Douglas
Swimming
Phelps using hyperbaric chamber to aid recovery
NEW YORK (AP) — Michael Phelps is the latest athlete to use a hyperbaric chamber to aid his recovery from training.
The 16-time Olympic medalist said Wednesday he had been sleeping "at 8,000 feet every night" for almost a year. The 26-year-old swimmer noticed he bounced back from workouts better when he trained at altitude, so he's trying a device that simulates that.
"We've been able to realize after going to Colorado Springs so many times that it is something that helps me recover," Phelps said. "That's something that is so important to me now being older. I don't recover as fast as I used to."
He said the chamber looked like a fish tank: "Imagine, like, a bed with a box around it."
"It's kind of strange, but it's good," Phelps said during an appearance for sponsor Head & Shoulders. "I don't mind it. There's a giant door at the end of my bed. The worst thing is trying to watch TV in it. I've got to watch it through Plexiglas — it's blurry."
Phelps is preparing for what he says will be his final Olympics this summer in London. He won a record eight gold medals in Beijing in 2008.
Hypoxic or hyperbaric tents and chambers are used by many athletes to replicate high-altitude conditions and boost levels of oxygen-rich red blood cells. They have become popular with NFL players trying to speed their recovery from injuries.
In 2006, the World Anti-Doping Agency's ethics committee ruled that such chambers enhance performance and violate "the spirit of sport," but the executive committee refrained from adding them to their list of prohibited substances and methods, instead asking for studies to look further into health implications.
-- Rachel Cohen
