The world gets a new fastest man -- in record time

 ATLANTA -- Michael Johnson did more than win an Olympic gold medal in record-shattering time at the Olympic Stadium Wednesday night. He also shattered a myth.
 Throughout the 100 years of the modern Olympics it has been accepted as irrefutable that whoever won the men's 100-metre final was the world's fastest man.
 Now along comes the man in the golden boots.
 Sorry, Donovan, but 200-metre rocket Michael Johnson stole your title. No man is faster than Johnson.
 Not since Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier four decades ago has the world seen anything like the boom left in Johnson's wake. His gold-medal winning time of 19.32 stands as perhaps the most remarkable achievment in Olympic history.
 Stop and think about that time: 19.32. Until the U.S. Olmpic trials five weeks ago, the world 200 record of 19.72 had stood for 17 years. When Johnson shaved 6/100ths off the record in June it was hailed as a remarkable achievment. Now, in one amazing night, he has lowered the record by 34/100ths, more than a third of a second.
 It would be like Ken Griffey hitting 80 home runs in a season, or Mario Lemieux scoring 120 goals, or Barry Sanders rushing for 3,000 yards.
 Or Donovan Bailey running 100 metres in 9.66 seconds.
 Bailey won the 100-metre gold medal last Saturday in a world-record time of 9.84 seconds. If he was able to maintain that remarkable speed over 200 metres, which he couldn't, his time would be 19.68 seconds -- and Johnson would have smoked him.
 Or look at it this way: If Johnson ran his first 100 metres in 10 seconds flat, his second 100 would have to be covered in 9.32 seconds. If he ran each 100 metres at the same speed, the time for each would be 9.66 seconds.
 Anyway you figure it, the times are staggering. Johnson accomplised what, up until 9 p.m. on Thursday night, seemed impossible.
 "What does it feel like to go that fast? It's an incredible thrill,'' Johnson said.
 Johnson came to the track last night to make history. He was determined to add the 200 gold medal to the 400 gold he won earlier in the week and become the first man in Olympic history to turn that double. He also wanted to lower his world record. He believed he could take it to 19.5 or maybe a bit lower if conditions were ideal.
 But 19.32? It's mind boggling.
 "I can't even describe how it feels to break a world record by that much,'' Johnson said.
 "I knew I was running faster than 19.66, but I didn't know I was that fast.''
 Prior to settling into the blocks, Johnson had found winning international races easier than winning public recognition. The 200 and 400-metre events lack the glamour of the 100 metres, or the 1,500 or the decathlon.
 A 200 specialist is usually a sprinter who lacks the explosiveness and power required in the 100. He is sprinting's equivalent to a boxing light heavyweight champion, respected but not beloved like a heavyweight champ.
 But Johnson changed all that in 19.32 incredible seconds. He usurped Bailey as the story of these Games, and he made people forget that Dan O'Brien was still on the track and about to become the first American decathlon gold medallist in 20 years. He stole the show and won 80,00 hearts in an Olympic Stadium turned delirious with excitement.
 What he did was redefine sprinting and establish himself as the greatest sprinter in Olympics history. All it took was 19.32 amazing seconds.