ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, July 26, 1996 TAG: 9607260053
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: ATLANTA
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
BROOKE BENNETT clinches the gold medal in the women's 800 freestyle as teammate Janet Evans finishes her last race sixth.
Brooke Bennett stood where Janet Evans did eight years ago - an American teen on a gold medal podium.
Bennett had just won the 800-meter freestyle, the race Evans dominated for a decade. Yet the 16-year-old knows one gold medal isn't enough to replace a legend.
``Even 20 years down the road, everybody's going to remember Janet,'' Bennett said Thursday night. ``I think Janet's always going to be the queen of distance swimming.''
Evans, who finished a poor sixth, now has four Olympic gold medals, three world records and no more races.
``I'm 24 and an ex-swimmer,'' she proclaimed, following through on her plans to retire after the Atlanta Games. ``Ten years is a long career for a distance swimmer. I leave with a smile on my face.''
Alexander Popov confirmed his supremacy as the world's greatest sprinter. He beat Gary Hall Jr. of Phoenix in the 50 freestyle, giving him gold medals in the 50 and 100 freestyles in consecutive Olympics.
And Hungary had a big night as Krisztina Egerszegi won her third straight Olympic 200 backstroke, and Attila Czene pulled an upset in the 200 individual medley. Egerszegi became the first swimmer in Olympic history to win five individual gold medals. She won a gold in 1988 and was a triple gold winner at Barcelona.
The United States won its 10th swimming gold of the games when the women's 800 freestyle team made it 5-for-5 for the country in relays in the final race of the night. America can sweep the relays by winning the men's 400 medley tonight, the final night of competition.
Evans took Seoul by storm as a 17-year-old at the 1988 Summer Games. She won the 400 and 800 freestyles and 400 IM. In 1992, she repeated in the 800 but finished second in the 400 freestyle, her first loss in that event in six years.
After the race, Evans swam into Bennett's lane 4 and they hugged. It was a rare sight in a rocky relationship. Bennett said last year that Evans was scared that Bennett was catching up to her.
Evans missed tying speedskater Bonnie Blair's record of five Olympic gold medals by an American woman. And the record of Australian Dawn Fraser, the only woman to win the same individual event at three consecutive Olympics, also remained out of reach. Two races later, Egerszegi matched Fraser's achievement.
Whitney Hedgepeth of Rocky Mount, N.C., won a silver medal in the 200 backstroke, finishing far behind Egerszegi in a time of 2:07.83. Hedgepeth's time of 2:11.98 beat bronze medalist Cathleen Rund of Germany.
The United States relay team of Trina Jackson, Cristina Teuscher, Sheila Taormina and Jenny Thompson won in an Olympic record 7:59.87. Germany was second and Australia third.
America came up empty in the 200 IM as Greg Burgess finished sixth, and Tom Dolan, who won the 400 IM, was seventh.
LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: AP U.S. swimmer Janet Evans leans on a lane marker inby CNBdejection after finishing sixth Thursday night in the women's
800-meter freestyle in Atlanta. Evans' teammate, Brooke Bennett, won
the gold medal. color