Olympic Hopeful Has Reasons to Cry : Bruin Sprinter Has to Beat Allergies, Injuries and Face Carl Lewis

By ROB FERNAS

July 7, 1988 12 AM PT

Times Staff Writer

UCLA sprinter Henry Thomas cried a lot this spring.

They were not tears of sorrow, although no one would have blamed him, considering the disappointments he has endured in recent years.

Nor were they tears of joy, which conceivably could have flowed after Thomas anchored UCLA’s 1,600-meter relay team for a collegiate record of 2 minutes, 59.91 seconds to cap the Bruins’ second straight NCAA track title June 4 at Eugene, Ore.

Call them tears of nature. Thomas got misty-eyed this season because of allergies, which flared up more seriously than usual and forced the former Hawthorne High School standout to miss several weeks of training.

“The pollen got real bad at one time this spring,” he said. “That’s when it started giving me problems. Coughing, runny eyes, runny nose. I coughed for two weeks straight when the pollen got real bad.”

With the help of medication, Thomas has his allergies under control and his sights focused on the U. S. Olympic Track and Field Trials. The qualifying meet for the Seoul Games in September begins July 15 at Indianapolis, where Thomas will compete in the 100 and 200 meters against a strong field headed by Carl Lewis.

UCLA sprint coach John Smith says Thomas, after a slow start, is peaking in time for the biggest meet of the year.

“He’s starting to get his race rhythm back together,” Smith said. “This year has been difficult for him because he got sick. But even with only two weeks of good practice, he’s been doing well. I take my hat off to him.

“The one advantage he has, if he makes the team, is that he will fare much better later in the season. All of his competitors know there is a race in him that he hasn’t run yet.”

Thomas has been considered an Olympic hopeful since 1983, the year he led Hawthorne to the first of three straight state titles by winning the 200 and anchoring both relays to first-place marks as a sophomore. The next year, he contributed to four wins at the state meet, adding the 100 to his conquests.

Before he graduated, Thomas set state prep records in the 100 (10.25), 200 (20.4) and 400 (45.09).

“As a complete sprinter, from the 100 to the 400,” said Hawthorne Coach Kye Courtney, “I don’t think anybody has been as good as him.”

Starting late in his high school career, however, Thomas has dealt with a series of bad breaks.

An appendectomy prevented him from competing in the CIF finals and state meet his senior year. He suffered a stress fracture in a foot during his freshman year at UCLA that caused him to miss the NCAA meet. Then last year he had hamstring discomfort.

When reminded of his injuries and illnesses, Thomas doesn’t bat an eye. He says it’s all part of being a sprinter.

“I think everything happens for a reason,” he said. “I just try to learn from whatever happens. I try to keep a positive attitude. That’s what helped me when things were going bad.”

UCLA sprinter Michael Marsh, Thomas’ teammate since their junior year at Hawthorne, says his close friend handles adversity well.

“I think it’s made him stronger,” said Marsh, who will compete in the 100 at the Olympic trials. “When those things happen, everybody thinks it’s all bad. But there’s good that comes out of stuff like that. It makes you tougher mentally. When you’re out there running, it’s 90% mental.”

Marsh speaks from experience. He overcame hamstring pulls on both legs to contribute heavily to UCLA’s national championship. He placed fourth in the 100 at the NCAA meet and teamed with Thomas to help the Bruins take second in the 4x100 relay.

Thomas and Marsh say they will try to make the Olympic team again in 1992 if things don’t work out this time. Both are young. Thomas will turn 21 on Sunday and Marsh is 20.

However, both juniors are confident they have a fighting chance at the trials. In the most recent issue of Track and Field News, Thomas is rated fourth in the nation in the 200 and Marsh is rated fifth in the 100. They returned last week from a two-week tour of Europe where Thomas ran 20.41 seconds in the 200 and Marsh did 10.15 in the 100, both world-class marks.

“Henry and Michael are the types of individuals who run better as they progress through heats,” said Smith, a former UCLA All-American, 1972 Olympian and 440-yard-dash record holder. “Anybody can run one race. The Olympic trials is a series of races. You find out who’s durable and who’s mentally prepared.”

