With Tightly Packed Runners

WITH TIGHTLY PACKED RUNNERS jockeying for position, distance races run around a track sometimes look like an accident waiting to happen. And in the 1984 Olympics, a tragic stumble cost Mary Decker a gold medal.

The 26-year-old California native missed the 1976 Games due to injury and the 1980 Games because of an American boycott. Running in the 3,000 meters in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Decker led the pack from the outset.

A little over halfway through the event, South African Zola Budd and Romanian Maricica Puica challenged the former world-record holder in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters. Budd, an 18-year-old who had immigrated to England to sidestep the Olympic boycott, attempted to pass Decker coming out of a turn.

The tightly bunched pack allowed Decker no maneuvering room. She shortened her stride for a couple of steps, but her right thigh grazed Budd’s left foot. Knocked off balance, the barefoot South African runner swayed slightly to the left, causing Decker’s right foot to strike Budd’s left calf.

The American fell to the track and rolled to the infield. Hoping to rejoin the race, Decker jumped to her feet but quickly fell back to the ground due to a pulled hip-stabilizer muscle. Shaken by the incident involving Decker, Budd lost her lead. She finished seventh. Track officials originally disqualified the South African for illegal contact, but a videotape review prompted an appeal jury to unanimously reinstate her placement.

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POINT Both Zola Budd and Mary Decker stumbled during that important Olympic race. Although Budd still had a chance, she didn’t hold up under pressure. Budd had grown up admiring Decker. The American’s exit from the race after training for eight years rattled the South African. Neither runner was blessed with a good race.

The psalmist sang about God’s blessings and about our tendency to stumble. If we live in a way that delights the Lord, we may stumble, but we won’t fall. God will hold us up and help us back to our feet. With God’s help, you can finish life’s race as a winner.

GOAL! Watch a long race on TV and see how easy it would be to fall. Now think how simple it is to make a mistake and stumble in everyday life. God will keep you firmly on his path if you keep following him.