Marsh likes his chances at the trials, even though he is not considered a favorite. The top three finishers will qualify for the Olympic 100. Fourth place earns a spot on the 4x100 relay team.

“The 100 is anybody’s race,” he said. “Anything can happen. The rankings don’t really mean anything. Whoever’s the freshest and can run rounds is going to do well.”

Thomas, third-place finisher in the 200 at the NCAA championships, will run the 100 at the trials in order to stay sharp for the 200, his specialty. There was talk that he would start running the 400 this season, but Smith says those plans were put on hold because of Thomas’ allergies.

Moreover, UCLA already has two outstanding quarter-milers in junior Danny Everett and freshman phenom Steve Lewis, who placed 1-2 at the NCAA meet.

“(Thomas) will move to the 400 later in his career,” Smith said. “Since he got sick, he lost a great deal of conditioning. The 400 requires a little more conditioning. He doesn’t need as much conditioning to run the 200. He’s running the 200 faster. He should be able to approach 20 (seconds). It’s just a matter of time before he runs sub-20s and moves into the 400.”

Thomas must finish among the top three in the 200 to qualify for the Olympic team. He believes he’s capable of that, but he knows it won’t be easy. Some of the big names he’ll be competing against are Lewis, who won four gold medals at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, NCAA 100 champion Joe DeLoach of Houston and Calvin Smith, the former world-record holder in the 100.

“Basically everybody at the trials is a threat,” Thomas said. “There’s a whole gang of them, a whole list. But I’m feeling pretty good. I’m back on schedule and working on things. The closer it gets (to the trials), the more confident I feel.”

Thomas and Marsh said they enjoyed themselves on the recent tour of Europe. Enthusiastic fans filled large stadiums and created an Olympic-like atmosphere at meets in Sweden, Switzerland and France.

“We’re like stars, absolute stars,” Thomas said. “It’s incredible. The meets over there are like an NFL game or a college football game. Everybody wants your autograph. It makes you want to run. When you run over here, it’s sort of a letdown after you go over there and experience that. Meets over here, like Mt. SAC, are like a Little League baseball game compared to meets over there.”

It’s possible Thomas will be performing regularly in front of large crowds starting next fall. He says he’s considering going out for football at UCLA.

“I’ve talked to some people about it,” he said. “I’m trying to decide if I should play college ball or if I should wait and see if I get drafted.”

Thomas last played football his freshman year at Hawthorne High. He played running back and linebacker and was named the freshmen team’s most outstanding back. Because of his speed and size (6-foot-1, 170 pounds), Thomas would most likely play wide receiver.

“I love playing football,” he said. “It was hard for me to stay out of football in high school. I figured track would open more doors as far as where I wanted to go to college. I just thought it was best for me.” But there is more money in football than track. Asked what he would do if an NFL team drafts him and offers a lucrative contract, Thomas replied, “Then I’ll just have to take it.”

That would mean passing up the 1992 Olympics. Wouldn’t that be passing up the ultimate goal of a track athlete? Thomas isn’t so sure.

“I’ve been thinking about the Olympics, but it hasn’t been a goal,” he said. “I’ve always been moving in that direction. Everything just sort of evolved.

“This will be my first Olympic trials. Naturally I want to do well, but I’m just concentrating on getting through the rounds. The goal I have is just to make it to the final of my event. If it doesn’t work out for some reason, I’ll be looking down the road to ’92.”

Unless, of course, an NFL team offers him serious cash.

As for Marsh, he says he will definitely try out for the Olympic team again in four years.

“I’ll be back in ‘92,” he said. “I’ll be more mature then. I’ll be closer to the age (24) where I’ll be peaking. In ‘92, I’ll run the 100 and 200. I haven’t trained for the 200, but I definitely think I can run it.”

Smith expects Thomas and Marsh to be successful, regardless of what path they follow in athletics. Both have overcome adversity this season and are prepared to give their best efforts at the Olympic trials.

“The thing I’m impressed with is that they are both strong in character,” Smith said. “All the setbacks you have test the strength of your character. When these two gentlemen reach the top, they’ll be OK.

“You have to have that humbleness so you can handle the greatness.”